Meet the School Counselor of Belmont Elementary School
Ms. Ryder and Mr. Jones
Vision
The vision of the Belmont Elementary School department is that all students will engage and participate in the comprehensive school counseling program where they will grow academically and socially. The students of Belmont will become competitive 21st century leaders where they will continue to be lifelong learners while showing compassion and respect for all.
Mission
The mission of the Belmont Elementary School Counseling Department is to provide an equal and accessible comprehensive program that addresses the academic, career, and personal/social development of all students. The students will learn and grow in a safe and nurturing environment where they will be able to explore their strengths and identify their personal goals. The Belmont Elementary School Counseling Department will collaborate with the administration, staff, and families to empower student growth and build skills for lifelong learning.
The School Counselor's Role
School counselors develop and implement a school counseling program promoting equity and access for students. School counselors work to help close achievement, opportunity, attainment and funding gaps in their schools, districts and communities. School counselors are mindful of school and community perceptions of the treatment of underrepresented groups and understand the importance of collaborating with school and community groups to help all students succeed. School counselors demonstrate cultural competence.
Confidentiality:
PWCS school counselors recognize that students and parents or guardians have a right to know the limits of confidentiality. Please click here to see PWCS Regulation 651-2 regarding information on the confidentiality of student-disclosed information.
Counseling Services
Counselor Schedule:
School Counselor's will have daily counseling lessons, individual counseling and group counseling (times will vary).
Small Group Counseling
Belmont counselors offer a variety of groups throughout the school year. Groups are formed based on student needs. School Counselors form groups after receiving requests/concerns about students from parents, teachers, and students themselves.
Groups typically meet weekly for 4 to 6 weeks. Groups frequently offered include:
Friendship/Social Skills
Self-Esteem/Confidence Building
Work Habits/Study Skills
Changing Families
Coping with Feelings/Anger Management
Individual Counseling
The school counselors at Belmont are available for individual student counseling. Students may refer themselves to the school counselor, through their teacher or parent. Besides self-referral, students can be referred to the school counselor by teachers, parents, administrators, or the Intervention Team.
If you are interested in having your child participate in a group or individual counseling, please contact Kareem Jones or Ms. Ryder
Meet Belmont Elementary Mental Health Team
About Ms. Sherita Baker, MSW, School Social Worker
I'm excited to continue to serve Belmont Elementary and Covington-Harper Elementary Schools. I have worked in PWCS for the last several years as a School Social Worker. In my role, I collaborate with schools and families to help remove the barriers to learning that a student may be facing. My support to families and schools includes: sharing strategies with school teams to help improve student behavior; providing families with referrals to private/community providers for various services; assisting families with connecting to community resources for food and shelter; providing direct behavioral and social-emotional support to students; supporting students with disabilities and their families; and providing support to students in foster care or who are experiencing homelessness.
My Weekly Schedule:
Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays: Covington-Harper Elementary School, school phone number: 571-466-4500
Wednesdays and Fridays: Belmont Elementary School, school phone number, 703-494-4945
*Please note that my schools have differing start and end times that I follow on the days that I am assigned to each school. Please feel free to contact me at my schools on the days designated above, even if I am not assigned to your student's school on the day that you contact me. My email address is [email protected]
About Ms. Samantha Speer, NCSP, School Psychologist
My name is Ms. Speer and I am the school psychologist for Belmont Elementary School. A large part of my role involves conducting special education evaluations to better understand how students learn and what supports will help them succeed. I also serve on schoolwide teams and collaborate with staff and families to provide behavioral and social-emotional support to students. I split my time between Belmont Elementary and Featherstone Elementary. I am typically at Belmont on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Please feel free to contact me at [email protected]. I am easily reachable by email on any given day of the week.
About Ms. Pierpoint, M.S.
My name is Ms. Pierpoint. My role as a Multi-Tier Systems of Support (MTSS) specialist is to provide strategic, targeted, and research-based interventions to help your child with academic or behavioral difficulties to accelerate your child's learning. I will use data to determine if the intervention is effective and measure how the intervention is carried out to ensure it is implemented with fidelity. I'm here to support students and families. Please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected].
News and Information
PWCS cares deeply about students’ emotional well-being. If a student is in need of emotional support during this time, please feel free to send an email to [email protected]. A school mental health or health professional will answer and offer virtual support to students to the best of their ability. This email is not to be used for emergency situations as it will not be monitored 24 hours a day. If a student is ever in an emergency situation he/she is encouraged to call 911 or utilize one of the resources listed below:
Emergency Resources:
ACTS Helpline 703.368.4141
1.800.SUICIDE (24-hour hotline) 1.800.784.2433
Crisis Text Hotline (24-hour hotline) 741741
PWC Child Protective Services Hotline 703.792.4200
PWC Community Services Board 703.792.7800 (western PWCS) or 703.792.4900 (eastern PWCS)