Longwood High School is proud to welcome its new School Counselor, Mr. Peter Grabber. Mr. Grabber was recently interviewed and hired by District Principal, Mr. Rod Whitestain, and his Assistant Principal, Ms. Oval Peckertracks. He will be replacing the school's previous counselor, Mr. Bendem Overfast.
When asked why he chose 'student counseling' as a career path, Mr. Grabber said he was inspired by the lessons he learned as a young person who was constantly involved in volunteer work and community service projects.
"The more I helped others, the more I realized I was helping myself. As I got older, I realized that if I chose a career that would allow me to touch the lives of others, then I would be continually touching myself as well," Peter Grabber stated.
After discussing his dedication to counseling, Peter Grabber further described his passion for the World of Education by saying that it was his goal to 'touch' the lives and minds of young learners by leading and inspiring them to become self-aware, critical thinkers as well as productive citizens.
"I just want to touch young people," Mr. Grabber kept saying.
Peter Grabber was also kind enough to tell us about the teachers and role models who helped him along the way. "When I was in school earning my Master's Degree in Counseling, I was really inspired by my professor, Mr. Dick Hertz. He taught me that counseling can be a really hairy subject. Sometimes it's difficult to penetrate another person's mind in order to know how to deliver proper advice. Once you find an opening, however, it becomes a lot easier to push right in and make some positive changes."
Another particular individual who inspired Mr. Grabber was his Educational Communications Teacher, Ms. Iwana Takidin.
"Ms. Takidin taught me that if you remain silent and spread your mind open a little bit, then you will more effectively absorb the substance of what someone else is trying to communicate. It's important to momentarily release your own perspective and take a different position so that you can receive everything that's coming at you. At certain points in any discussion, it becomes essential to let the other person do all the talking because you might actually be amazed by all of the information that comes gushing and spurting out. Sometimes there is so much of it that it can actually be hard to swallow."
Mr. Grabber also mentioned that he has a long and hard stance on school bullying. "It's difficult to be a young person. You have all this advanced knowledge being shoved into you before you really even know who you are. On top of that, you also have to deal with people bullying you. Imagine being called a 'poopy-mouth,' a 'penis-face,' or perhaps even a 'stupid, smelly, raccoon-fucking turd.' And that's before you even get to Trigonometry Class."
He also further claimed that school bullying must stop. "People who suffer from school bullying often have problems in the future such as irreversible mental and psychological damage, personality disorders, intra-personal conflict, the inability to relate to others or feel comfortable around people, self-esteem issues, loneliness, self-hatred, anxiety, paranoia, severe depression, alcoholism, drug-use, suicide....and in really horrible cases, appreciation for mainstream music."
Longwood High School stands erect in its decision to hire Mr. Peter Grabber as the new school counselor. Because the counseling program is so large, he will be assisted by one of the teachers from the Social Studies Department, Mr. Johnson Rydehard, who said he would be more than happy to grab a firm hold of the bulk of his additional responsibilities.
Principle Rod Whitestain told reporters that he knew replacing Mr. Bendem Overfast would be a stiff and lengthy road, but that he maintained throbbing hope that the counseling program would be a bulging success for the new school year.
"I think we can do a real reach-around here as we try to touch the lives of our students," he further added. With that he wished to extend a solid yet warm welcome to Mr. Peter Grabber.
Longwood High School is located next to the Dickland Recreational Center on the curvy end of Head Street, which is perpendicular to Hymen Avenue.
