BMS School Counseling Program Vision Statement:

Through engaging in the Biddeford Middle School Counseling Program, students thrive in the changing world. All BMS students who pursue goals of high school and beyond are: resilient, leaders, lifelong learners, and are positively changing the world. All students are empowered with knowledge to make healthy choices, cope through adversity, and to speak up to help others. BMS citizens are responsible, respectful, empathetic, and growth-minded. These critical thinkers are culturally aware and consistently persevering. By contributing to their community, they have found their place and experience fulfillment while making a difference in the world.

BMS School Counseling Program Mission Statement:

The Mission of the Biddeford Middle School (BMS) Counseling Program is to collaboratively create a school culture where all youth are resilient, empowered leaders, lifelong learners, and changing the world around them. Through our equitable program, all students learn skills and are respectful, responsible, and celebrating their own uniqueness while honoring the differences of others. All students at BMS are valued, connected to trusted adults, and problem solvers. We proactively foster perseverance and accountability so all students have the skills to learn and succeed in a changing world. Our comprehensive and developmental counseling program is shaped by data-driven decisions and advocacy to create an equitable learning environment for all students.

PROACTIVE PROGRAMMING THEME - Tiger PRIDE

All of our classroom lessons and core curriculum, small group counseling, and whole-school initiatives will be based on the following themes:

• Perseverance (coping skills, stress management, trusted adults)

• Respect (self and others, upstanders to bullying)

• Integrity (kindness, responsibility, speak up for what’s right)

• Determination (goals, careers/college, growth mindset)

• Empathy (strong leaders changing the world, community and citizenship)

GOALS

• Connect EVERY student to Trusted Adults

• Promote kindness and empathy toward all students

• Decrease bullying and suicide ideation

• Teach coping skills and that it's OK to ask for help

• Teach students how to persevere and be resilient

• Help each student to Reach Higher toward their future aspirations

We love Monday Morning Meetings and any chance to talk with ALL of our students and staff together!

You will see us teaching on stage, usually with our Peer Educators, throughout the school year. We strive to teach about the following important topics - and others as they come up during the school year.

• SEPTEMBER- Coping skills, mental health, and suicide prevention. Perseverance.

• OCTOBER- Respect, Bullying Prevention Month, Unity Day, Red Ribbon Week

• NOVEMBER- THINK Before You Post to 7th and 8th grade students, cyber safety

• JANUARY- Great Kindness Challenge, empathy, kindness for all, equality, Martin Luther King, Jr.

• FEBRUARY- National School Counseling Week, College & Career Week, Responsibility

• MARCH- De-Stress From the Tests

• APRIL-

• MAY- Mental Health Awareness and Hope Day

Attendance in school is very important. The more you attend school, the more likely you are to achieve your goals - now and in your future with careers and college. If students miss more than 7-10 days of school that is considered truancy. When that happens, letters and phone calls are sent home, as well as meetings held to try to figure out what is getting in the way of students attending school.

If students have struggled with attendance, we may start an Attendance Success Plan for you to set goals, incentives and brainstorm ideas to help school feel like a more positive place that you WANT to come to! We will help break down those barriers to ensure that you can access teachers, friends and clubs in school.

We are here to help! Parents and guardians, if your child is struggling with getting up and coming to school, please reach out to us. We can make a plan that works.