Middle School Counseling

The mission of the Middle School Counselor is to support the learning of middle school students and to ensure that student needs are met in academic and social-emotional areas. The counselor’s goal is to facilitate the growth and well being of each student and to provide interventions of conflict and problem resolution. The Guidance Counselor provides prevention instruction to the entire student body to promote a safe and respectful learning environment.

The Counselor communicates with the Middle School students on a regular basis through the Advisory course, designed to promote skills and attitudes that increase student success in early adolescent years. The current guidance program, combined with the new counseling curriculum, Second Step, integrates into the instructional program. The program focuses on the offering of services and activities in order to maximize student emotional, behavioral and learning processes.

The counseling program includes four domains of services throughout the entire school year: Guidance Curriculum, Responsive Services, System Support and Individual Student Planning.

Guidance Curriculum:

• Providing or assisting with individual, small group or classroom guidance homeroom lessons
• Interventions that aim to enhance student organizational skills, healthy study habits, and time management
• Goal-setting and solution-based decision-making
• Career awareness, exploration, and planning
• Monthly educational assemblies on various topics: peer relationships, healthy boundaries, friendship, bullying and cyber-bullying, effective social skills, stress, mindfulness, anger management, increasing self-esteem, effects of gaming, and transition to upper school
• Education on communication, problem-solving, and conflict resolution skills
• Promoting substance abuse awareness
• Sensitivity to multicultural diversity and enhancing positive identity development
• Advocating for a safe school environment

Responsive Services:

• Individual and/or small-group counseling
• Individual/family/school crisis intervention
• Conflict mediation

System Support:

• Referrals to Student Services Coordinator or other external services.
• Consultation and collaboration with teachers, parents, administrators, and community mental health professionals
• Informational Parents’ Workshop – Coffee Talk

Individual Student Planning:

• Guidance with academic support and tutorial information
• Goal setting and decision-making

Students, I look forward to supporting you and helping you become a well-rounded individual. Parents and the Brent community, I am here to help you and your child during these formative years, please contact me if I can help in any way. Salamat po!