Mableton Counselor's Passionate Efforts Earn National Recognition

Anthony Pearson wants the 400-plus students at Mableton’s Sky View Elementary to know they have someone that they can also turn to beyond their teachers or parents.

The six-year counselor encourages students to interact with him by keeping his warm and inviting office door open throughout the school day.

But in addition to seeking student connection, Pearson also extends his help to students outside of the classroom.

“Mr. Pearson is a ‘friend’ to Sky View families,” Sky View Principal Cynthia Cutler said. “Knowing our students have needs far beyond the classroom, Mr. Pearson works diligently to address their basic needs. From setting up doctor appointments, to providing food baskets and holiday support, Mr. Pearson eagerly accepts the challenge of supporting our students in all aspects of their lives.”

Pearson recently was flown to Washington, D.C., as a top 10 national finalist for the American School Counselor Association’s Counselor of the Year award. Although he didn’t win the competition, which was open to the nonprofit association’s 100,000 members, Pearson already had won Cobb County School District’s Elementary Counselor of the Year honors in 2010. He also won the district’s School Counselor Writer of the Year award for his Youth Light Inc. published book, “Guidance With Good Measure.”

“He exudes care and concern and while he does that he also is a researcher and writer,” said Gail Smith, the district’s supervisor of school counseling who nominated Pearson for the national award. “What I think is extraordinary about him is he monitors his impact and if he finds that he’s not reaching the students he adjusts his work accordingly. The students are at the center of all his planning. Not that other counselors aren’t, but he’s particularly sensitive to his students needs. And they’re not just his students, they’re his family.”

Pearson said he teaches in Sky View’s 27 classrooms about twice a month. The married father of a little girl teaches students about study skill strategies, classroom behavior and social skills. He also breaks into small groups to help students work on homework completion, learn about their emotions and also conducts individual student “check-ins.”

“Kids are resilient and have so many strengths and can overcome so many obstacles,” said Pearson, who earned his master’s from Auburn University and specialist degree from Georgia State. “It’s up to me to help them find their own solutions. I want a kid to find their own strength.”

Being able to help students change their lives is what attracted Pearson to counseling and what keeps him motivated.

“When we help students gain the foundational skills to succeed, whether that’s social or academic, then they’ll have a better school experience,” said Pearson, who recently completed his second book, “Baby Bear Eats the Night,” a children’s book that addresses kids’ fear of the dark. “If students can look and start to realize how education is what they can do in life, they have a lot better idea of why they’re here and what they’re doing in life.”  

Pearson’s students appreciate his efforts. When asked to describe their counselor, some of the Sky View students' anonymous responses included:

-- “He listens to our problems and teaches us what to do when someone bothers us.”

-- “He is a wonderful counselor. He helps us be better people by telling us how to get along with each other.”

-- “Mr. Pearson has a great attitude, even when he is upset by what we do!”

Having counselors more involved in their schools through teaching was a deliberate initiative established four years ago in Cobb County, Smith said.

“We are really encouraging our counselors to be teaching, and measuring impact, rather than waiting in their office for the kids to come and see them,” said Smith, who has held her position for five years. “Four years ago, we decided to go with this model to measure our impact and have our counselors teach, which is great for our kids.”