HGMS Counseling Connection

Another summer has come and gone and we are so excited to start the 2025-2026 school year! The HGMS Counseling Department has been busy enrolling new students every day and getting all 1,332 kids into the correct classes. We want to welcome all of our new families to HGMS! We look forward to getting to know your child and working with your family this year! It's going to be a wonderful year!

This first edition of the HGMS Counseling Department newsletter will be filled with lots of resources to get the year started at Garcia, help your child transition to the next grade level, deal with emotions, and have a successful year!

The Northside Independent School District Guidance and Counseling Department will provide a comprehensive developmental program addressing the whole child to maximize academic achievement, social and emotional development, and post-secondary college and career readiness.

Northside uses as it’s framework the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs 5th edition (TEC §33.003 - 33.007) The 10 school counselor responsibilities/roles described in The Texas Model addresses the whole child to maximize academic achievement, social and emotional development, and post-secondary college and career readiness.

The HGMS Comprehensive Guidance and Counseling program consists of four components. Here are some ways that we will be involved and working with your child around campus:

1. Responsive Services-

In this component, school counselors intervene with or on behalf of those students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grades whose personal circumstances, concerns, or problems are threatening to interfere with or are interfering with their healthy educational, personal, social, career and/or educational development.

2. Guidance Curriculum-School counselors provide classroom guidance lessons that facilitate student growth and development in the areas of educational, career, personal, and social development in four curricular content areas: Intrapersonal Effectiveness, Interpersonal Effectiveness, Post-Secondary Education and Career Readiness, and Personal Health and Safety.

3. Individual Planning-The individual planning component guides students to plan, monitor, and manage their own educational, career, personal and social development. Each student is provided with necessary steps toward his/her established goals.

4. System Support-The System Support component describes management activities which assure the delivery of a high quality school counseling program, and service which indirectly benefit students by supporting other programs.

Fanny Pack Friday is an opportunity to teach students coping skills on the go! One Friday a month, students and staff will wear a fanny pack with the opportunity to win “coping on the go” items. Items will include stress balls, breathing techniques, fidgets, mandalas, mini journals, yoga poses and many more! The HGMS Counseling Department is excited about this opportunity because it opens up talking points and extra teaching moments for students to learn new coping skills and a great way to connect and have fun with our students at the same time!

(Last Academic School year 2024-2025)

177 Guidance Counseling Lessons

1,028 Individual Planning

2,785 Responsive Services

46 Small Group Counseling Sessions

2,381 Parent Consultations

Intrapersonal Effectiveness

• Positive student self-concept
• Effective executive functioning skills
• Appropriate behavior to the situation and environment

Interpersonal Effectiveness

• Effective interactions with diverse populations
• Effective and appropriate communication skills
• Recognition of personal boundaries, individual rights and privacy needs of others
• Effective conflict resolution skills
• Development of healthy relationships

Post-Secondary Planning and Career Readiness

• Motivation to succeed in personal endeavors
• Demonstration of career exploration skills
• Possession of the knowledge and skills to gather information for the purpose of postsecondary education and career planning
• Demonstration of awareness of the importance of postsecondary education
• Understanding of the relationship of academics to the world of work and to life at home and in the community

Personal Health and Safety

• Incorporation of wellness practices into daily living
• Demonstration of resilience and positive coping skills
• Possession of assertiveness skills necessary for personal protection

Parents, be on the lookout for an email this week!

Currently, more than 7,000 children with parents who are connected to the military attend schools in the Northside Independent School District. Led by the efforts of school counselors, NISD school communities work diligently to support military families and address their unique educational challenges.

The Purple Star Campus Designation recognizes Texas district and charter schools that demonstrate exceptional support and commitment to meeting the unique needs of military-connected students and their families. This special honor was established by the 86th Texas Legislature through Senate Bill 1557 and is further defined in agency rule (19 TAC §61.1063), effective April 9, 2020.

Each fall, the Texas Education Agency awards the Purple Star Campus designation to campuses that apply and meet the established criteria (see below). Selected campuses receive a distinctive Purple Star recognition to proudly display on campus or on their school website. Additionally, designated campuses are featured on the TxSchools.gov website.

PSCD Criteria At a Glance

1) Designate a campus-based military liaison that must:

• Support military connected students and their families.
• Offer professional development opportunities for staff members on issues related to military-connected students.

