Guidance office might still be open when school day ends

By MARIA ELENA BACA, Star Tribune

Last update: February 2, 2008 - 10:04 PM

Some north-metro high schools could hang a new tile outside their guidance and career centers: OPEN LATE.

In order to better serve not only parents, but also alumni and residents who want access to guidance-office resources, schools in the Mounds View, Centennial, St. Francis and Anoka-Hennepin districts offer regularly scheduled evening hours.

Generally speaking, career centers offer a library stocked with books on different kinds of jobs, volumes of college rankings and financial aid help, college and military brochures, test-preparation books and software, access to subscription-only websites that offer interest inventories, which help people assess their own interests, and a trained adviser to help people slog through college paperwork and find their best options for after graduation.

"A lot of them want the one-on-one personal advice," said Colleen Lavin, college and career specialist at Mounds View High School, which has evening hours on the second Monday of each month during the school year. "They want my time all to themselves for two hours."

Career and college advisers in the north metro area said their centers are used by parents on behalf of their public school and home-schooled students, and by alumni and parents interested in a career move or college for themselves.

"I've helped them write résumés when their original plan after high school didn't work out," said Centennial High School career specialist Leslye Erzberger. "I've helped them develop a new career plan, and I have had adults come in and do an interest inventory when they need to change careers and they want to see what's out there."

Ginny Karbowski is the director of career and technical education for the Anoka-Hennepin school district, which not only offers regular evening advisory hours, but also sponsors evening programming on topics such as applying for financial aid, writing college essays, surviving senior year and more.

"We know from best practices in career education that there's a developmental need to have parents involved in their children's education," she said.

"It's not a rocket scientist that knows that; research shows over and over again if you don't have parents involved, kids are not necessarily going to make good choices for the classes they take in high school and during the process of applying for college. ... So many of our lives are so busy, and things change so quickly. We need a place to provide support and answer our questions so we can help our sons and daughters with these important steps in life."

A range of services

Each district takes a different approach. Anoka-Hennepin high schools' career centers are open every Tuesday when school is in session. Centennial is open one evening a month. In St. Francis, the career center is open four evenings a week in September and October. The Osseo High School guidance office is open conference nights twice a trimester. Fridley High School counselors said an evening session may be in the works.

In Brooklyn Center, guidance counselor Jeff Lombardi said that the school tried weekly evening sessions several years ago but that they weren't well used.

"It got to the point where I was surprised when somebody would show up," he said. "At the end of the year, I evaluated all of the hours I spent in my office, and how much of that was spent with parents and kids."

He decided not to continue. But Lombardi said he understands that parents who need help may not always be able to visit during office hours. He is willing to make arrangements to meet at other times.

"If a parent were to call me up and would like to see me, and they do that occasionally, I would never say no," he said.

Maria Elena Baca • 612-673-4409