The school guidance counselor corps of the Hope Public Schools has brought more than two centuries of public education experience to aid the students of the HPS which will be recognized during National School Counseling Week, Feb. 1-5.
\r\nHope Mayor Don Still declared the week of Feb. 1-5 as Arkansas Public Schools Counselor Week in Hope to salute HPS counselors Varonica Kennedy, Kayla Jones (career coach), Hope High School; Joyce Smith, Yerger Middle School; Marilyn Marks, Hope Academy of Public Service; Christi Sullivan, Beryl Henry Elementary School; and Shauntelle Jarvis and Paige Bobo, Clinton Primary School.\r\n
\r\nThe proclamation notes the active commitment of school counselors to help students explore their potential and consider their future while working with teachers and other educators to help students set realistic goals for that journey.\r\n
\r\n“Comprehensive developmental school counseling programs are considered an integral part of the educational process that enables all students to achieve success in school,” the proclamation states.\r\n
\r\nAmong the seven counselor positions on the five main campuses of the HPS there is a total of 230 years of educational service experience. Of that total, there are 84 years of experience in counseling services specifically. The difference marks the importance of a background in public school classrooms for the HPS counselors.\r\n
\r\nBeryl Henry Elementary School Counselor Christi Sullivan, a Texarkana native, spent nine years in the classroom teaching at Clinton Primary before becoming counselor on that campus, then transferring to BHE for the remainder of her 18 years as a counselor. Sullivan took her BSE and MSE from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia in 1994 and 2001, respectively.\r\n
\r\n“School counselors work with all students to remove barriers to learning by addressing students’ academic concerns, postsecondary options and social/emotional skills,” American School Counselor Association Executive Director Jill Cook said. “School counseling programs help to increase student achievement and provide a much-needed resource for students, parents, teachers and administrators. School counselors are integral to student success.”\r\n
\r\n
Beryl Henry Elementary School students, left to right, Zion Jones, Christina White and Madison Qualls congratulate BHE Counselor Christi Sullivan upon recognition of her as a member of the counselor corps of the Hope Public Schools by Hope Mayor Don Still in a proclamation issued declaring Feb. 1-5 as Arkansas Public Schools Counselor Week in Hope. Sullivan was also honored by the staff at BHE with some special gifts. – Ken McLemore/Hope Public Schools\r\n
\r\n