This year, Roxbury High School welcomed a large number of new staff, especially in leadership positions within the school. One of those new staff members is the newest Director of Student Support Services (which includes Guidance) at our school. I sat down and spoke with her, and we covered topics such as her experience, qualifications, goals, and more. Keep reading to find out all about the latest Director of Student Support Services, Mrs. Huguenin!
Mrs. Huguenin came from Randolph High School, where she was a guidance counselor for four years before becoming their Director of Guidance in 2021. After working in that capacity in Randolph, Mrs. Huguenin moved back to her native Roxbury to step into this role—starting at the end of September for the 2024-25 school year. Before beginning her actual work as a counselor, Mrs. Huguenin received her undergraduate degree from the University of Rhode Island – double majoring in Psychology and Sociology. It was when one of her professors at university told her that she could combine her interests in Psychology and counseling into a career in School Psychology, which she went to graduate school for at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and then got her administration certification at Montclair State University.
Throughout the interview, Mrs. Huguenin expressed her excitement about joining the Roxbury staff. As a Roxbury High School alum, Mrs. Huguenin said that while she is familiar with the local town community that makes Roxbury so special compared to other towns around, even citing that as her favorite aspect of Roxbury; her ultimate goal is to get to know the in-school community better so that she can better formulate the operations of the department to work best for the needs of the student body. She said that, “My hope is to create a great system of wrap-around support and communication between home and school.”
She went on to also stress the importance of connection stating that, “I think relationships and connection are so important. My goal is to reach out to staff, students and families to determine how we can improve our system of communication and create parent focus groups to help guide my initiatives.” When asked, Mrs. Huguenin said that the most important thing that she wanted to tell the students of Roxbury High School is to “get to know your counselor” – and said that guidance counselors are available to assist anyone who needs it.
With the important decision for many seniors upcoming for their college decisions, the guidance department seems to be gearing up and operating at full force to help assist the Seniors who need help with their college applications or with other post-high school career planning, such as entering the military or the workforce. Guidance is currently meeting with Seniors regarding their college decisions, and will be offering help to any students. And even though it might seem like guidance is very occupied with the Senior class, they are always there for any student – and Mrs. Huguenin’s advice to get to know your counselor ties directly into that fact.
