School Counseling
Interested in a school counseling internship or practicum with MMSD?
About
School Counseling Mission Statement
MMSD school counselors are innovative leaders who actively work to identify and remove barriers to student achievement and well-being by championing practices that create equitable, safe, inclusive, and positive learning environments for all students. School counselors engage students in exploring and identifying interests and aspirations and play an essential role in providing all students the academic & post-secondary advising and social-emotional supports needed to experience personal success.
The Role of Comprehensive School Counseling Programs
In collaboration with staff, families, students, and community partners, school counselors facilitate implementation and continuous improvement of high-quality, culturally and linguistically responsive comprehensive school counseling programs: These data-driven programs are designed to provide all students and their families access to the information, advising, and experiences needed to support academic success, social-emotional well-being, and college, career, and community readiness. Comprehensive school counseling programs are delivered through the school counseling core curriculum, individual student planning, responsive services, program management & systems support.
School Counselors in MMSD
We currently have 42 licensed school counselors supporting students and families in grades 6-12 in our middle and high schools. These counselors are a part of the Student Services Team as well as the College, Career and Community Readiness Teams within their buildings. Contact information for individual school counselors can be found on each school's website.
We are unique in that we also have two school counseling leadership positions that support school counselors and their programs through professional learning, mentoring and consultation. We are always seeking school counseling candidates (and Interns) whose beliefs and values align with our school counseling mission above and MMSD's vision as articulated in our Strategic Framework
We welcome any questions that you have regarding school counseling programming and the role of school counselors in MMSD.
Suzi Zoellner
Lead School Counselor
smzoellner@madison.k12.wi.us
Stacey Endicott
Counseling &Transition Coordinator
smendicott@madison.k12.wi.us
Meet Our Counselors
MMSD School Counselors make a big impact in our community. Read more about some of our counselors and their programs below.
- Ashley Papac - Spring Harbor Middle School
- Chris Maniece - Jefferson Middle School
- Judy Christensen - La Follette High School
- Kristin Kluge - Memorial High School
- Nehemirah Barrett - Cherokee Heights Middle School
- Marianne Matt - Capital High School, Wisconsin School Counselor of the Year 2021
- Myrycale Jerna - Whitehorse Middle School
- Robin Murphy - East High School
Comprehensive School Counseling Programs are a key component of a thriving school and a critical equity strategy: School counseling services within the program are intentionally designed to close opportunity gaps by engaging all students in developing key knowledge, skill, and disposition competencies needed to realize our vision for college, career, and community ready graduates:
MMSD believes that college, career, and community readiness is about much more than mastery of content knowledge. As such, our graduate vision is comprised of nine competency areas:
- Growth Mindset
- Self Knowledge
- Creativity
- Wellness
- Community
- Cultural Competence
- Interpersonal Skills
- Connection
- Mastery of Content
Academic Resources
The following links provide information on Academic requirements and supports for students in MMSD.
MMSD Graduation Requirements.
Find the latest information on MMSD graduation requirements here.
Course Catalogs Linked Here
This link will take you to each of our high school's course catalogs for an overview of coursework offered in MMSD High Schools.
Early College Credit Courses
There are a variety of ways MMSD students can earn college credit whild still in high school. Learn more here about how to apply for early college courses.
Credit Bearing Opportunities Outside of the MMSD High School Classroom
MMSD offers a number of additional opportunities that support experiential learning, individual research, early access to college credit, and service learning. Information about each of these programs is provided.
High School Completion Opportunities
There are a variety of ways that an MMSD high school student may choose to complete high school. Please contact your high school counselor or support staff for assistance in developing a plan for graduation and post-secondary education. Access to these programs is through referral from school staff. Each program may have different entrance requirements or enrollment timelines that your school counselor can assist you to navigate.
Madison MOST (Madison out of School Time)
MOST s a partnership between the City of Madison, Dane County, Madison Metropolitan School District and over 45 area youth-serving organizations. The project has a simple goal: connect children and teens with high-quality programs during their out-of-school time to support healthy development and high achievement.
Social & Emotional Resources
School counselors in MMSD work collaboratively with other mental health professionals in our buildings to support the social and emotional well-being of each of our students.
In this time of uncertainty that gives rise to a range of emotional responses and the potential for physical illness, caring for ourselves and our families has become a priority. The intention of this “Being Well” site is to offer MMSD families and staff resources that support resilience in the face of our current and ever-shifting challenges.
Post High School Planning
Academic and Career Planning
This page will help you understand more about how students in grades 6-12 are thinking about how their current experiences, skills, talents and interests can help them get closer to who and what they want to be in the future.
College Planning
This page is designed to help families and students navigate the world of post-secondary education (college). You will find information on how to prepare for college while still in high school, how to find the right fit and apply to the school and finally information on how to pay for education after high school
Career Planning
This page is designed to help families and students navigate the world of work (career). You will find information on how to prepare for a career while still in high school, how to research careers to find the right fit for you, how to apply for a job and finally how to find youth employment.