The guidance department has welcomed a new face to the office, Miss Brink. She is the counselor for juniors and seniors and she previously worked at Punxsutawney Area High School as their social worker where her focus was to address mental health needs. Before working at Punxsutawney High School, Miss Brink worked on the inpatient behavioral health unit at Penn Highlands Dubois.

“Being a school counselor is in the same field of social work, but very different,” Miss Brink said when asked how being a school guidance counselor is different than her previous jobs. She further explained how she still gets to use her clinical experiences some of the time, but so far, a majority of her work has been focused on academics. Being the counselor for juniors and seniors, college and career readiness has been another big part of her job thus far.

The previous counselor, Mr. Bryan, and Miss Brink have similar previous work experiences and the same student-focused approach, so that made the transition smooth, she said. She also added how she loves to be creative and think outside the box and is hoping to bring some different material to the table as well. Since her background is in clinical work and not education, Miss Brink believes that she can bring a different perspective for new ideas on how to best serve the students. At Punxsutawney she did a lot of positive school climate initiatives and is hoping she gets the opportunity to share her ideas and do some new things for school climate here at Clearfield.

When asked why she decided to come to Clearfield, Miss Brink stated, “As much as I love Punxsy and the work I was doing there, I knew I needed a change. Punxsy was very much in my comfort zone, but I wanted to grow personally and professionally.” A family member told her about the job posting and once she interviewed for the position, she knew it was going to be a great experience. Miss Brink conveyed that deciding to leave her previous job has been the hardest part so far, but she is most excited to get settled into her position and make a positive impact on the students and school as a whole.