By Rod Hansen
Staff Writer

A new face will greet students at Center Woods Elementary School next year, when the school will add a new guidance counselor to its staff.

State law requires public schools to have one guidance counselor for every 500 students, Center Woods Principal Jude Chauvette said. Because the school’s population now stands at 650 students, a second guidance counselor will join current counselor Ginger Hill next year, Chauvette said.

The new guidance counselor will provide half-time regular guidance counseling and half-time class time guidance, Chauvette said.

Regular guidance includes individual counseling for students, working on individual education plan for special education students and crisis management, Chauvette said.

The guidance counselor is often a part of the process when a student is sent to the principal’s office, Chauvette said.

“We like to do a lot of discussions with (students) when they misbehave. It’s very different than a high school or middle school approach,” Chauvette said, noting students in the school range in grades from kindergarten through Grade 4.

Classroom guidance lessons will focus on behavioral issues, and how students can maintain control in various situations.

The guidance counselor generally goes into the six firstand second-grade classrooms six times a year each, Chauvette said.

Chauvette mentioned the new guidance counselor position in his “From the Principal” section of the Center Woods Web site.

“One of the changes you will see next year will be an additional full-time guidance counselor.

This person will not only do individual and group counseling, but also classroom guidance lessons. Guidance classes will be in the rotation as a special subject next year. We hope to be able to continue teaching the children problem-solving skills, including how to deal with their feelings and bullying issues,” Chauvette wrote.

The search for the new guidance counselor is being conducted through a statewide employment Web site, and about a dozen applications are currently under review, Chauvette said.

For more information about Center Woods Elementary school, visit, www.cwes.weare.k12.nh.us.