Menands School Support Services
Mr. Ray Drexel, LCSW
School Social Worker
rdrexel@menands.org
Phone: (518) 465-4561, ext. 114
Mrs. Cheri VandenBerg, MS, CAS
Professional School Counselor
Phone: (518) 465-4561, ext. 156
Menands School Mission Statement
The Menands School District, in partnership with students, teachers, parents and the community, is committed to excellence. We prepare students to excel in all areas of learning, encourage them to respect cultural diversity, and expect them to become valued members of society. We strive to develop life-long learners within a safe, nurturing and supportive environment. By creating innovative, well-balanced programs that challenge the unique abilities of all students, we are able to nurture each child's potential. We are educating the leaders of tomorrow and believe that children come first.
Our Mission
The Support Services Office is an informative resource to take care of the academic and social/emotional well-being of our students, their parents/guardians and school staff members. Together we can build a team that will be better prepared to monitor and assist with the progress of each student.
We provide academic, career and personal/social guidance and counseling to the total school population, K-8. Much of the guidance program is provided through classroom instruction to all students. Students who benefit from extra assistance to navigate through their school day may also receive individual and group counseling. Group counseling will be with peers during lunch and recess times. Individual counseling may be a one time discussion or can involve five or six sessions. In counseling we will identify the difficulty, discuss actions and consequences, and follow up. If a student requires regular, weekly counseling further than the six week period, we will make referrals to outside agencies to the parents/guardians.
