Most students think of their counselors only when they need to change a class or request recommendation letters. But at M-A, counselors do a lot more than that.
From helping students through a hard day to making them aware of their post-grad opportunities, M-A’s eight counselors spend their days serving students.
Each counselor supports about 280 students, assigned alphabetically by last name, through their high school journey. This involves a variety of tasks. “The reason why I have been able to do my job so long is because I don’t do the same thing all the time. It varies by season. It varies by month, and I love it so much,” counselor Karina Escobar-Weaver said. For her, a typical day is meeting with staff, planning for the rest of the year, making sure students are on track for graduation, and writing letters of recommendation.
However, many counselors say the highlight of their job is interacting with students. “My favorite part about my job is honestly working with the students,” counselor Emilie Bohorquez said.
Despite their busy schedules, counselors try to support students beyond academics. Students who struggle to focus, have a difficult day, or need someone to talk to can turn to their counselors for support. “I like to provide emotional support to students because I understand how hard and complicated it can be growing up at any point in life,” counselor Paula Vogt said.
“I absolutely love talking to students and providing support when they’re going through a challenging situation. Because when life is difficult, that almost always impacts you with your school and your academics,” Vogt said.
Seeing their students succeed is one of the counselors’ favorite parts of their jobs. “When they graduate, I want them to have choices for all post-high school [options]. If they choose not to, it’s because they choose not to, not because the decision has been made for them,” Escobar said.
Counselors try not to force students to make decisions. Instead, they aim to offer guidance and help students navigate their challenges and find the right path forward. “What I hope to bring [them] is someone that doesn’t pressure them to do more than they want to do,” Bohorquez said.
So each student can get the support they need, counselors shouldn’t have too many students. The American School Counselor Association recommends an ideal student-to-counselor ratio of 250 students per counselor. “We are incredibly lucky because we have 280 students, so we’re very close to that,” Vogt said.
In the early 2000s, M-A had only three counselors, and each managed around 700 students. “When you have that many students as one counselor, you are constantly dealing with students that are in crisis, so that means the student that is not in crisis doesn’t get the same energy and doesn’t get the same response,” Bohorquez said.
With eight counselors now, students have more opportunities to connect with them throughout the year. “We [are] doing more stuff with students, more small groups with our own students that allow us to get to know them better, have a relationship,” Escobar said.
Overall, M-A’s counselors say they always prioritize ensuring their students have a satisfying high school experience. “I want them to experience success and have high school be something that you have good memories of, and it’s not just negative,” Escobar said.
