The Elementary Guidance and Counseling Program provides a systematic, planned approach for helping all students acquire skills necessary for successful academic, career, social, and emotional development. The guidance counselor will work with teachers, administrators, and the community to help create a caring atmosphere whereby all students’ needs are met through prevention, early identification, and intervention.
New Mexico law requires school counselors to deliver guidance lessons and provide interventions through four major components: Guidance Curriculum, Individual Planning, Responsive Services, and System Support. Additionally, the primary goal of the program is to promote and enhance student learning through the integration of three core areas of student development: academic, career, and personal/social development.
Four Major Components:
Guidance Curriculum includes classroom instruction, group activities, and parent workshops. School counselors teach all students basic life skills such as self-esteem and self-confidence, decision-making, problem solving, goal setting, and motivation in classroom presentations.
Individual Planning may be individualized or in small group settings and will aid the student in being successful in school. As students progress through school, counselors coordinate activities that help all students plan, monitor, manage their own learning and work towards goals that include career and personal/social development.
Responsive Services consist of activities to meet students’ immediate needs and concerns. This may include consulting with parents or guardians, teachers, and/or administrators, individual or small group counseling when students are having difficulty dealing with relationships, crisis, counseling, referrals, and peer facilitation.
System Support includes coordinating support of additional campus and community resources for student success including: parent communication, teacher/administrator consultation, and sharing resources with educators.
Mission Statement
The mission of my counseling program is to provide a comprehensive, developmental counseling program addressing the academic, career and personal/social development of all students. Professional School Counselors, in partnership with other educators, parents or guardians, and the community ensure that all students have access to and are prepared with the knowledge and skills to contribute at the highest level as productive members of society.
Philosophy Statement
Professional school counselors believe:
- All students have innate value, dignity, and worth.
- All students’ ethnic, cultural, racial, sexual differences, and special needs are valued and considered in planning and implementing the school counseling program.
- All students need a variety of experiences to develop intellectually, emotionally, socially, and physically.
- All students will be given the opportunity to develop effective coping skills.
- All students will have the right to participate in an ethically sound school counseling program managed by a Master’s level, State certified professional school counselor.
GISD professional school counselors are certified/licensed educators trained in school counseling with unique qualifications to address all students’ academic, personal/social and career development needs. School counselors implement school counseling programs that promote and enhance student achievement. They provide direct services to students to help them manage academic and social needs and to support efforts of teachers and parents in promoting self-confidence, academic readiness, social and interpersonal sensitivity and skills, and awareness of academic and future career opportunities.
School Counselors are student advocates. They can help to:
- resolve scheduling conflicts or problems
- review transcript information
- make the correct subject choices
- assist in creating stronger teacher-student relationships
- listen to your personal concerns or problems
- provide college information
- guide students to available college scholarships and financial aid
- provide career choice opportunities
- give information about community resources to address concerns
Students and their parents are encouraged to talk with their school counselor about school-related issues, academic concerns, course offerings, school programs, testing requirements, graduation requirements, graduation plans, and the guidance curriculum.
