The Washington Township High School counseling department welcomed Briana Baud to its staff this school year. Not new to the district, Mrs. Baud previously worked as a counselor for three years at Bunker Hill Middle School. She has also spent time at Pennsville as a middle school counselor.

Baud says that she got into this profession because of her high school counselor.“I loved the whole college process, like applying for college. Through those conversations, I got really close with my counselor and I knew some people that didn’t even know their counselors. I wanted to be able to follow the example that was left for me and give kids the counseling experience I had when I was in high school.”

Growing up, Baud always knew that she wanted to work with kids. However, it was during high school that she really figured out what she wanted to do.

When asked to describe what a typical day here at WTHS is like for her, Baud commented that she has a very unpredictable schedule.“It depends on if I send out passes and have student appointments all day or if I have more of a planning day. It depends on if there’s a crisis situation or if a student needs to talk urgently,” Baud reveals, “it’s super flexible.”

It is clear in talking to Baud that she is genuinely enjoying her time at the high school. “I feel like as kids get to high school age, there’s a level of maturity and an adult conversation that I could have that is really enjoyable.”

Baud commented that it was a big transition moving from counseling at the middle level to counseling at the high school level. “Bunker Hill [Middle School] is so small. I could walk out of my office and turn left, right, or go up the stairs and know every staff member and everybody in my grade level.”

At WTHS Baud’s students are scattered all over the place in all different classes. Baud also discloses that she barely knows many of the staff members since the school is so large. “I was so used to working with Dr. Muscelli (Assistant Principal), Mr. D’Ostillio (Principal), Dr. Morros (counselor), and Mr. Fimiani (counselor). It was just the five of us,” Baud says.

Her job description is also different here than at the middle school since it is more academic based at the high school. There is a larger focus on GPA, transcripts, attendance, and passing grades. Whereas in middle school Baud found that there was a lot more day-to-day drama that she dealt with. Baud also notices the drastic difference in exactly when students come to see her. In middle school, the teachers generally allowed their students to go and see Baud, whereas students at the high school are more careful not to miss class often.

Baud is in charge of a handful of ninth and tenth grade students. She is also in charge of standardized testing such as PSATs, PARCC, etc. Even though she is not fully familiarized with her students yet, Baud finds comfort in her day and enjoys meeting new students. “It is really nice to follow the eighth graders and know a third of the freshmen class.”

For her students and struggling seniors, Baud wants to emphasize that each student does not have to know what they want to do and should know their options by their senior year. And to students that are not feeling their best, Baud encourages them to seek help. “Everybody in this office is like a cool person that really means well and definitely just have somebody that could point you in the right direction.”