Maintaining each scholar relationship is our top priority. Compass Charter Schools’ Online Program (Compass Online) boasts a 250:1 scholar-to-counselor ratio, leading the way as the Gold Standard in Virtual Education and school counselor support.
Compass Online is a tuition-free public K-12 school serving Los Angeles, San Diego, and Yolo counties with superior personalized education. Part of our scholars’ success is due to our caring and dedicated in-house school counselors and staff. We asked these experts about the importance of in-house school counselors to aid prospective families and scholars.
Personalized Educational Experience
A benefit to in-house school counseling is that scholars and staff bond and know each other by name.
“I chose to work at Compass because I loved that Compass provides a virtual individualized learning environment to meet the needs of each scholar,” said Gabriela Ayala, school counselor.
“At Compass, our counselors are not only highly trained and caring, but they are proactive; they reach out to every scholar on their caseloads as frequently as needed depending on the needs of the individual scholars and their families,” shares Aviva Ebner, PhD, Assistant Superintendent & Chief Academic Officer. “This can range from every three weeks to daily contact; which allows our counseling team to anticipate any concerns or issues, celebrate successes, and help guide our scholars in both academic and personal growth.”
Michelle Bateman, school counselor, shares, “I believe in the values we uphold as a school and the importance of providing individualized learning experiences to assist all scholars in accessing education.”
“Our approach has to be individualized to each scholar, especially in a public school where each scholar comes forward with a different perspective and background,” shares Mandi Schwartzberg, school counselor, “Truly, the approach cannot be described in any other way than ‘personalized educational experience.’
Debra Stephan, Director of Counseling Services, shares, “School counselors make a difference in the lives of our scholars on a more personal and profound level. In addition to supporting scholars on their educational paths through school and beyond, they also help scholars develop as a whole — personally, academically and professionally. Our counselors work with our scholars individually and collectively to create a school climate that leads to healthy learning, living and growth for all scholars who are a part of the Compass family.”
A Welcome Lifeline
A benefit to in-house online school counseling is that scholars and staff feel trusted and safe.
“From a college and career readiness perspective, it is important to have in-house school counselors to support scholars in planning for their future in an ever-changing world. School counselors are able to provide guidance based on the most current aspects happening in the college and career realm, which otherwise may not be accessible to the scholar,” shares Mataya Olson, College & Career Readiness Counselor.
Michelle shares, “Children deserve the tools to navigate mental health and the support to work through challenges regardless of their background. A scholar might be experiencing a crisis themselves, they may be trying to help a friend or loved one with symptoms of mental illness, or they may see members of their community impacted by hardship and trauma. Addressing public health needs through public schools allows increased accessibility to resources and it can improve community resilience.”
“School counselors are the lifeline for many scholars and help bridge the divide between what is going on in their lives and making progress in an educational setting,” shares Aviva. “They are the first call in a crisis situation and know what steps to take to prioritize a scholar’s physical and emotional safety.”
Prioritizing Values
A benefit to in-house online counseling is that scholars and staff feel the extent to which our school prioritizes mental health.
“It truly feels like scholars’ needs are valued, and the policies and the rest follow suit. That is why we are all here, so it feels great to work for a school that has that priority set correctly,” shares Mandi. “Having counselors in-house is vital for scholar/family rapport building. When a counselor is included as part of the full-time staff, the teachers, families, and other stakeholders receive the message that the whole-child is important to the school at large. There is a saying that school counselors are the heart of the school– it goes without saying that counselors impact the school culture and, ultimately, school performance.”
“Led by our Director of Counseling Services, Debra Stephan, our counseling services department is able to hone in quickly to support scholars and families due to the rapport they have established over a period of time,” said Aviva. “This helps prevent crisis situations, which is something outsourced providers might not be able to do or have on their radar. The department has also been able to hire for specific areas of expertise, such as mental health, college and career readiness, and social-emotional tool building, to name just a few. Additionally, Compass has lowered scholar to counselor ratios to 250:1, making Compass the gold standard in counseling support.”
Mataya shares, “I feel so fortunate to work with a team of experienced counselors who strive to provide the best possible counseling program to our scholars and families.”
We are constantly motivated, watching our scholars rise up like Firebirds through our tuition-free public school for K-12 scholars. Compass’ Online Learning Program celebrates over ten years in virtual learning and we owe much of our success to our incredibly talented and supportive in-house counselors. Together we carry our mission to inspire and develop innovative, creative, self-directed learners, one scholar at a time. Would you like to rise and soar like a Firebird too? Join us!
About Compass
Compass Charter Schools’ Online Learning Program (Compass Online) is celebrating 10 years as the Gold Standard in Virtual Education. Serving thousands of online scholars throughout California, we support each K-12 scholar and learning coach with in-house counselors, talented accredited teachers, and a staff of excellence. As the only Purple Star School in California and one of the few online AVID programs in the nation, Compass Online is beyond unique and impressive. Rise and Soar with our Firebirds – enroll with Compass Online today!