Travels. Life Changes. Coastal Counseling: Counselors Take Savannah and Red Ribbon Week

I was lucky enough to attend the GSCA Conference again this year. It was in Savannah and we came home exhausted. That's always a good thing to celebration though. Each year, I view these 3 days as our little celebration of the career we work so hard to excel at. Many of us are the only counselors in our school and this often means we don't have a colleague to collaborate and/or vent to. Let's be honest, some days we just need to vent! Venting is the easiest and quickest way to resolve or decrease our anxiety and stress. It's even more liberating when you vent to someone who actually understands where you're coming from. Then you don't sound like a crazy person who simply enjoys complaining. I often "vent" to my fiancé and although he diligently listens and tries to offer the "OMG, RIGHT?!" moment, it's hard for him to truly understand. It is that liberating moment that most teachers are able to gratify by walking across the hall to their team member. We, as elementary counselors, bottle it up instead and it often oozes out at a counselor county meeting or during phone calls to a counselor friend in hopes they answer the phone. These moments of oneness are few and far between so it's extra nice to collaborate and learn.

The 3 day conference is packed with 2 large group speakers and 7 small group sessions conducted by Georgia counselors. It's a jam packed learning session that leaves you feeling rejuvenated yet a little overwhelmed. Each year, there are 4-5 large scale ideas I want to implement when listening to wonderful counselors from different schools across the state. The tricky part is finding time to put these ideas into motion once I return to the daily SST, 504, gifted, career guidance life I daily lead. I have plans to work through this over Christmas break and I have such great expectations for my program. Let's get back to the SST, 504, gifted testing bit; many of the counselors at the conference as not responsible for these duties at their school. I've found that it's mostly Atlanta based schools which does make sense when considering their populations and funding. Although I love my school with every bit that's left over at the end of the work day, I would truly do almost anything to be able to hold more small groups, see more students on a weekly basis, teach character building guidance lessons and grow our school populations through students who are educated in love! I often feel so restrained due to the endless paperwork and meetings we must complete for our students. It is known to myself and many others that we are not alone. Unfortunately, money is sparse in education and counselors are left in the confusing ground between administrators and teachers. It is an uphill battle that all counselors in the state continue to climb and we hope for change from state legislation in the near future.

I will take away, "Children are like cows." Cows will produce more milk when they are loved, nurtured and feel important. I feel that colleagues are no different.

Red Ribbon Week is always a struggle for me but I had an idea this year and I ran with it. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the week progressed. The theme for the week was "Drugs are Despicable" from the movie Despicable Me. The kids absolutely loved the theme and I saw lots of participation in the dress up days. Officers came from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to introduce our students to the ins and outs of their patrol car as well as their one of their boats. The students were able to board the boat, talk on the PA system and investigate the holding cell below the hull. It was a big hit! I even had students telling me thank you for days after. The officers were wonderful to work with and truly seemed to enjoy their time with the students. I hope that at least a few students were able to board the boat who would otherwise never be able to do so (even though they live on the coast).