Student Counseling

Mission

Rutgers Preparatory School provides counseling services to support and enhance student’s social emotional and academic development.  To that end, counselors also support the Rutgers Preparatory Community of parents, faculty, and staff.

The counseling department works together to ensure that all the Rutgers Prep students have somewhere to turn when social and emotional problems begin to interfere with their academic or extracurricular life, compromise their ability to work, learn, and play, or simply threaten their basic sense of well-being.

In the Lower School, the staff teaches a bi-weekly guidance program. The lessons are devoted to strengthening and building character. The curriculum covers honesty, friendships, self-awareness, and conflict resolution and is taught using art projects, books, role-plays, writing and discussions. The counselors also provide direct services when needed and will met with individual students, with families, with parents, with small groups of students, and with teachers about behavioral issues and to provide assessment.

In the Middle and Upper School, the counseling department works directly with students, teachers and families whenever there is a student in need. The staff will work with any social and emotional concerns related to school, friendship, boyfriends, girlfriends, parents, or any other concerns of today's students. While the goal is to resolve issues with students directly, at times, referrals for services outside of the school will be made. That may include referrals for educational testing, mental health services, or tutoring.

In addition to direct service in the Middle School, the counseling department is involved in the advisory program. They work with the Dean of Students, Grade Level Coordinators and the Principal to provide every Middle School student with an adult they can turn to if feeling overwhelmed or need some assistance.

“Raising children is not easy, and success often depends on all members of the school community working together.” With this as the foundation, the counseling department believes the sharing of information between home and school is crucial in creating a successful environment where children can not only learn, but also succeed. It is the hope of the counseling office that we will work together with parents to ensure your child's safe and successful passage through school.