Guiding Students Through They’re Final Year Of High School

As the school year comes to an end, it’ll close the final chapter for our graduating class of 2022. Although how did our seniors get to this accomplishment? With the help of our incredible staff.

Our school’s staff members work hard throughout the year to help navigate seniors through their last year at Ridgeview High School. “Senior year there’s a lot of stress and anxiety because it’s such a huge transition for kids to evolve from a student to a teenager to adulthood.” School Counselor Lauren Figueroa said. “That transition is important to me because I want to make sure they have someone to talk to if they feel overwhelmed or stressed.”

Our school counselors make sure to steer our seniors in the right direction when making choices for after high school. “Guiding them through the application process or whether it’s getting a job and doing the work permit or resume,” Ashley Gonzalez talks about what she does to help guide seniors.

Salvador Garcia, Director of Guidance Counselor, goes into detail talking about the steps he takes for seniors, “college application, to financial aid applications, answering questions about college, follow ups, steps that they need to take once they’re admitted to the point of now reminding seniors of the classes they need to graduate.”

Seniors go through lots of changes and developments over the course of the year. “They need to know that even if they are eighteen they still are a kid technically and are a student on campus so they do need to grow up but don’t grow up too quickly,” Gonzalez tries to remind seniors. 

But what’s truly important is the bond counselors build with the ‘22 class and how they do it. Figueroa explains, “keeping it real”, with her transparency and straightforwardness to the students. “Making connections with them,” Gonzalez focuses on trying to see what students like or their hobbies to make those bonds. 

Helping students for counselors is a constant ongoing thing but for them it’s not always the easiest. “They’re stubborn and have senioritis,” Gonzalez explains how seniors sometimes don’t prioritize their class attendance. Figueroa talks about how some students feel pressured on what they should do after high school. “They just don’t know the options are open for them.”

Even with the hardships counselors still focus on finding joyous moments with their seniors. “Seeing freshman to senior year is like my favorite joy,” Figueroa says. Some talk about the excitement they get when seeing their students have their light-bulb moment. “They find the missing piece that kept them from following through with the plan,” Garcia describes it as. 

With the year closing the counselors give off their final goodbyes and their last piece of advice. “Get up when you fall and keep moving forward,” Figueroa says. “You do not know everything and you’re learning something new everyday,” Gonzalez adds. Garcia ends with, “Stay positive, do the right thing.”