APS celebrates National School Counseling Week: Meet Jeanine Russo of Springdale Park Elementary

Update: Meet Andrew Ragland from Mays. Also, see the interview with Dr. Lenice Biggins Horton of Benteen and Humphries Elementary schools.

Last month, Atlanta Public Schools honored its school crossing guards for their dedication to protecting our students. This week, we go inside the schools and honor guidance counselors during National School Counseling Week, Feb. 7-11.

Professional school counselors at APS are certified, experienced educators with a minimum of a master’s degree in guidance and counseling. Not only do our counselors help students handle social issues such as bullying or peer pressure, they also offer support as students chart a path to college and careers.

“Counselors are the ultimate caregivers in a school and they wear so many hats,” said Ronald Garlington, Coordinator of K-8 Guidance and Counseling Services. “They tend to spend so much time taking care of everyone else and often go unappreciated and rarely acknowledged. They do not complain about this at all…they simply do what needs to be done and never ask for accolades.”

He noted that National School Counseling Week allows everyone to step back for a moment and honor the hard work of the school counselor. “It also helps the counselor to understand just how much they are actually appreciated. It is specifically important to us as counseling coordinators because it allows us to pat them on the back and say,  ‘THANK YOU FOR A JOB WELL DONE!!!!!!’ ”

Check back each day as TalkUpAPS.com features a few of our committed counselors, starting with Jeanine Russo of Springdale Park Elementary.

Hat tip to Ronald Garlington, coordinator of K-8 Guidance and Counseling Services, and LaVerne Ware, coordinator of High School Counseling and Student Support Services, for proudly sharing information about our amazing team of counselors.