Becoming a counselor was not Kelly Maveal’s intended path when she entered college. She majored in psychology and ed- ucation as she has been interest- ed in those two fields forever. It wasn’t until Maveal had time in a classroom that she got to actually work really closely with a school counselor.

This is Maveal’s second year as a school counselor at Com- munity High School. Prior to coming to Community, Maveal had previous experi- ence as a counselor at Ann Arbor Open. Maveal’s career started in teaching as an el- ementary school teacher in Milwaukee. She has been in the counseling field for about seven years and is a lifelong advocate for mental health and education.

“I just had a newfound in- terest in learning about what’s going on outside of academics and in kids lives and due to confidentiality rules the coun- selor wasn’t able to ever share much more about what she was learning about a student with me and I remember feeling physically frustrated by that,” Maveal said.

During the first year, Maveal has been pleasantly surprised about how much voice the stu- dents have in the CHS commu- nity. Based on her experience during her first year of coun- seling at CHS, Maveal felt that the students were open to hav- ing conversations and sharing out about their lives.

“I feel like oftentimes they’re the ones leading and guiding even me in my role,” Maveal said. “What surprised me is that shift in balance and power compared to other schools that I’ve been in. It’s this hierarchi-

Photography by Eddie Mobilio Breck

Kelly Maveal enjoys a sunny day on the front lawn of Community High School. She’s realized that students shouldn’t need to limit themselves when telling their stories. “All stories matter,” Maveal said. “There is not just one reason why it would be necessary or beneficial to talk to a counselor.”

cal nature of teachers and staff and then students on the bot- tom, and I feel like Communi- ty dramatically shifts that in a really great way and I’ve been honored to work here for that reason.”

As for students who might be hesitant to talk to a counselor or even step into Room 206, Maveal has some words of wis-

dom.
“I would just say that it

doesn’t need to be a big thing,” Maveal said. “I would love the opportunity to connect with a student whether that means grabbing a coffee from across the street or taking a walk to- gether and hearing about your weekend, or your life or your future.”