2) Create and maintain an easily accessible campus military webpage that includes the following information for military-connected students and their families.

• Relocation
• Enrollment and registration
• Academic planning
• Counseling and support services
• Campus-based military liaison information

3) Must have/implement a campus transition program that includes:

• Introductions to school environment and processes.
• Student leaders or ambassadors should be supported or sponsored by a campus-based staff member.
• Participate in organizing and hosting newcomer social events, facilitating guided tours of the campus, and accompanying new students to lunch the first week of school.

4) Offer at least one of the following initiatives:

• A resolution showing support for military-connected students and families;
• Participation in Month of the Military Child or Military Family Month; or
• Partnership with a school liaison officer to encourage and provide opportunities for active-duty military members to volunteer in the local schools, speak at a school assembly, or host a school field trip.

08/20/2025 6th Grade "Howdy" Counseling Guidance Lesson

08/25/2025 7th Grade "Howdy" Counseling Guidance Lesson

08/26/2025 MAP Math Testing- All Levels

09/02/2025 Labor Day Holiday

09/02/2025 8th Grade "Howdy" Counseling Guidance Lesson

09/03/2025 MAP Reading Testing- All Levels

09/11/2025 ALE "Howdy" Counseling Guidance Lessons

09/17/2025 HGMS Kindness Club Meeting #1 in Library 8:00 AM

09/26/2025 First Fanny Pack Friday of the Year

10/01/2025 National Bullying Prevention Month

10/03/2025 Decision of Respect Day

10/06/2025 World Day of Bully Prevention- Blue Up Day

10/10/2025 End of the Grading Period

10/15/2025 6th Grade Counseling Guidance Lessons: Responsible Decision-Making: Friendships & Peer Pressure

10/16/2025 ALE Counseling Guidance Lessons: Responsible Decision-Making

10/22/2025 7th Grade Counseling Guidance Lessons: Responsible Decision-Making: Risks & Risk-Taking

10/27/2025 Red Ribbon Week

10/29/2025 HGMS Kindness Club Meeting #2 in Library 8:00 AM

10/31/2025 October Fanny Pack Friday #2

11/01/2025 Generation Texas Month

11/05/2025 8th Grade Counseling Guidance Lessons: Responsible Decision-Making/Prioritizing

11/12/2025 HGMS Kindness Club Meeting #3 in Library 8:00 AM

11/14/2025 November Fanny Pack Friday #3

11/24/2025 Thanksgiving Week Break

12/10/2025 HGMS Kindness Club Meeting #4 in Library 8:00 AM

12/11/2025 HGMS Kindness Club Fleece Blanket Party in Library 4:00 PM

12/19/2025 December Fanny Pack Friday #4

12/19/2025 End of the 2nd Grading Period & First Semester

The HGMS Kindness Club invites all students to be a part of the Kindness Movement! The purpose of the club is to promote a culture of kindness around the school and our community. We do all sorts of community service activities throughout the school year! All are welcome!

This year, each student will now need a signed permission signed by a parent/guardian to attend each club. That means if a student is in four clubs, they must have four signed permission slips. If the student does not have a signed permission slip, they will not be able to participate.

Parents, you are welcome to download the HGMS Kindness Club permission slip attached below and have your child bring it to the first meeting. However, no worries if not. We will pass out HGMS Kindness Club permission slips at the first meeting for students to take home. Each student will need to have their parent/ guardian sign it and return it to the HGMS Counseling Office (located in the main foyer across from the library). We will keep a master list of all students with permission to participate in the HGMS Kindness Club. Everyone is welcome to participate!

Are you interested in learning how to crochet? Do you already know how to crochet? Join the HGMS Crochet Club.

Take a look at the options!

Here are some informative resources for parents and students concerning vaping and knowing the facts about e-cigarettes.

We understand that addressing the issue of vaping requires access to reliable information. Here are some resources to help you navigate this conversation:

• Centers for Disease Control "Quick Facts on the Risks of E-cigarettes"
• National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) - "Vaping Devices (Electronic Cigarettes) Drug Facts"
• Outbreak of Lung Injury Associated with the Use of E-Cigarette, or Vaping, Products
• Ready or not, San Antonio school districts brace for Texas vaping crackdown
• New state law to crack down on vaping at Texas public schools

Here are some articles that may be helpful for you or your middle school child!