SHS Counseling Department

COUNSELING TEAM

ADVOCACY, COLLABORATION, LEADERSHIP

Welcome to the Suitland High School Counselor's website. Our mission is to provide all students with a comprehensive school counseling program that encourages the development of the whole person academically, emotionally, and socially. In partnership with teachers, administrators, parents/guardians, and a caring community, the school counselors support all students to become lifelong learners and leaders.

Oxon Hill students are assigned to their counselor by grade level. Counselors can assist with academic guidance, college and career planning, wellness counseling, and referral. We provide individual meetings, family conferences, classroom lessons, student/parent workshops, and more. Please have a look at our menu of pages by topic for more information on our program and services.

The Oxon Hill High School counseling office is on the first floor across from the main office. The Registrar, Guidance Secretary, Pupil Personnel Worker, and School Psychologist are also in the counseling office.

We look forward to working with you!

WHAT DO WE DO?

Following the American School Counseling Association's National Model, counselors at Suitland High School provide the following services to students, families, and our school as a whole:

Individual Counseling
Mediations (to alleviate conflict and resolve concerns with peers and teachers)
Crisis Management
Community Resource Referrals
Collaboration with teachers and other staff members
Consultation and coordination with parents & families
Classroom Lessons (on suicide prevention, mental health awareness, college/career readiness with Naviance software, and personal body safety)
College & Career Readiness - including advising students throughout the college application process and writing recommendation letters for our seniors.

Additional Responsibilities of SHS Counselors:

Monitoring the academic progress of students
Facilitating conferences with students and their teachers
Articulating with our feeder middle schools
Scheduling
Case Managing Section 504 Plans
Working collaboratively with teachers & administrators to close the opportunity gap

Confidentiality Statement

School counselors recognize their primary obligation for confidentiality is to the student but balance that obligation with understanding the family or guardians’ legal and inherent rights to be the guiding voice in their children’s lives (ASCA Code of Ethics).
The role of the school counselor regarding confidentiality is:
- To support the student's right to privacy and protect confidential information received from students, their families, guardians, and staff members
- To explain the meaning and limits of confidentiality to students in developmentally appropriate terms
- To provide appropriate disclosure and informed consent regarding the counseling relationship and confidentiality
- To inform students and their families of the limits to confidentiality when: Student poses a danger to self or others, Court ordered disclosure, Consultation with other professionals in support of the student, i.e., colleagues, supervisors, treatment teams, and other support personnel
- To keep personal notes separate from educational records and not disclose their contents except when privacy exceptions exist
- To seek guidance from supervisors and appropriate legal advice when their records are subpoenaed
- To assert their belief that information shared by students is “confidential” and should not be revealed without the student’s consent
- To adhere to all laws protecting student records, health information, and special services (i.e., HIPAA, FERPA, IDEA)

CHANGE IS COMING IN 2026

Suitland HS Construction Update (12.07.22) PowerPoint (1).pdf

HOURS OF OPERATION

Hours of Operation

The Counseling office is open Monday-Friday from 9.00 am - 2:00 pm. Counselors are on duty from 8:30 am - 3:10 pm. Students and parents must make an appointment with the counselor to be seen except in extreme emergencies. We have an approximate counselor to student ratio of 1:325 and a full calendar of events, so we ask that parents who would like to stop by to please make an appointment with their student's counselor directly so that we may devote quality time with you.

Registration and Withdrawals: https://pgcpsmdc.scriborder.com/

Parent/Teacher Conferences are scheduled with all teachers by contacting the school counselor via email. Each counselor keeps their own calendar and schedule for conferences. All conferences are scheduled in the afternoon at 2:30pm - 3:00pm virtually. If you need to speak or meet with one or two teachers, please contact that teacher directly at 301-817-0500 or by email. Teacher emails can be found on the main Suitland High School website.

Student Appointments: Students must make an appointment with their counselor to be seen except in extreme emergencies. Students are not permitted to see a counselor during class time unless the counselor has requested to see a student, if there is an emergency, or the student has a scheduled appointment with the counselor. If a student has an emergency and needs to speak with a counselor, students are asked to come directly to the counseling office with a pass from their teacher or administrator and sign in before checking in with the counseling secretary.

BULLYING AND HARASSMENT FORM

COUNSELING TEAM

We look forward to working with you!

Following the American School Counseling Association's National Model, counselors at Suitland High School provide the following services to students, families, and our school as a whole:

Additional Responsibilities of SHS Counselors:

Confidentiality Statement

School counselors recognize their primary obligation for confidentiality is to the student but balance that obligation with understanding the family or guardians’ legal and inherent rights to be the guiding voice in their children’s lives (ASCA Code of Ethics).

The role of the school counselor regarding confidentiality is:

To support the student's right to privacy and protect confidential information received from students, their families, guardians, and staff members

To explain the meaning and limits of confidentiality to students in developmentally appropriate terms

To provide appropriate disclosure and informed consent regarding the counseling relationship and confidentiality

To inform students and their families of the limits to confidentiality when: Student poses a danger to self or others, Court ordered disclosure, Consultation with other professionals in support of the student, i.e., colleagues, supervisors, treatment teams, and other support personnel

To keep personal notes separate from educational records and not disclose their contents except when privacy exceptions exist

To seek guidance from supervisors and appropriate legal advice when their records are subpoenaed

To assert their belief that information shared by students is “confidential” and should not be revealed without the student’s consent

To adhere to all laws protecting student records, health information, and special services (i.e., HIPAA, FERPA, IDEA)

HOURS OF OPERATION