File:Kathleen Klecan Maryland School Counselor of the Year from The Frederick News-Post, December 23, 2019.jpg

Summary

Brunswick school counselor earns state recognition By Katryna Perera for the Frederick News-Post, December 23, 2019

For the third year in a row, a Frederick County Public Schools counselor has been named Maryland’s School Counselor of the Year. Kathleen Klecan from Brunswick Elementary School earned the recognition before the start of the school system’s winter break last week, after previously being named Maryland’s Elementary School Counselor of the Year. “It’s still kind of sinking in, I’m still processing it,” Klecan said. The Catoctin High School graduate has worked at Brunswick Elementary for eight years. She was chosen as counselor of the year due to the innovative practices she has installed at the school to improve the social-emotional learning and well-being of students. “We’ve noticed a real uptick in our kids needing coping strategies for emotional regulation,” Klecan said. “I always tell the kids, it’s hard to come to school and learn when you’re sad and you’re angry, so kind of learning how to manage those emotions.” One specific practice Klecan has implemented is Monday morning meetings in the classrooms, where she encourages teachers to have circle discussions with students and build a sense of community. “We build the classrooms to feel like little families,” Kelcan said. The greatest impact she’s seen of her work, Klecan said, is that students are now better equipped to understand and deal with struggle. “When I walk through the halls, children are much more able to work through conflict,” Klecan said. “And understanding that conflict isn’t necessarily bad, everybody has it...you just have to learn how to handle it a certain way.” When asked about the future of school counseling, Klecan said she hopes to see a greater emphasis on the need for elementary school counselors. “We’re taught that early intervention for academics is so important...and I don’t see us doing that for mental health as much as we should,” Kelcan said. She also hopes that the stigma around mental health will continue to fade. It’s something she makes sure to address with as many kids as possible at Brunswick elementary – making sure they know she’s a safe person to come to. “I always explain to them that it’s my job to make sure that when you come to school you’re happy and your heart’s ready to learn,” Klecan said. School Superintendent, Terry Alban said she was thrilled about Klecan’s recognition. “Mrs. Klecan is an excellent example of a counselor who understands how to integrate the skills she teaches as a counselor with the skills her students are asked to demonstrate in the classroom every day,” Alban said. Klecan was chosen out of 26 others who were nominated for the state-level recognition. She will receive formal honors at the Maryland School Counselor Association gala in February. For her though, no award or gala can beat getting to work with students and serve as a positive influence in their lives. “A couple different kids that I’ve worked with, in the moment it seems like nothing is really happening, but then you see the payoff later on,” Klecan said. “They’ll remember something that you did or you said and you didn’t think it was that big of a deal but it was huge for them.”