COUNSELORS RECOGNIZED FOR OUTSTANDING SERVICE

The Prince William Regional Counselors Association has selected Kathy Johnson, guidance counselor at Dale City Elementary School; Richmond Hill, a counselor at Graham Park Middle School; and Rosemary Bozo, guidance counselor at Gar-Field High School, as Counselors of the Year. The Association also named Rebekah Wight, Director of Guidance at Freedom High School, as Supportive Administrator of the Year. Karen Walker, guidance counselor at Parkside Middle School, was named Humanitarian Counselor of the Year.

The Virginia School Counselor’s Association also selected Rebekah Wight as the Supportive Administrator of the Year and Richmond Hill as the Middle School Counselor of the Year.
Kathy Johnson, Elementary School Counselor of the Year, received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education with a Language Arts specialization from Marshall University and earned her Master’s of Education in Counseling and Development from George Mason University. Johnson taught second grade in West Virginia public schools before coming to Prince William County in 1987 as a teacher’s assistant at Ann Ludwig School. She taught fourth grade and first grade at Parkside Elementary School and second grade at Dale City  Elementary School prior to becoming school counselor at Dale City in 2000.

In 2002, Johnson initiated, organized, and hosted the dedication of the Karen Lipinski Memorial Library at Dale City Elementary. A member of the Prince William County Public Schools Critical Incident Support Team since 2002, in 2004 she served as an ad hoc committee member for the team’s production of the Intervention Manual for all Prince William County public schools. She received the Principal’s Culture Coin and the Governor’s Physical Activity Gold Award. In addition, Johnson is a member of the Virginia Counselors Association, the Virginia School Counselors Association, and the Prince William Regional Counselors Association.

Richmond Hill, Middle School Counselor of the Year, received a B.A. in Psychology and a M.Ed. in Counselor Education from North Carolina State University. He has been a school counselor at Graham Park Middle School since August 2001 and Site Coordinator of the Youth GED Program since September 2004. As Site Coordinator for the Youth GED Program, Hill developed and implemented a career/workplace readiness curriculum, coordinates with students’ employers, and provides career counseling. Among his other responsibilities, Hill coordinates and supervises the Peer Mediation Program, coordinates the school-wide character education program, and is a member of the school crisis team and the division Critical Incident Debriefing Team.

Prior to coming to Prince William County Schools, Hill was Residence Director for University Housing at North Carolina State University. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and received their Outstanding Chapter Service Award for 2004. He is also a member of several other professional and civic organizations including the American School  Counselors Association. Hill has worked as a volunteer in the community for several area organizations that help children and families in crisis.

Rosemary Bozo, Secondary Counselor of the Year, earned her B.S. and her M.S., both in Education, from the University of Akron. Currently a school counselor at Gar-Field High School, she has worked in Prince William County Public Schools for nine years as a teacher and counselor. Prior to coming to Prince William, Bozo worked, as a military wife, in locations all over the world with students ranging from preschool to college level. She is an active volunteer in military communities.

Rebekah L. Wight, has been selected Supportive Administrator of the Year for both the region and the state. She received her B.S. in Family and Child Development from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. She earned her M.Ed. in Counseling at Virginia Commonwealth University. Wight is currently Director of Guidance and Counseling at Freedom High School. Prior to transferring to Freedom, Wight was Director of Guidance and Counseling at Stonewall Jackson High School from 1998 to 2004, where she began as a counselor in 1996.

Wight has presented at the Guidance Directors Leadership Training for the past two years, the Queens District Assistant Principal’s Conference, the Prince William County Superintendent’s Advisory Council, and the Prince William County Student Services Symposium, speaking on topics ranging from Data Management and Record Keeping to Creating a Family Friendly Comprehensive Guidance Program.

Karen Walker, Humanitarian Counselor of the Year, has been a counselor at Parkside Middle School since 1997. She was a sixth grade teacher for seven years at Parkside until she became school counselor. Walker received her master’s degree in Elementary and Secondary  Counseling at Duquesne University and her undergraduate degree in Elementary and Special Education at Slippery Rock University. She has pursued graduate studies in education at University of Pittsburgh, West Virginia University, Shenandoah University, and University of Virginia.

At Parkside Middle School, Walker created the Character Counts program, facilitated student support groups, designed a career exploration program, and led evening parent-teen programs sponsored by Virginia Cooperative Extension. She received the Virginia Cooperative Volunteer of the Month Award in May 2004.