Maura Kernaghan Joins Lakeside In-School Counselor Program

North Wales, PA (October 24, 2016) – Maura Kernaghan, from Hatboro, PA, has joined Lakeside as an in-school counselor for the elementary schools in the Spring-Ford School District and the Souderton Middle School in the Souderton Area School District.

“Maura is enthusiastic and a great team player,” says Connie Hughes, program director of the In-School Counselor program for Lakeside. “She relates well to students and strives to meet them where they are as she addresses their needs.”

Kernaghan earned her Bachelor of Arts in elementary education and art from Albright College, Reading, Pa and her Master of Science in education school counseling from Gwynedd Mercy University, Gwynedd Valley, PA.

“Everyone is always so willing to lend a hand and to help you through any situation at Lakeside,” says Kernaghan. “We are like a big family all working together to change students’ lives.”

Prior to Lakeside, Kernaghan worked at K/S-MST in Warrington, PA as an advocate counselor and at Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Fort Washington, PA as an assistant teacher.

“I try to incorporate art therapy activities when working with my students,” says Kernaghan. “A question and answer type of format can be daunting and intimidating, especially when students have to try and explain themselves. Because of this, art therapy can be a much more viable solution for communication than simply having a conversation and talking about things.”

Kernaghan is a certified educational specialist 1 in the State of Pennsylvania.

Lakeside, a long-standing nonprofit serving the needs of over 2500 students annually throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania, provides a range of therapeutic educational programs and services. The In-School Counselor program is currently serving 16 different school districts in Bucks, Chester and Montgomery counties with 41 different counselors. Lakeside’s approach empowers students to realize their life goals and to become positive citizens in their communities. The scope of its programs include educational and clinical services to meet a variety of needs including but not limited to: emotional and/or behavioral issues, addictions, school anxiety, truancy, depression, pregnancy and parenting and the impact of trauma.

In addition to its multiple campuses where students in grades 5-12 are enrolled, Lakeside also provides training for professionals including trauma-informed systems, anger/violence prevention and early childhood education. Lakeside also offers professional development for schools, both locally and around the world, who wish to develop trauma informed practices for the students they are working with.

For additional information, please visit Lakeside’s website at www.lakesidelink.com.