We are proud of Southport High School’s Counseling Department for helping to set the standard for effective counseling programs. Named a 2017 Gold Star School by the Indiana Department of Education, the program was recognized for its commitment to raising student achievement.
The Gold Star recognition is given to schools that have a counselor-led steering team that has met specific criteria identified for the development of a comprehensive school counseling model. Southport’s department prides itself on using data to support its students.
The department’s successes are not by chance; they are by design. Counselors track how they spend their time in assisting kids each day. They examine how they could do things differently. They worked with a steering committee of teachers, administrators and community members to determine goals for the program and what students need to be successful. It was a year-long process. Their efforts are strategic and intentional.
The department believes, as noted by its vision statement, that “all students deserve a rigorous curriculum, engaging instruction and extra help as needed in order to progress along the pathway to their personal, educational and career goals that are aligned with the students’ individual developmental needs.” The department understands that “all students deserve individualized attention in a safe learning environment where high expectations are established and students are supported to achieve at the utmost level.”
Southport’s counseling team is a small army of one director and five counselors who are available to encourage and empower approximately 2,250 students. The team desires for all students to become successful lifelong learners and positive contributors to society.
Every spring the counseling program hosts a remarkable career fair, which allows students to interact with more than 100 organizations, including businesses, colleges, nonprofits and military branches.
Exposure to a variety of industries and professionals is vital to teaching students that they have options. They may discover occupations that they had never considered or decide to pursue opportunities at companies they never knew existed. This exposure helps them to think outside their neighborhoods and beyond what is familiar. It helps them to grow.
We are proud of the academic and emotional support that all of our counselors provide to students at each of our schools. Our counselors work closely with administrators, teachers and parents, and they are a crucial component to promoting a comfortable, productive school environment.
Visit http://www.perryschools.org/shguidance/ for more information.