Introduction

Everyone needs guidance throughout their life. From words of encouragement to a helping hand, everyone needs a little support. For this reason, many turn to the Roxbury High School Guidance Department. If you have stopped down at the Guidance Office, you may have noticed that there’s a new guidance counselor in the building. Who is he?  Keith La Badie is a new guidance counselor at Roxbury High School as of 2020. I have interviewed Mr. La Badie to find out who he is, what he likes, and how he feels about the current situation in 2020. 

Childhood and Family Life of Mr. La Badie

Keith La Badie grew up in a huge family in Blairstown, New Jersey. As a kid, he had a big friend group that was very active in sports and liked to play with every day; the best part was they all lived on the same block. Growing up, La Badie wanted to be a police officer because all of his uncles were New Jersey State Troopers. Soon he realized how miserable and tired they were from the long hours, dealing with people who did not respect the law, or did not respect them as people. La Badie decided that he did not want to live his life hating what he did for a living. La Badie loves meeting new people and would describe himself to a stranger as, “An outgoing individual who loves sports, health, and nutrition, spending time with my family, helping others, and traveling (not during COVID-19).” Other fun facts about Mr. La Badie are that he likes to work out and collect shoes. Also, he has a special talent which is that he can beatbox pretty well. 

Currently, Mr. La Badie lives in Bridgewater, New Jersey, and has been living there for several years. La Badie is not some dude living alone, he is married to a wonderful woman named Brooke. Sadly he does not have any pets but, even better, he has an adorable little girl named Bella who is 2 years old. During the interview, La Badie added the cutest comment about his daughter saying, “her favorite thing to do is dance and sing.” 

Working in a Pandemic

At Roxbury High School we have to wear masks, we have one-way hallways, we have designated up and down stairwells, and we have drastic changes the schedule. The staff has taken many precautions to keep students safe. La Badie thinks it is weird to be wearing masks and taking all these safety precautions all of a sudden, but he agrees with how Roxbury is handling the situation and acknowledges how they are doing the best they possibly can. He said it is a new change to his lifestyle and the entire world’s way of life compared to pre-COVID-19. 

The coronavirus has impacted a lot of people’s lives, especially jobs. Businesses have closed down, people have been let go from their jobs, and some have even struggled to keep their homes all because of a virus. Surprisingly, La Badie stated that “COVID-19 has not affected the way I work or how the workflow goes at all.” If he were to tell his past 2019 self that this is the world today and this is how we are living, he wouldn’t believe himself. 

Mr. La Badie’s Role at Roxbury

As a young adult, La Badie went to East Stroudsburg University and got his bachelor’s in Sociology. Then, he went to Caldwell University and got his masters in School Counseling. He is a hard worker, as you can tell. He used to work at Warren Central Elementary School in Warren, New Jersey, but he is now playing in a bigger field and has switched over to help high school students at Roxbury High School. Now, let’s get into the reasons for which La Badie chose to work at Roxbury. Mr. La Badie started working at Roxbury at the start of March 2020 to fill in for Mrs. Christina Belfiore while she is on maternity leave. He chose to work at Roxbury because of the school’s positive climate and positive culture the school practices. 

During the interview, I asked how he likes working at Roxbury High School so far and responded by saying he has been loving it. It has been an amazing experience for him where every staff member has made him feel comfortable and part of the Roxbury community. A round of applause is in order for Roxbury for giving all new staff members a great work experience! When asked why he was inspired to become a guidance counselor he stated, “Because my guidance counselor in High School told me I would never make it to college or achieve greatness. I do not want a student to go through what I went through as a student and had no resources or support provided.” His guidance counselor must regret saying that now because Mr. La Badie is a fantastic guidance counselor at Roxbury High School and an overall great person. Mr. Keith La Badie certainly will be a supportive role model for anyone who needs his help or guidance.