Monday February 5th – Friday, February 9th

National School Counseling Week 2024, “School Counseling: Standards-Based, Student-Focused,” celebrated Feb. 5-9, 2024, focuses public attention on the unique contribution of school counselors within U.S. school systems. National School Counseling Week, presented by ASCA, highlights school counselors’ tremendous impact in helping students achieve school success and plan for a career. National School Counseling Week is always celebrated the first full week in February.

School Spotlight: Palmdale High School

Counselor Corner: Dr. Maria Rangel-Hernandez

Dr. Maria Rangel-Hernandez is the Head Counselor at Palmdale High School!

This is Dr. Rangel’s 18th year as a Counselor! Her why for being a Counselor is “I want kids to see that they too can be in this office one day. They too can be in positions of leadership no matter what they decide to do in their life!” Her one goal is to give her students all their options, and empower them during their time of decision making whether it be for senior year, college, or vocational school. What inspires Dr. Rangel to keep going is “Seeing the lightbulb go off in students, whether that be because they passed all their classes in ninth grade or because they got into their school of choice senior year! That is what keeps me going and inspires me to come to work everyday.” She also mentions her fantastic team at Palmdale High School, “When you work with a team that’s cohesive and we all celebrate each other and are there for each other when times are not the greatest, it is definitely something that I look forward to everyday!”

Counselor Corner: Drew Bledsoe

Drew Bledsoe is a Counselor at Palmdale High School!

This is Mr. Bledsoe’s 17th year as a Counselor at Palmdale High School! He expressed “I love being a Counselor because everyday I get to work with students to help them achieve their goals, set goals, and create new pathways for their adult life while they’re here with us and help them out! I am inspired by students daily because I get to encounter all of their different dreams and goals. It re-inspires me every time I get a new student to help them fill in the gaps of where they are and where they want to be with whatever we can help them with here at Palmdale! I also just love being a Counselor at Palmdale High School because I am an alumni at Palmdale so it is really fun to come back and help the community you grew up in and have a lot of pride in that!”