Bryan Elementary School named a VDOE School Counseling Showcase School

The Virginia Department of Education’s office of behavioral health & student safety has named Bryan Elementary School a School Counseling Showcase School. This special recognition highlights the school’s outstanding counseling program, led by school counselor Kara Hart. Bryan now serves as a model that other school counselors across Virginia can visit to learn from.

 

To earn this honor, a school must demonstrate a comprehensive school counseling program that provides students with regular individual, group, and classroom counseling lessons; uses data to plan and evaluate its activities; and supports students in all areas of growth—academic, college and career readiness, and social-emotional development. The program also reflects strong teamwork within the school community and ensures that the counselor spends most of the day working directly with students.

 

Bryan Elementary was nominated by Carla Mahn, director of student development and counseling for Hampton City Schools. As part of the selection process, the school shared examples of student growth, program strengths, and the positive impact of current counseling initiatives.

 

“I nominated Bryan Elementary School to serve as a model school because its counseling program demonstrates comprehensive, data-driven practices that align with the ASCA National Model and effectively support student academic, career, and social-emotional development,” said Mahn. “Ms. Hart’s collaborative approach, focus on equity, and measurable results make her program an inspiring example for other schools to follow.”