Greetings!

I’m Catherine Siggens, the School Counselor for Spruce Mountain Middle School. The 2017-2018 school year will be my 16th year as the middle school counselor. Experience helps, but regardless of how long I have been a school counselor, no matter how many lessons, techniques, and tools I have to draw upon, the work remains challenging, exciting, sometimes frustrating, and often life-changing. School counseling takes courage, strength, commitment and love to be able to delight in the unique, silly, stubborn, fragile, beauty of the “middle schooler and it is with pleasure that I do so.

Guidance Staff
    Guidance

    As a school counselor, I perform the following roles to support and advocate for all students.

    • Individual and small group counseling
    • Classroom guidance lessons
    • Participate in academic intervention meetings
    • Consult and collaborate with parents, teachers, administrators, agencies and students
    • Respond to school crises or emergency situations
    • Help create a safe and positive school experience

    Here are some of the topics that can be discussed during counseling.

    Making friends; Liking myself; Getting along with others; Being a “new “kid; Moving away; Bullying

    Learning and responsibility; Studying/Organization; Parents Divorce; Death/Grief; Abuse; Drugs/Alcohol

    Guidance

    Why do parents contact the school counselor?

    • Concerns over student achievement
    • Social/emotional concerns
    • Sharing special needs of their child
    • Family difficulties or concerns
    • New school registration

    How does a student see the counselor?

    • Self-referral
    • Referral by friend(s)
    • Request of a counselor
    • Parent referral
    • Administrative/teacher/staff referral