Sessions of 2026 Midwinter Leadership Conference: Christina Culbertson
Culbertson, Christina
Assistant Chair
Since beginning her career as a school counselor in 2007, Christina has been deeply committed to supporting students during critical developmental years by fostering their academic self-confidence, social-emotional growth, and readiness for future opportunities. Drawing on expertise in child development, learning strategies, and collaborative problem-solving, she has delivered education, prevention, and intervention services that remove barriers to learning and support student success through a range of modalities, including individual and group counseling, crisis response, college and career readiness programming, and partnership with families and school teams. In 2022, she transitioned into district leadership as the Counselor Coordinator for Tempe Elementary School District, where she now coaches and mentors school counselors, builds supportive systems aligned to district goals, provides professional development, leads prevention and intervention initiatives, supports crisis response as a member of the District Crisis Team, and partners with district leaders to strengthen counseling services across all campuses. Tina also plays an active role in advancing the school counseling profession statewide—she serves on the Board of Directors for the Arizona School Counselor Association (AzSCA) and is the current Assistant Chair, advocating for high-quality counseling programs and championing the needs of students and educators throughout Arizona.
Sessions:
Igniting Futures: A Statewide Vision for Career-Connected Learning
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Prescott Resort & Conference Center
What if every Arizona middle school student entered high school with clarity, confidence, and purpose? Arizona’s Middle School Career Exploration 3-Year Partnership Plan aims to make that vision a reality. This session highlights a statewide collaboration among key partners and invites others to join in building a system where all students experience high-quality, developmentally appropriate career literacy and exploration. Participants will explore recommended policy alignments, professional learning supports, and local implementation models that help students identify their strengths, connect learning to real-world opportunities, and design pathways to success. The session unpacks research-based components of quality career exploration, the development of early Education and Career Action Plans (ECAPs), and evidence of their impact on student engagement and learning. Attendees will leave inspired by how career-connected learning in middle school fuels motivation, strengthens durability skills, and expands opportunity, extending the runway to every learner’s future.
