Counseling
At Grenada School District, our hope is this: if each child knows that someone in the school — aside from teachers and friends — truly cares about his or her progress, then that student will be more motivated to succeed.
We have implemented a district-wide advocate program to provide each student, from kindergarten through 12th grade, with an adult mentor to guide them on a path of study that fits his or her interests, as well as help them succeed academically, socially, and emotionally.
As early as kindergarten, concepts of career planning are introduced. The kids are shown how grown-ups choose a career they enjoy and work hard together to make a community function. That work is continue in each grade through our innovative curriculum that consistently ties lessons to future career options.
As students progress through each grade, counselors begin to meet with students individually to determine if they need a boost of confidence or mentoring, all the while reinforcing the importance of keeping grades high in order to meet their goals.
* At Grenada Elementary, counselors teach lessons designed to develop the self-discipline, ambition, and social skills needed to succeed. They endorse good “Charger Traits,” illustrating how respectful behavior and communication enhances one’s chances of success. Our elementary counselors work with teachers to customize character-building lessons for each unique group of children, whether it be a lesson on bullying or activities to help build study habits.
* At Grenada Upper Elementary, we’ve implemented a transition program to educate fifth graders and their parents about the many new options at the middle school with our new emphasis on innovation and career pathways.
* Nowhere is counseling-based communication more important than at the middle and high school level, where students will begin plotting their career aspirations. Just like in colleges and universities, students at Grenada Middle and High School will chart their own course of study, based on their individual interests and career aspirations.
* In eighth grade, students meet multiple times with their counselor to develop a path of study in their field of interest. By the end of the school year, they will have worked with their counselor to complete an Individual Student Success Plan (ISP). They’ll set goals for themselves, whether it be a route to college or straight to a career out of high school, and proceed down the right path.
* At our Career and Technical School, the opportunities to advance in trades such as welding, carpentry, culinary arts, and automotive repair continue to expand, with more vocational learning on the horizon. Counselors are able to establish connections with our many local partners in industry to match students with the right employer for hiring.
* At the high school, counselors work with students to prepare them for college, both guiding them through college-prep courses and exams as well as directing them toward scholarship opportunities and helping them complete the often-rigorous applications.
Our schools have dedicated officers where students can meet with their counselors. We’ve also set up counselor websites to make it easier for students to make appointments and communicate with their advocate. We want parents to know their child’s advocate as well and to keep them updated on the new academic opportunities that continue to arise each semester.
At GSD, we’re always searching for ways to meet our goals. Our comprehensive counseling program is essential to meet two of our biggest aims — to ensure that every student leaves high school with a diploma, and to prepare them for college and careers. We believe more meaningful, career-oriented counseling, catered to the needs of the individual, will produce more confident students who are better prepared to take advantage of career and educational opportunities after high school.