SAC Technology & Digital Tools 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A SAC program adopts a universal prevention curriculum delivered via an interactive online platform. Which feature is MOST important for ensuring fidelity to the evidence-based model?
- Built-in facilitator guides and completion tracking aligned to the original curriculum (Correct answer)
- Customizable content that allows significant modification of core messages
- Gamification features that replace structured lesson activities
- Integration with student grades to incentivize participation
Correct answer: Built-in facilitator guides and completion tracking aligned to the original curriculum
Program fidelity requires delivering content as designed; built-in guides and tracking ensure the evidence-based curriculum is implemented correctly.
Question 2: When a school implements a crisis text line partnership (e.g., Crisis Text Line), the SAC counselor's role in the digital ecosystem includes:
- Serving as a warm handoff point when students are referred back to school by crisis counselors (Correct answer)
- Managing and responding to student text messages directly
- Evaluating which students are permitted to use the service
- Replacing in-person counseling with digital crisis response exclusively
Correct answer: Serving as a warm handoff point when students are referred back to school by crisis counselors
SAC counselors support digital crisis services by receiving referrals and providing in-school follow-up for students who used the text-based crisis service.
Question 3: A counselor wants to assess a student's digital media consumption patterns as part of a substance use evaluation. Which approach is MOST ethically sound?
- Ask the student directly about their online activity during the structured assessment interview (Correct answer)
- Access the student's accounts using school network monitoring logs without disclosure
- Require the student to share their device password for review
- Subpoena social media records through the school administration
Correct answer: Ask the student directly about their online activity during the structured assessment interview
Directly asking the student about digital behavior respects their autonomy and maintains the therapeutic relationship without covert surveillance.
Question 4: Which of the following BEST describes the purpose of a Student Assistance Program (SAP) data management system?
- Track referrals, interventions, outcomes, and compile aggregate program data for reporting (Correct answer)
- Store student academic grades and attendance only
- Manage scheduling for all school counseling departments
- Automate parent notification for all disciplinary actions
Correct answer: Track referrals, interventions, outcomes, and compile aggregate program data for reporting
SAP-specific data systems are designed to track the full intervention lifecycle and generate outcome reports needed for program evaluation and funding.
Question 5: A school purchases an AI-powered behavioral health screening app. Before deploying it, the SAC counselor should FIRST verify:
- Whether the tool has been validated with adolescent populations and reviewed for algorithmic bias (Correct answer)
- That the app has the highest user ratings in the app store
- Whether the vendor offers the lowest per-student licensing cost
- That the app can replace the need for counselor-led assessments entirely
Correct answer: Whether the tool has been validated with adolescent populations and reviewed for algorithmic bias
AI screening tools must be validated for the specific population and evaluated for bias before clinical use in schools to ensure they provide accurate, equitable results.
Question 6: Under HIPAA's interaction with school settings, a SAC counselor employed directly by the school district (not a healthcare provider) must comply primarily with:
- FERPA, because school employee records are education records and HIPAA generally does not apply (Correct answer)
- HIPAA, because any health-related discussion triggers its protections
- Both HIPAA and FERPA equally for all student health records
- Neither, because school counselors are exempt from all privacy laws
Correct answer: FERPA, because school employee records are education records and HIPAA generally does not apply
School employees acting in their school function are covered by FERPA, not HIPAA; HIPAA applies only to covered healthcare entities and their business associates.
Question 7: A SAC counselor uses a digital risk-assessment tool that flags a student as 'high risk.' The counselor's next step should be:
- Conduct a clinical interview to validate the digital flag before taking action (Correct answer)
- Immediately notify law enforcement based on the algorithm's output
- Send an automated alert to the student's parents without further assessment
- Discharge the student as low priority because the tool may be inaccurate
Correct answer: Conduct a clinical interview to validate the digital flag before taking action
Digital tools assist clinical judgment but do not replace it; a face-to-face clinical interview is needed to confirm risk level before intervention decisions are made.
SAC Technology & Digital Tools 3
A SAC program adopts a universal prevention curriculum delivered via an interactive online platform.
Which feature is MOST important for ensuring fidelity to the evidence-based model?