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School Counselors by Choice

To celebrate National School Counseling Week, four school counselors — all graduates of HGSE's Certificate of Advanced Study (C.A.S.) in Counseling Program — share what their careers mean to them and the students they serve every day
Photo of Virginia Valerio
Virginia Valerio, Ed.M.'13, C.A.S.'14
Cristo Rey New York High School, East Harlem, New York

I am a school counselor because… I believe that the mental well-being of every young person should be at the forefront of our roles as educators and agents of social change. They are our future. I felt called to school counseling first through my passion for mental health and secondly through my desire to work with young people as I felt they were a misunderstood and vulnerable population. That’s how I came to discover the school social work/adjustment counseling strand at HGSE. Every moment as a school counselor has affirmed for me that every developing being deserves a safe space to be themselves because it is in their authentic being where healing and transformation can begin.

School counselors help students thrive by… attuning to their needs and maintaining an unwavering belief in their capacity to flourish. Every student is unique, different, and working with their own unmet emotional need whether they are conscious of it or not. Often, these unmet emotional needs become exacerbated in high school when stress, pressure, and overwhelm get compounded. School counselors must be attentive to the whole person, factoring in their family health history, risk/protective factors, and strengths among so many others. We must meet them where they are and guide them where they are ready to go. By helping them process pain and discomfort in a counseling session, we can help them to adopt over time new mindsets that propel them out of unhealthy patterns and into healthier habits influenced by a shifted or growth mindset.

"School counselors must be attentive to the whole person, factoring in their family health history, risk/protective factors, and strengths among so many others. We must meet them where they are and guide them where they are ready to go." 

Every student needs a school counselor who… is trustworthy. Students must intuitively know that their counselor is someone they can trust in moments of challenge as much as in moments of celebration. Additionally, every student needs a school counselor who helps them to remember that who they are is enough. I am reminded of how important this is when students come to my office in tears equating their grades, college acceptances, lack of awards, and so forth to their worth. When they measure their worth to what they do versus who they are, I gently remind them of their worth as independent of their actions. 

Something I learned at HGSE which I use in my practice often is… The education and internship experience at HGSE provided a firm foundation from which many words of wisdom, knowledge come to mind when I am in my professional role. The H304 course known at the time as Legal and Ethical Issues in Child Advocacy has been instrumental in helping me to determine my due diligence when cases of ethical issues arise. Additionally, I’ll never forget when my Preventative and Developmental Group Counseling professor explained to us that we can validate our client’s feelings without agreeing with them. This has made all the difference in my work with adolescents!


Photo of Han Nah Park
Han Nah Park, Ed.M.'21, C.A.S.'22
Australian International School of Singapore / Singapore 

I am a school counselor because... I firmly believe in the power that one one caring adult can have on a student’s life. Growing up as a Third-Culture Kid attending international schools all around the world, I often saw that there was a severe lack of support in helping families and students navigate complex realities that were specific to living abroad. School counselors have the incredible privilege to closely walk alongside students and families, ultimately with the goal of helping every student of any background fully thrive in the school setting.

School counselors help students thrive by… developing and implementing preventative Tier I programs that support student wellbeing, providing small group levels of support for more targeted interventions, and providing individual counseling support for students. More simply though— by building loving and trusting relationships!

"School counselors have the incredible privilege to closely walk alongside students and families, ultimately with the goal of helping every student of any background fully thrive in the school setting."

Every student needs a school counselor who… is a safe space and sees/affirms the different realities and backgrounds that students are coming from. Students come from such diverse backgrounds — and having someone in the school community who is able to truly make students feel seen in their different realities can be truly life changing.

Something I learned at HGSE which I use in my practice often… is the ability to see the child in context and work with the community and families to develop holistic supports for the student, the ability to understand the student in the intersectionality of their identities, and the interpersonal/counseling skills to listen to students and families without judgment and bias.


Photo of Jessica Middlebrook
Jessica Middlebrook, Ed.M.'07, C.A.S.'08
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, Cambridge

I am a school counselor because… I love kids and I love schools. Kids spend a huge portion of their lives in schools and it is imperative that they are places where students of all backgrounds and abilities feel safe, supported, and connected. As a counselor, I can work to foster environments that celebrate students’ identities, lift up their voices, and help them find their passions. Counselors are uniquely positioned to see students for who they are and be powerful advocates for them as whole people. I love nothing more than helping kids develop the skills they need to be confident, empathic, and empowered to tell their own stories and achieve their goals. I feel so privileged that I get to connect with students, caregivers, and teachers in this unique way.

