Guidance and Counseling


 Attn: Parents of 8th grade students

Take Stock in Children – One of the many contributions made to the community by the Public Education Foundation is the Take Stock In Children Scholarship.  8th grade students may apply for this scholarship, which provides money for college and also a Mentor throughout high school to help the students stay motivated and encouraged. To qualify for a scholarship, students need to be from a family with low income, and have a good academic and behavior history.  Applications will be available in Guidance between October 3rd and November 11th.  The Deadline for turning the application in to Mrs. Johnson is November 16th.

 Facts.Org– Starting in 8th grade, students are required to complete an Electronic Personal Education Plan through the FACTS.ORG website.  This plan will help with guiding the classes they will take throughout high school.  Throughout High School, they are able to monitor their progress as it relates to graduation, meeting the requirements for certain scholarships, and for state university admissions.

 Below are links that give parents detailed information about their student’s high school planning:

http://files.facts.usf.edu/pdfDocuments/communications/training/secondary/Parent_Guide-English.pdf

http://files.facts.usf.edu/pdfDocuments/communications/training/secondary/Parent_Guide-Spanish.pdf

 

Florida’s A++ Legislation for Middle Grades Promotion

Below is the link for Florida Department of Education guidelines for student promotion in middle schools:

http://www.fldoe.org/workforce/ced/pdf/1003GeneralRequirements.pdf

 

 

 

Guidance Counselors:

Ms. Alexan Johnson and Mrs. Jennifer Franco

Welcome to the Guidance Office! Our mission as your child's counselors is to provide the support necessary to assist assist your child in reaching his/her academic potential.

Through our office we offer and coordinate a wide variety of services designed to help us meet this goial. We would like to invite you to come in and get to know us and the services we offer. You may come by school or call to make an appointment with us. You don't need to wait until you have a problem or special reason! We hope that, together, we can lay a good foundation for future success and achievement by making your child's years at Liberty Middle School a happy and rewarding learning experience.

 

Counselors' Goals:

  • Help children understand themselves and others

  • Help to identify children with special needs

  • Provide crisis intervention

  • Develop plans to prevent academic/behavioral problems from developing

  • Provide Career Awareness programs

  • Coordinate the efforts of other professionals working for children

  • Provide orientation for children coming to Liberty for the first time

  • Promote positive attitudes toward persons of diverse cultural, racial, ability, and socioeconomic backgrounds

General Information

Also housed in the Guidance Office is the Guidance Clerks, Mrs. Reid, and the Health Clinic Assistant, Ms. Churaman.

Mrs. Reid's responsibilities include ESE and ESOL paperwork, student records and various other student services. They can assist with student registration and setup appointments for parent-teacher conferences.

Registration: All new students must register in the Guidance Office. Our personnel are familiar with all the requirements and can help you with questions.

Attendance: Attendance is taken each morning by the homeroom teacher. Any student that is not in class by 8:15 must first report to the front office. When a student has been absent from school, a note must be presented upon return to their homeroom teacher. If the student has been to a doctor, a note from the doctor is preferable. Parents, please read the Marion County Code of Student Conduct book for more information on district attendance policies.

Signing Out Early: Early sign outs are conducted in the front office. There you will need to show proper photo identification each time you check out a student. You MUST be listed on the student's Marion County Emergency Form in order to sign him/her out. If a student is checked out early or is tardy more than 3 times in a nine week grading period, they will be referred to the discipline office. Please refer to the Marion County Code of Student Conduct about this policy. No one under the age of 18 may be allowed to check out a student. There will be no check-outs after 2:00 p.m.

Official Records: Your child's cumulative records are housed in the Guidance Office. If you need to review anything in the folder please call ahead and make an appointment for someone to go over the contents with you. If you need a copy of any document in your child's folder we can provide it for you. If you request copies, a charge will be assessed at 25 cents per copy. Again, please call ahead and we will try and have it ready for you or will send it home via your child. If your child is transferring to another school we will make sure all necessary documents are forwarded to your child's new school.

*If you are a non-custodial parent who wishes to have copies of report cards, interim reports, and other routine school information, please come to the guidance office. You will be required to provide self-addressed, stamped envelopes for this.

Registration

Click here for instructions and forms on how to enroll or withdraw your child.