School counselors are an integral part of any high school, Grayslake Central being no exception. Counselors have helped students for many years. Lots of students and teachers rely on counselors for multiple tasks. However, all of this work can be stressful, especially at the end and beginning of the school year.

Counselors often operate behind the scenes, supporting the entire school community. Since the counselor’s job is to help others, especially when it comes to student mental health, it is important to remember that they too need to find balance. Mental health care does not stop at students – it also includes the counselors themselves. The workload of a counselor can be a lot to bear. Grayslake Central counselor Mr. Kellen Price said “…With our 1,300 students there’s 1,300 students with a variety of opportunities for the student to feel like they belong and be successful. So that’s kind of a tough job to try to figure out what part of the formula we work on to help them feel like they belong and find that success. And when?”

Counselors have an important job that includes setting up a plan with their students and making sure it will lead to their success in the future. Helping plan a student’s future can be tricky by itself, but they deal with helping plan more than one student’s future at the same time. It is a lot of pressure to carry. Another thing counselors want to reassure their students about is if they feel comfortable with their future plan. If the students follow the plan knowing they feel uncertain about it, that can lead them to abandoning that future altogether, or just having a bad experience.

Even though school counselors experience stress at times, there are still positive impacts and interactions that inspire them to stay strong and remember why being a counselor is worth it. “For me, knowing that I’m helping students with their life plans, that’s what motivates me every day,” said Price.

Counselors appreciate when students stop by and give them the chance to help with whatever they need. Although their job is demanding, counselors are there to help because they love it. There’s nothing counselors want more is students to come to them for advice or guidance about their future. That’s what keeps them going!