Albany Middle School

Counsel Me, please.

‘I’m a middle school student at AMS and I want to talk to someone.  I need my schedule changed.  I wish I had Spanish.  I’m afraid of leaving AMS and going to the high school.  I just started here as a 6^th grader and it’s really different from elementary school.  I wish my parents would be nicer to me.  My friends’ parents are nicer than my parents.  The friends I thought were my friends aren’t acting like my friends anymore.  I’ve heard that someone on campus wants to hurt themselves.  I’m tired all the time.  I wake up in the middle of the night worrying.  I think I’m starting puberty.  I don’t like the way my body looks.  I’m not sure if I like boys or if I like girls.  I don’t think my teacher likes me.  I’m getting in trouble a lot at school. I wish I were smarter and that I could get better grades.  There are rumors about someone on campus.  I don’t know what to do after school.  Can I join the talent show?  Will you be open at lunchtime?  Can you call my mom for me?  I want to talk to someone.’

Middle school students often need someone special to talk to.  It’s good for them to talk.  It’s normal.  At Albany Middle School, Emma Chartrand and Don Etchegorry are the best counselors anyone could ask for.  They help us create effective master schedules, coordinate STAR testing, host talent shows, supervise hallways, facilitate parent-teacher conferences, return phone calls from worried parents, worried teachers, worried principals.  They meet with every new student to the school.  And they do so much more.  Most importantly, they are here to talk to our students about anything our students want to talk about. 

We have a bitter-sweet announcement to make:  Ms. Chartrand and Mr. Etchegorry won’t be with us next year.  We will miss them greatly. It’s OK to feel sad for us.  It’s OK to feel happy for them.  But, please don’t worry.  At AMS, we worked very hard to find the best counselors possible.  We had over NINETY applicants and I screened every one carefully.  TWENTY-FIVE rose to the surface, so I sent them a writing assignment to complete for homework.  We interviewed ELEVEN and we found fantastic new people.   Emma and Don cannot be “replaced” but the Bay Area is a great place to search for candidates and Albany USD is a great school community.

No names can be announced yet.  There are fingerprints to run, background checks to finish, and credentials to clear.  For now, please feel secure in knowing a few things:   We have counselors people can talk to.  We will continue to have counselors people can talk to.  And soon, we will introduce two outstanding people who are well-prepared, sincere, dynamic, and eager to meet all of you.

‘I’m a middle school student at Albany Middle School.  I feel so much better because I had someone to talk to.’ 

Sincerely,

Peter I. Parenti, Principal