Jenna Mollura

To kick off the “Beyond the Chalkboard” project, we have Jenna Mollura. A dear friend and a school counselor at Marshall High School in Falls Church, VA, I connected with Jenna from our first interaction, which, to no one’s surprise, was advocating for a student. We were both in our first year and during teacher return week, she found her way to my room to ask if I would be willing to allow an extra student into one of my precalculus classes. She was so sensitive to my teacher bandwidth and did not want to make the class go over capacity without checking in. Whenever people are bored of ruminating over education, Jenna is always there for me to dig into the “make-up” of American education and brainstorm ways to change it for the better. She is never too busy for a student and will bend over backwards if it means equitable access for her kids. I still think about a student she and I shared during my first year and although there were very few constants in this girl’s life, Jenna did her best to give her consistency at school. Need a place to eat lunch and work on an essay? Jenna’s office will welcome you with open arms. No public transportation will serve you? Jenna will exhaust every resource until she finds a way to make sure you have a ride to school. Best of all, despite the bureaucracy that comes with granting a student an accommodation, Jenna pushes through until every kid has what he or she needs.

Jenna even came to my classes to observe whenever she could and participated in groups with students so she could better understand what “class” looked like for them. I love the sound of Jenna’s voice when she gets passionate talking about her students (whom I’ve never met) and how she brings them to life in my mind by describing their hopes, talents, and character. I am so lucky to know this amazing SCHOOL counselor, call her my friend, and to give visibility to a group that often goes by the wayside when we think of education. I miss having her in the same school building!

1.       What inspired you to become a counselor? I’ve always loved the feel of high school and looked forward to going to school and connecting with peers and educators in different ways. When I couldn’t decide a specialty to teach, I leaned on psychology in college and fell in love with the study of the mind, human behavior, and development and how it relates to the growth of adolescent students. After exploring how I could couple psychology and education, School Counseling felt like the right fit. I was inspired to learn how I could foster growth and development in students in the most critical time (in my opinion) of a person’s life - high school. What is most rewarding is having the ability to connect to my students on a more personal level and feeling inspired by THEM every single day. The beauty of School Counseling is learning about the unique stories and needs of my students, and ultimately help them understand what they can offer the world.

2.       What are some big ideas for change you’d like to see in your line of work? Although I have a lot of ideas about what I’d like to implement in my line of work, I think the most important is the visibility of the School Counseling profession. School Counseling is still widely misunderstood on a national level. A lot of people still refer to us as “guidance” counselors, which historically implies that the sole purpose of our job is to guide students into college and/or careers. School Counselors are now trained in college/career counseling, academic advising, and social/emotional support. We pride ourselves on integrating all three domains into a student’s educational experience. The only way to implement a comprehensive school counseling program is for the profession as a whole to have support from all educational stakeholders - a common understanding of our role, manageable student-to-counselor ratios, and administrative support for equitable systems that we can foster.

3.       Favorite self-care? Something about who you are besides being a counselor. My favorite self-care is immersing myself in different parts of the world. I love traveling to new cities and countries, but since that isn’t a daily hobby, I also enjoy trying new restaurants. Getting the feel of a new experience - whether it’s the ambiance, cuisine, or location, I’m always craving a new experience. I also love to immerse myself in different traditions in the new places I visit. I’m always looking for new adventure!