Frequently Asked Questions

What is the role of a counselor at CMS?

At Cupertino Middle School, academic counselors are here for academic support, transitioning to and from middle school, and social-emotional support.

Although we have many roles as academic counselors, one of our main tasks is to build and complete the master schedule for each school year. Often during the beginning of the school year and the beginning of the second semester, counselors are busy making adjustments to schedules to ensure students are in the appropriate classes for their academic success. Please see below regarding schedule change requests. 

We work closely with our Intervention Specialist and teachers to ensure students have the best academic support as possible. We often have meetings with parents and teachers to discuss additional supports. Parents can request to meet individually with their student's teacher(s) or a parent can request the academic counselor organizes a team meeting with the parents, teachers, and counselors in attendance. 

Another important role we have as academic counselors is that we are the first level of intervention when a student may be experiencing a social-emotional crisis or is in distress. If we feel a student may benefit from on-going counseling, we have a Mental Health Support Team on campus that a teacher or counselor can make a referral for short-term counseling. However, spots are not guaranteed. 

What is the process for changing an elective?

Counselors make every effort to place students in the electives they have chosen on their elective form. We utilize the elective selection process to accurately build our master schedule for the following year and it is often difficult and sometimes impossible to make changes after the school year has begun. Students will be notified in the beginning of the school year and second semester if there is an opportunity to change an elective.

If you'd like to see what options we have for electives at CMS, feel free to explore our Elective Website. 

What should I do if I am being bullied?

At CMS, the counselors and administration push into classes in the beginning of the school year to discuss their roles. If a student is being bullied, they are encouraged to fill out an Incident Report on our school website, which will be monitored by our Assistant Principals. Students also have the option of talking to their counselor about the incident. Please see our "Request an Appointment" tab for more information on how to meet with your counselor.

If a situation is occurring during class time, it is important that you inform your teacher. 

My child is struggling in one or more courses, what can I do?

Grades, assignments, and attendance can be monitored online by parents and students on ParentVUE. This is the best way to be informed of a student’s progress throughout the school year. If you are unsure how to log on to ParentVUE, please contact the front office or email office_cupertino@cusdk8.org. 

If your child is struggling in class, start with discussing with them what they think the issue is. Identifying area for improvement (such as homework completion or test preparation) can help tremendously to improve grades and comprehension in course material.

If your student is unsure of what is difficult for them or they need support in specific subject areas, please  have your child reach out directly to their teacher. We encourage students to take this step first to advocate for themselves. If your child is still struggling, parents are encouraged to contact the teachers directly by email or voicemail.  Teacher contact information can be found on ParentVUE or on our School Website. 

If your student has reached out to their teacher and you as the parent have reached out directly to the teacher and you are not noticing improvement, please contact your child’s counselor to discuss other suggestions or options for support. Please see our "Request an Appointment" tab for more information on how to meet with your child's counselor.

Do counselors meet with all students throughout the school year?

We have approximately 1100 students at CMS and meet with students on an as-needed basis. Counselors try to make themselves as visible and available as possible to students. We do different activities throughout the school year with students, such as Bully Prevention Week, Counselor Presentations in classes, Stress Talks in classes, Elective Presentations in classes, and daily activities like the Bear Den Supervision  and Lunch Duty Supervision.