The Counseling Department
School Counseling Department Mission Statement
The school counseling program at Brentwood Middle School empowers students to grow academically, socially, emotionally, and independently as they move toward a college or career path. By regularly assessing these areas of growth, a foundation is being built for lifelong success. Through stakeholder collaboration, students will engage in individual and larger group learning and crisis management. When identifying barriers to learning in a supportive environment, students will problem solve and collaborate and continue to pursue success.
Please feel free to contact them for any questions or concerns. Their contact information is available by selecting their names in the area below.
Contacting the Counselors
The Counseling Department Supports:
ACADEMICS
Middle school is a time when students are learning and practicing their executive functioning skills, such as organization, time management, and task initiation. At BMS, we offer Homework Club on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is a great resource that provides a quiet place to complete homework and a BMS teacher to answer questions. Each grade level counselor offers a missing work THRIVE session at least once a week, to help students who were absent from school. If your student is struggling academically, reach out to their teachers or counselor sooner rather than later.
Various factors, from brain development to petty drama, may leave you wondering why your middle school student is experiencing intense emotions. This period of life can really test a child's emotional regulation skills. If you feel that your student needs additional support developing these skills, reach out to a BMS counselor.
As students move into middle school, friendships and social status often become their top priority. Navigating this as a parent can be frustrating and time consuming. Listen to your student and initiate important conversations about topics like peer pressure, healthy friendships, or navigating social media. Our counseling team can also provide support in this area through peer mediation or talking one on one with your student.
WELLNESS
The counseling department promotes mental and emotional wellness through classroom lessons, small groups, and individual counseling. Students are able to see the counselors during non-academic periods such as focus, related arts, lunch, connections, and passing periods. A student may see a counselor during an academic class if they are experiencing a crisis.
ADJUSTING TO A NEW SCHOOL
Being the new kid can be really tough. Our school wide counselor, Ms. Ryan, works closely with new students to monitor their adjustment to BMS. Every new student receives a student ambassador buddy to check in with during their first month of school. Additionally, we have a morning in the summer that new families can join us for an introduction to our school. On this day, parents will hear all about the ins and outs of BMS and students will get to tour the building.
