The Peace Prayer of St. Francis: A Counselor's Prayer
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
Our Mission
The mission of the Counseling Services Center at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic School is to provide all students with the academic, social-emotional, and career-readiness skills necessary to grow into successful, Christ-centered adults. This program will take an integrated approach to ensure healthy development through individual and small group academic resources, extracurricular academic programs, and a comprehensive school counseling program. The counseling services team is committed to building the foundation for passionate life-long learners and future community leaders in a supportive, culturally responsive environment.
Classroom Counseling Lessons
At Mercy, we ensure that each and every student has access to counseling support. To accomplish this, we schedule classroom lessons throughout the school year to teach valuable life skills and mindsets. We stay grounded in evidence-based, developmental research while also playing close attention to the specific needs that each grade level presents.
Small Groups
Psycho-educational small groups are formed based on parent/teacher referrals or student self-referrals. The purpose of small group counseling is to reach a group of students who have a common need. Groups typically take place during lunch or enrichment times, and run once per week for 4 to 12 weeks. Contact your child's counselor for more information about groups being offered in your child's grade level.
Individual Counseling
Short-term individual counseling is available to students. The school counselor may recommend and provide referrals for outside counseling if the concern persists after short-term interventions or if the concern is rooted outside of the school context.
Student Success Meetings (SSMs)
Do you have concerns about your child academically, socially, or emotionally? It may be time to ask your child's counselor to organize a Student Success Meeting. The purpose of an SSM is to bring teachers, parents, counselors, and administrators together to create a plan for success at school. A meeting can be requested by parents, teachers, or administrators.
Parent and Teacher Support
One of our passions in the counseling program is building trusting, working relationships with our parents and teachers. We work to accomplish this through daily communication, Student Success Meetings, newsletters, Lunch & Learn opportunities for parents, and inservice opportunities for teachers.
Consultation & Collaboration with Outside Professionals
In order to best support your child, it greatly helps to have the entire team working together. Your counselor may request a signed "Release of Information" form which will allow her to communicate with other professionals that are currently supporting your child. Examples may include outside counselors, pediatricians, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and more.