Sherry Weitzman, a guidance counselor of Struthers High School, has been at her position for 6 years and previously 27 years at the middle school.
Weitzman has gained a lot of experience over the years on how to guide students down the right path.
As a counselor, she loves her job, but at some points in time it gets very wild and very stressful.
“[This job can be] rewarding, at times chaotic. I wear a ton of “hats.” Some of which – a record keeper for academics and graduation, a post -secondary “expert”, but ultimately a trusted person who listens and at times gives advice or just has conversations with (anything goes – daily experiences, hopes, dreams, troubles,worries, etc),” said Weitzman.
When a staff member at the school is dialed in to a student or project, it gets very hard to just get up and go home.
Weitzman is no different; she has a passion for helping out others and watching them overcome their adversities.
“One of the most difficult things for me is that I feel such a connection to my students that often I have difficulty leaving my job at school. When I have student(s) that are having trouble or having major successes, they are on my mind at all times,” said Weitzman.
In many cases, people tend to create a fabricated answer just to be nice to you, but in a guidance counselor position this is not an option.
As a counselor, she has to be straight forward and not lie to you, she only gives you the best advice to succeed.
“I think I am a “what you see is what you get” type of person. I will tell you what you need to hear vs what you want to hear. I am empathetic, compassionate and a helper, but at the same time, will hold people accountable. On the record keeping side of the job, I am organized and methodical. So ultimately, yes, I think my character and personality fit this job, but I guess the people that I work with would be the best to answer this,” said Weitzman.
She has one of the most important jobs in the school, she engraves a pathway for half of the students to follow.
