Middle School Guidance Cuts Upset Many

The public portion of Tuesday night's School Committee meeting was largely devoted to a discussion about the cuts to the Guidance Department at Ottoson Middle School.

Arlington resident Nancy Lowe, whose daughter is a sixth grader at the Ottoson Middle School said she is very concerned about the proposed cuts, which will cut one of the four positions in Guidance (currently there are three counselors and one social worker). This also means that there will be about 600 students per counselor.

According to Lowe, these numbers are unacceptable.

"There isn't any other time in a kid's development where they are changing so much," Lowe said. "They are challenged everyday with all the things coming at them. Kids are exploring new groups and one day they are friends, the next day they are not."

Beyond just the normal turmoil of the middle school years, many parents are also concerned about bullying and the role guidance counselors play in mitigating stress in schools.

Given the recent bullying bill signed by Governor Patrick earlier this month it seems like the time to step up the monitoring, Lowe said, asking:  "Do we want to wait for a tragedy before we act?"

During Tuesday's School Committee Meeting, Arlington resident Bill Reuben described the experience of his son, who had trouble transitioning to his new school when he moved there in grade 6. He said that we need guidance counselors to help kids "transition from being young to young adults." Several others in attendance seemed to agree.

One of the biggest concerns, according to Lowe, is that even if the Bridge the Gap efforts to raise $1 million to help the schools are successful, the Guidance position is not one of the "add back" items.

"The amount of money available for positions on the add back list for each level was limited," said Superintendent Dr. Kathleen Bodie. "Because of the number of directed studies students could have next year and the class sizes of exploratory classes, the Middle School Administration believed that the students at Ottoson Middle School would be best served by adding back positions that would provide direct instruction to students."

But to parents like Lowe, the role Guidance counselors serve in their children's lives cannot be overstated. "Kids won't always go to their parents or teachers at this age," Lowe said. "They go to their counselors. How can we maintain a zero tolerance position with these ratios?"

Bodie points to districts across the state that have had to make similar "tough decisions."

Andover Middle School, for example, has 600 students with one guidance counselor, Bodie pointed out.

She went on to assure parents that regardless of what happens with the positions, "Bullying issues have been and will continue to be addressed by all administrators, teachers, and staff in the building."