School counselors help students thrive by… creating spaces where they feel safe and supported expressing all aspects of their identities. We provide guidance, support, and resources tailored to students’ individual needs. We work collaboratively with students, teachers, and families to develop personalized interventions that address academic, social, and emotional challenges and build skills. We advocate for their needs until they are able to do so themselves, and strive to reduce the stigma of mental health challenges. Students cannot learn if they are not regulated, safe, and feeling cared for. We help students thrive by normalizing feelings, struggles, and challenges while building skills and resilience.

"As a counselor, I can work to foster environments that celebrate students’ identities, lift up their voices, and help them find their passions."

Every student needs a school counselor who… sees them for who they are without judgment and who is approachable, empathetic, and dedicated to their success. They need a school counselor who is not afraid to advocate for them and empower them, and can balance high expectations with empathy and understanding. School counselors should be committed to engaging in and modeling self-reflection, humility, and continuous learning and be ready to engage in difficult conversations rooted in justice and equity.

Something I learned at HGSE which I use in my practice often is… Bronfrenbrenner’s theory of ecological systems is the basis for my approach to counseling. An ecological lens is imperative to providing effective support and helping to make change for individuals and systems beyond the counseling office. The practices of cultural humility and active anti-racism that were infused in every course I took at HGSE have provided the foundation upon which I base each interaction I have with members of my community. 


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Dave Lewis, Ed.M.'12, C.A.S.'13
Ruth Batson Academy, Dorchester, Massachusetts

I am a school counselor because… I get the chance to support students and help meet their needs to live happy and fulfilling lives. I work with adolescent multilingual learners so I get to provide academic and postsecondary planning and also support students in more holistic ways like resource connecting, navigating systems, health and wellness, and the immigration process. A big part of my work involves collaborating with families. My own family is multilingual and multiracial and I grew up in urban schools, so the work is very personal to me. My students have complicated lives and face unique challenges, and it truly takes a team to figure out the right resources and interventions that each student needs. 

School counselors help students thrive by… Serving as essentially an in-school case worker to oversee every aspect of our students' development. The service or support we provide may look very different for a student who is excelling in their classes but having difficulty socially, versus a student who is struggling with mental health challenges, is unhoused, or experienced a recent family disruption. But they all need and deserve support. I am fortunate to be part of a very talented and experienced counseling team, and like our students each counselor has their unique set of talents and gifts. However, we all utilize data, communicate constantly with families, and provide therapeutic spaces and services. Both the strength and the demanding responsibility of counselors is that we're responsible for having a pulse on how every student on our caseload is doing and figuring out what to do to help them thrive.

"Both the strength and the demanding responsibility of counselors is that we're responsible for having a pulse on how every student on our caseload is doing and figuring out what to do to help them thrive."

Every student needs a school counselor who… Loves working with young people and sees the best in them. We are successful in this work when we can provide empathetic responses and be solution-oriented even when students make mistakes. Students deserve counselors who will be their relentless champion, ally, and advocate — but who will also have tough conversations and hold them accountable. Every student deserves a counselor who is self-reflective, committed to their own growth, and has the humility to seek and take feedback. Counselors must be culturally affirming, understand their own positionality, and be able to connect with students who are neurodiverse or who may have behavioral or attendance issues. Students need counselors who will share a meal or a hug with them when they need it, and who they know they could call on for help when they have no one else to turn to.

Something I learned at HGSE which I use in my practice often is… To be data-driven and to use the ASCA model as a framework for how we can divide our attention and time. I was fortunate enough to be able to take coursework in both the School Counseling and Adjustment strands, and went on to obtain both licenses. This range of courses gave me both a clinical and a systems lens, both of which I apply constantly. HGSE also trained me to be a collaborative practitioner and a coalition builder so that every student has not only a counselor but a team of adults on their side who are working together in partnership with the student and family.

Responses collected by Marcela Dodi

HGSE offers a pathway to a school counseling license in Massachusetts through a two-year curricular sequence of coursework and field-based placements. This pathway prepares counselors-in-training with the skills necessary to promote positive, healthy academic and social emotional development in students with an emphasis on prevention, equity, and systemic change. 

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