In this decade, high school students have been plagued with many issues stemming from social media, overwhelming school work, and general conflicts with their peers. School counselors provide a safe space for students to go to talk about their struggles. Counselors bear the knowledge of countless students’ emotional struggles year-round, and while they don’t ask for any thanks in return, it’s always nice to feel appreciated.  

Today ends National School Counseling Week. Created to focus attention on the contribution of counselors.The week highlights the impact school counselors can have in helping students. National School Counseling Week is always celebrated the first full week in February.

Students appreciate the attentive, nurturing counselors and all the work they do to be sources of comfort. Some students only talk to their counselors about schedules, but the professionals help students through tough times and educate and inform students on colleges, careers and life after high school. 

“I’ve had bad experiences with counselors in the past but having Mrs. Wheaton has made me realize that I can still come to counselors when I need help,” sophomore Conner Gustin said. “She’s direct, she doesn’t sugar coat things and it feels like I’m talking to someone who has some level of respect for me instead of just treating me like a child.” 

Even small acts, such as making sure students don’t have to wait extended periods of time to be seen, go a long way toward improving student opinions of their counseling staff. 

“Mrs. Wheaton is a really good counselor, she doesn’t put a wait time on how long it’ll take me to see her and she gets things done,” sophomore Lauryl Hill said. “She’s super respectful in the sense that she’s really direct with students and doesn’t baby people.” 

Aside from offering emotional advice, counselors have played a big part in helping students figure out their futures. 

“The counselors here have done so much to help me plan out my future and just make my educational experience better overall,” junior Jasmin Davis said. “Mrs. King has helped me a lot with scholarships and given me information to help me apply and Miss Neuman helped me with transcripts and gave me a lot of information about how they can benefit me.” 

All around, the counselors do their best to make sure that students are guaranteed a bright future if they’re willing to work for it.  

“I went to speak with Mrs.Wheaton earlier this year to get my slip signed so I could have a day off for college tours,” senior Allison Hunter said. “ She was very polite and helpful throughout the entire process and I think the counselors here do a great job of promoting student success.”

Approachability is another trait the school counselors are praised for. It’s an attribute that many students appreciate as it makes their lives easier as well. 

“For me, Mrs. Adkinson was much more approachable than the other counselors and really easy to talk to,” senior Michiko Jones said. “I had to go talk to her about my schedule, and she was really helpful when it came to guiding me through the process.”