With only seven counselors and almost three thousand students at Dakota High School according to MI School Data, it is difficult for counselors to answer questions and make changes without an appointment. Throughout the school, QR codes are taped to doors and walls to make scheduling appointments easier. Once you scan the code on your phone and fill out information about yourself, your counselor will get back to you as soon as they can to find a time and date when you can discuss your problems and questions with them.  

As a part of The Dakota Planet, I was able to ask Dakota counselor, Mrs. Gay, a few questions about what has been going on in the Counseling Office recently. 

All counselors at Dakota High School are always trying to help answer students’ questions as clearly as they can and set them up with the best possible path to success but, what makes it difficult is that they cannot make every individual request happen. Although they try to help with all problems, the number of students at Dakota High School makes it difficult.  

With the second semester approaching us, students are becoming extremely stressed with not only schedule changes but also midterms. The problem is that most classes are a full year, causing there to be little to no openings in the classes they may want. Electives and your class’s teacher are difficult to change since the number of students allowed in each classroom is limited. When you are scheduling for your next year’s classes it is extremely important to consider the fact that the number of students in each class is tight. This means that a change in your schedule right before the start of a semester will be rare, if not impossible. 

As COVID-19 changed many parts of our schooling, students are not familiar with the importance of the midterms that are coming up this week. Many have been making their way to the counselor’s office expressing the stress they have been going through, worrying about the tests. The counselors can provide study tips and time management skills to better help students succeed this semester, because the tests are worth twenty percent of your semester’s grade in each class.  

Discussions about college with counselors have also been exceptionally important to Dakota High School students. By speaking to your counselor, they provide information about scholarships offered by Dakota and how to find scholarships online for the specific college you plan to attend. They are also able to help with your applications and deciding the major you may want to pursue.  

Even though the Dakota High School Counseling office is busy, they find time to speak with students about their needs and help them to the best of their ability.  

Below is a list of the Dakota High School counselors and how to contact each: 

9th Grade Center 

Kelley Castone (A-Ld) [email protected] 

Tracy Farr (Le-Z) [email protected] 

10-12 Building 

Ryan Anderson (A-Dam) [email protected] 

Emily Gay (Dank-Ir) [email protected] 

Teresa Ede (Is-Mos) [email protected] 

Alethea Simmons (Mot-Sel) [email protected] 

Lisa Carr (Sem-Z) [email protected] 

Cites used for information throughout the article: 

https://www.mischooldata.org/find-a-school 

https://www.chippewavalleyschools.org/schools/high-schools/dhs/staff-directory/