Welcome to the 21-22 School Year!

The MNCA school counseling team hopes that the start of the 2021-2022 school year has gone well for each of you! We are looking forward to working with you this school year. As your school counselors, we are here to support you with your academics, college and career planning, and social/emotional needs. We are here to advocate for YOU and to help you set and reach YOUR goals. Your school counselor can work with you to create a plan for a successful semester, school year and beyond! Check out the image below to find out who your school counselor is this year.

Also, be sure to check out our upcoming MNCA School Counseling website for helpful resources! You can find us and many counseling related resources at mncacounseling.com.

Your 9-12 school counselors want you to have a great start to the school year. Doing a check of your high school transcript can help keep you on track for your goals. When viewing your transcript you can see all of the classes you've taken in high school and are currently enrolled in. If you see any issues with your transcript or have any questions, reach out to your school counselor.

To access your transcript follow these directions:

From your homepage, click on your grade book at the top of the page -> Click on High School Transcript near the top of the page.

* If you are not currently on track for graduation or have failed required courses in the past, please set up a meeting with your school counselor to discuss a plan!

Considering making a course change? We suggest doing this ASAP so you don't have to play catch up in a new course. Send a webmail to your school counselor with some information about why you want to make a change. Your school counselor will let you know if it's an option!

College & Career Exploration Resources

• Have you thought about what type of career you are interested in after high school graduation? Whether you know your plan or you are undecided, we have resources for you on our MNCA Counseling Website in the College & Career Exploration section. There are resources for students who want to enter the workforce, attend college, join the military, or pursue apprenticeships. If you are undecided, check out the Careers & Interests section where you can find resources to further explore your interests and skills to identify careers that may be a good fit for you.
• As a MNCA student you have access to the Minnesota Career Information Systems website. This website has amazing resources about many career options. You can use the information below to login. This is a generic account and will not save your inventory or search results. You can create your own account after logging in with the generic log in. If you do this you will be able to go back to your results at a later date.

Log in: MNTransitions

Password: careers

Coming Soon

College Knowledge Month takes place next month, October 2021. Look for upcoming details about College Knowledge Month, college tours, applying to college, and more! In addition, National Apprenticeship Week will be the week of November 14.

Back to school may feel exciting, nerve wracking, overwhelming, invigorating, and everything in between! Maybe you feel a bit worried, stressed, or anxious about heading back to school, and your MNCA counseling team is here to remind you that:

• You're not alone. You are welcomed, you belong, you matter, and we're here for you!
• It's perfectly okay to feel how you feel. Being honest and sharing how you're feeling authentically with your family, School Counselor, Teachers, and friends is a positive thing.
• How you feel at this moment is not how you'll feel forever. Accepting your worries and being willing to investigate your fears with someone you trust can help move you through initial anxiety you may be feeling about the school year.
• Feeling challenged in classes and needing to ask questions is a great thing! If you have questions, chances are your classmates do too, and that's the purpose of learning. Your teachers love when you ask questions, and they're happy to help you when questions come up!
• Do your best. Striving for perfection in all things is a tall and often unrealistic order that can cause added stress. You are unique and wonderfully you, and your willingness to show up, try your hardest, take on new challenges, and seek out help when needed is the perfect recipe for a successful school year.
  
• In tough moments, incorporate mindfulness. Mindfulness means stopping to become aware of your thoughts and feelings. You might set a timer for 2 minutes and practice deep breathing, progressively tense and relax your muscles, or repeat a positive word or phrase. Try out a short guided mindfulness break like this one!

Welcome back for another amazing school year here at MNCA!

Middle School is fun, scary, overwhelming, and wonderful all rolled into one. We know this, we get it! Please reach out if you're unsure how you're feeling or if you want to chat and go through things.

Some tips and tricks to help get you started after Summer break:

• Make sure you set a sleep schedule and stick to it! It's hard to wake up in the morning, so be sure to get some extra ZZZ's to help you focus on your work.
• Set up a space in your home where you go to do school. It's so tempting to do your classes from your bed, but that makes it so much more tempting to just go right back to sleep.
• Turn off distractions (i.e. your phone, the tv). Though these distractions might be fun, it takes your focus off of what you're doing.
• Take breaks when you need them. We all need to step away sometimes, but remember, you have to come back eventually!
• Ask for help! Asking for help does not mean you can't do it or that you're not smart. It means that you recognize you might not be fully understanding what you are trying to learn. We are here for you!

My name is Mrs. Letourneau and I am your K-8 School Counselor this year!

Together, we can meet just you and me to talk about whatever your heart desires. I also will be hosting monthly Livelessons to teach some important Social and Emotional Skills everyone needs to know. We will explore possible careers, interests, hobbies, and more together.

For the 6th graders, I will be checking in with each of you to see how Middle School is going and to answer any questions you might have.

8th graders - you will also be meeting with me in second semester to talk about High school and what your plans for the future might be.

Please reach out whenever you need, I'm here to support you!

Welcome to the 2021-2022 School Year!! This year is going to be amazing. I am so honored to be able to work with all of you again this year.

I know the start of the school year is an exciting and scary time so take a deep breath and let's go! Your teachers and counselors are here to help with anything you might need!

If you're feeling a little anxious, whether it's because you're new to MNCA this year or because it's your first year in school at all, here are some tips and tricks to help you!

1. Take a deep breath!
2. Use the same space in your home to do your school work each day.
3. Bring a toy or something to hold if you need to fidget a little.
4. Make sure to take breaks!
5. Ask for help if you need it.

If you're willing - Click this link to download the photo, color it, and then webmail a photo of it to Mrs. Letourneau to showcase the wonderful coloring you all do in my livelessons with each of your homerooms!

Welcome to the 2021-2022 school year! Your advisory teachers are looking forward to getting to know you this school year and to help you reach your goals! Please reach out to your advisory teacher if you need assistance navigating Connexus, have concerns about attendance, or have questions that you need help solving but aren’t quite sure who to ask for help. Here are some things to know about Advisory this year:

Attendance: All students in grades 7-12 are required to work for 30 hours per week (K-6th requires 27 hours per week). These hours are tracked from Sunday-Saturday . The attendance link on the advisory website has more in depth information about attendance policies, video tutorials, an attendance FAQ, and suggestions for extra attendance activities.

LiveLesson: Advisory will be hosting LiveLessons this year on Fridays. Times and topics depend on grade- check here for more details.

Beginning of the Year Resources: Your advisory teacher is a great resource to help you navigate MNCA successfully. Check out the following links to help your year start off smoothly:

• Learning Coach Central
• Student How To Videos

Advisory teachers will be calling every student in the month of September to help make sure you are off to a great start! We can't wait to talk with you.

We all need support, positivity, perspective, and reassurance from time to time. 'Take' what resonates with you, and know that You've Got This!

- In Crisis? Need Support? -

Please reach out to your School Counselor, we're here to support you! If it's an emergency, please use the numbers outlined below:

Suicide Hotline: 800-784-2433
Immediate Medical Assistance: 911
Crisis Call Center: 800-273-8255 or text ANSWER to 839863
Crisis Text Line (U.S. only): Text HELLO to 741741