Congratulations to Ste. Genevieve High School counselor Kelly Sulkowski for being recognized by the Southeast Missouri School Counselors Association as the regional Secondary School Counselor of the Year!
This is Mrs. Sulkowski’s 20th year in the district, and her third year as a school counselor. Currently, she is the 10th and 11th grade counselor, and among the programs she oversees, she organizes testing (such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery and End-of-Course exams), as well as coordinates summer leadership camps for the sophomores and juniors. One of her priorities over the past few years has been her work with Process Coordinator Jami Drury to try to bridge the gap with workforce development for students at SGHS by striving to connect them with various internship opportunities.
“Kelly Sulkowski has been an integral part of creating student-centered discussions, and her caring and compassionate demeanor make her a very valuable member of our team,” SGHS Assistant Principal Dr. John Boyd said. “Over this past year, Mrs. Sulkowski led her grade-level teams to make many key decisions that were in the best academic and social-emotional interest of our students.”
From the start of the 2020-2021 school year until February, the high school was on a blended schedule where students had in-person learning two days a week and virtual learning three days a week. As the first semester began to unfold and Mrs. Sulkowski saw students struggling, she worked closely with her grade-level teams to identify students who needed further support and made recommendations to the administrative team. She was careful to think through the various processes to ensure that the team had a solid plan in place to help struggling students.
Over the last few years, Mrs. Sulkowski has also worked extensively with her colleagues to develop and implement a successful Social-Emotional Learning class, where she helped to build a curriculum that provides students skills and strategies to cope with various situations. This class is especially applicable now, as students are returning to school on a full-time basis and will have the resources to focus on their social-emotional health and well-being.
Throughout her career in education, Mrs. Sulkowski taught at both Bernie School District and North St. Francois County R-I before joining the Ste. Genevieve R-II team. Before becoming a school counselor, Mrs. Sulkowski taught integrated science, biology, 8th grade science, anatomy and physiology. She is currently in her third year as a counselor. Mrs. Sulkowski has served as co-advisor for Future Farmers of America for eight years, and consistently works at the scorer’s table during volleyball season and is active in our youth volleyball programs.
Mrs. Sulkowski earned her Associates of Arts degree from Mineral Area College, her Bachelors of Science degree in Education from Missouri State, and her master’s degree in Counseling from Missouri Baptist University.