More than 800 educators counselors, administrators and school staff gathered at the 2024 Orange County Counselor Symposium to learn new approaches toward empowering students.
Organized by the Orange County Department of Education, the Feb. 7 event highlighted the unique contributions made by local school counselors and counseling advocates while inviting education leaders to share their expertise in the academic, social-emotional and career counseling domains.
Held at the Hilton Anaheim amid National School Counseling Week, the conference welcomed its largest amount of attendees since the program started 10 years ago.
To recognize those who have gone above and beyond in the region, the OC School Counselor Recognition Program awarded seven counselors and one counseling advocate within the K-12 school system, along with one community college counselor and one community college counseling advocate. The OCDE-led awards program was created six years ago to recognize the region’s top professional counselors and the positive impact they make on students and across their campuses.
Attendees and presenters shared a diverse set of approaches for how to best guide students toward greater academic, social-emotional and career-minded growth. With 40 different breakout sessions to choose from, the conference featured speakers from local educational agencies and organizations to provide relevant training opportunities for counselors and educators with resources they can use to better serve students.
The symposium kicked off with a presentation by Dr. Shree Walker, an author and former director of special education, who encouraged counselors to use their expertise to be a voice for students who might go unheard. As a former student who faced adversity, Dr. Walker showed counselors how their guidance can be a turning point in helping students realize their full potential.
Aligned with the theme “Empowering Students: Navigating Each Step Together,” presenters shared some ideas that attendees could implement into their own communities. OCDE Family and Community Engagement Coordinator Janis Price offered new approaches for building relationships with families to increase student engagement.
Between sessions, counseling teams had the opportunity to meet and collaborate with educational vendors to increase services available to students.
During her keynote address, Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin, the executive manager of K-12 national education leadership at Apple, shared practical advice for helping counselors incorporate collaboration, connection and creativity into their work and empower scholars within their community.
OCDE’s College and Career Readiness Coordinator Margaret Llamas said attendees noted they were inspired by the fresh perspectives offered by the keynote speakers and presenters while motivated to use these approaches with their students.
“We have to remember who we are, we have to remember our responsibilities, and we have to remember that we get to serve, guide and lead people everyday,” said Dr. Walker.
Here’s a complete list of honorees recognized at the 2024 Orange County Counselor Symposium:
2024 Orange County School Counselors of the Year
Brittany Springle, Price Elementary School in the Anaheim Elementary School District
Brandon Irvine Gernux, Madison Elementary School in the Santa Ana Unified School District
Alexandra Vargas, Esencia K-8 School in the Capistrano Unified School District
Michele Branch, Stacey Middle School in the Westminster School District
Carlyn Morones, El Toro High School in the Saddleback Valley Unified School District
Edith Garcia Prado, Westminster High School in the Huntington Beach Union High School District
Kenia-Sandoval Rodriguez, Gilbert High School in the Anaheim Union High School District
Paolo Varquez, Adjunct Counselor at Coastline College
2024 Orange County Counseling Advocates of the Year
Darek Jaronczyk, Executive Director of Student Services in the Westminster School District
Amanda Romero, Department Co-Chair of the Counseling Center at Irvine Valley College