Who We Are
Mission of the Counseling Department
The Counseling Department aims to ensure a higher standard of education by maximizing students‛ potential through the delivery of programs that support their academic, social, emotional, career, and global perspective development.
Belief Statements
- All students can learn, improve, and build resilience regardless of where and when they start.
- Counselors‛ aim is prevention, first and foremost.
- Counselors are advocates of all students.
- Counseling services are designed to cater to the unique needs of each student.
- Alternate contributing factors to students‛ distress are explored before looking at internal student processes.
- Recommendations and accommodations given are free of personal, cultural, or racial bias.
- Accurate documentation is essential for progress monitoring.
- Data should be used to evaluate and continuously improve the school counseling program.
What We Do
The school counselors‛ main focus is to deliver a school counseling program that advocates for students‛ success and develops their academic achievement strategies, social-emotional skills, college and career readiness, and global perspectives. This is achieved through:
A- Guidance Curriculum
- Counselors develop lessons that cover the International School Counseling Association (ISCA) guidance curriculum standards
- Counselors collaborate with teachers to develop interdisciplinary lessons that cover some guidance curriculum standards
B- Individual Sessions
- Counselors meet up with individual students to help them develop an academic/career plan (reviewing standardized test scores and academic records, discussing strengths and areas of improvement, choosing the right elective courses, reviewing career assessment test results, etc.)
- Counselors meet up with small groups of students to assist them with their plans, provide them with information about personal/social skills, graduation requirements, etc.
C- Responsive Intervention
- Counselors provide emotional/social counseling for students seeking help or stakeholder-referred students (making students aware of how they should process emotions, conflicts, etc.)
- Counselors refer students to services outside the school
- Counselors share expertise with the school members and parents to aid students in succeeding
D- System Support
- Counselors participate in professional development and provide in-service presentations and workshops
- Counselors participate in relevant school committees
- Counselors coordinate with the other departments to make sure that students are promoted to the next academic level
- Counselors organize awareness weeks, relevant fairs, and college visits
College Counseling
College Counseling at BBS allows students and their families to emerge from their educational experience in school feeling confident and capable of transitioning smoothly into university life. Our role is to guide learners to make the best decisions related to choice of institution and application submission. It is fundamental to our thinking that the final decision-making role remains that of the student and his or her family.
To assist in the process, the college counselors work with students in High School on the following areas:
- Researching colleges and universities of interests
- Narrowing down the choices by making lists of the target, reachable, and safe institutions to apply to
- Writing personal statements and college essays
- Sending applications to the list of institutions compiled by the student
- Attending sessions, panels, presentations through which students could gather valuable information and meet people knowledgeable about the institution or program of interest (i.e. current and former students, professors, deans, consultants, etc.)
- Attending the yearly BBS Career Fair and meeting with various admission officers of colleges and universities
- Visiting the colleges or universities prior to making a decision (virtually or physically, if possible)
- It is important to note that not all students are accepted into every institution for which they apply. For confidentiality and privacy purposes, the College Counseling Office does not, without prior permission, disclose information about a student‛s application process and final university destination.
Raising Awareness
Awareness Weeks
Counselors organize three thematic awareness weeks yearly. These awareness weeks aim at bringing students‛ attention to issues related to their development, social interactions, wellbeing, and future. Teachers, students, administrators, and other outside parties are involved in the planning and/or delivery of these awareness weeks.
- Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week
- Mental Health Awareness Week
- Career Awareness Week
Empowering Parents
The Counseling Department delivers educational sessions or workshops for the parents of BBS students. These are aimed at raising parents‛ awareness about educational, mental health, and developmental issues, which equips them with tools to support their children‛s development and well-being.
Empowering Teachers
The Counseling Department plays a pivotal role in assisting and raising awareness among teachers, offering valuable insights into the unique needs and challenges that each student may face. By providing workshops, resources, and professional development opportunities, counselors support teachers on their journeys, and help raise their awareness about various mental health and socio-emotional issues that may affect students.