ADVISOR/ADVISEE PROGRAM
WHY IS IT?
Mission Statement
To create a safe and caring school community for all students, staff, and faculty members at Stonington High School. Goals:
• Each student will feel a sense of safety, belonging, and validation.
• Each student will be known by at least one adult in the school.
• Students should feel free from physical or emotional harm, verbal harassment or intimidation.
• A school environment that is conducive to learning and growth.
• Students should feel a strong sense of belonging and of ownership for the school and for each other.
WHY IS IT?
• A growing number of students today come from homes that lack structure and stability.
• Many more students demonstrate a wide variety of at-risk behaviors.
• Historically, schools are more dedicated to the cognitive needs of students rather than their affective needs.
• As Abraham Maslov pointed out, children will not learn unless other more primitive needs, like safety and security, are fulfilled.
• Heart of education lies in a close relationship between students and faculty, children and adults.
• Students have shown that role models, advisors, and other positive adult “friends” can have profound effects upon the lives of adolescents.
• Every student deserves the school’s attention.
• No student should “fall between the cracks.”
• Engagement, affiliation, and “belonging” promote self esteem, self definition, and growth.
• People who know each other tend to like each other and thus tend to take care of each other.
• “We care. We Share. We Dare.”
• Schools are best described as “four walls surrounding the future.”
General Overview
• Every faculty member is assigned 10-12 students.
• Students are grouped by grade and home base.
• Students will stay with their advisor all year, for 4 years.
• The Advisor/Advisee groups meet every other week for 20 minutes.
• Advisors get to know students, their academic performance, the school improvements, and their interests and goals. They maintain files/portfolios.
• Groups are instructed to create their own operating rules to live by.
• Advisors are student advocates.
• Advisors will be given guidelines to use with their groups.
• Advisors are free to develop their own activities, but should follow assigned grade level themes.
• Advisors are free to develop close relationships with their Advisees.
• Advisors are not mandated to develop close relationships.
• Grade level Advisors should meet periodically to share ideas and observations
• Advisors are told to refer issues of concern to the appropriate counselors, psychologists, administrators.
• Advisors should use SAT/RTI forms when formally reporting.
• Advisors receive all important information on students.
• Advisors consult with guidance for student information when necessary
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