Rachel Rice of Bryan Station High School (Fayette County) has been named the 2015 School Psychologist of the Year by the Kentucky Association for Psychology in the Schools.

Rice, who will be the state nominee for the national school psychologist of the year award, also received a Best Practices Award at October’s state conference in Louisville.

“Being a school psychologist is so important to me because schools have the unique opportunity and responsibility to serve all youth for a large portion of their early lives,” Rice said. “No matter what is or is not occurring in students’ lives outside of school, school psychologists are in the position to support students’ holistic development and prepare them for a life of well-being.”

A Lexington native, Rice spent a semester studying child development and special education programming in Copenhagen, Denmark, while completing her bachelor’s degree in psychology and educational studies at Transylvania University. She then earned a school psychology degree from Eastern Kentucky University.

This is Rice’s first year in Fayette County Public Schools.

“While I am still getting my bearings, I am excited about the opportunities for individual and group counseling, staff consultation, and staff/family collaboration that are available and encouraged on a daily basis,” she said.