Departments / K–12 School Counseling
Every scholar deserves a plan, and someone in their corner to help build it.
From a kindergartner's first day at Dryden Street to a senior's last transcript request, Westbury's counselors walk alongside every scholar academically, socially, and emotionally, and toward whatever comes after graduation.
Or jump straight to: SchooLinks · Scholarships · Transcript
What should
I do now?
Answer two questions, get one real next step.
Choose an answer above for both questions
Our Approach
A throughline, not a checkpoint
One office follows every Westbury scholar from Dryden Street to a last transcript request: building habits in elementary, a plan in middle school, a path in high school. One relationship, not a handoff.
Read the 2026–2030 Strategic Plan →Aligned to Charting Our Course: 2030 & Beyond
This office carries the plan's Future Pathways pillar (preparing scholars for college, careers, leadership, and life), plus two of the district's five strategic priorities: Academic Excellence and Innovation and Social-Emotional Wellness and Whole Child Development.
2030 target: increase the share of graduates completing at least one college credit-bearing course before they leave Westbury.
New York State is moving the same direction: the NY Inspires initiative and new NYS Portrait of a Graduate are reshaping graduation around real-world readiness: the same ground Westbury's IB Programme and Portrait of a Graduate already cover.
Support at every stage
Westbury's counseling program isn't one office: it's three teams working from the same plan, handing scholars off with continuity as they move from building to building.
School counselors help our youngest scholars build the foundations everything else stands on: healthy goals, cooperation, perseverance, and early self-direction. Read: The Essential Role of an Elementary School Counselor →
New Counselor
School Counselor
Park Avenue Elementary · 955 Park Avenue
New Counselor
School Counselor
Drexel Avenue Elementary · 161 Drexel Avenue
Tameika Lovell
School Counselor
Powells Lane Elementary · 603 Powells Lane
Lisa Maldonado
School Counselor
Drexel Avenue Elementary · 161 Drexel Avenue
Brian McCray
School Counselor
Park Avenue Elementary · 955 Park Avenue
Middle school counselors help scholars manage a bigger, more complex school day: building the time-management, collaboration, and self-motivation habits that carry into high school. Read: The Essential Role of a Middle School Counselor →
Manfredy Jerez
School Counselor
Westbury Middle School
Abenie Lazard Edma
School Counselor
Westbury Middle School
Joanna Ramirez
School Counselor
Westbury Middle School
Chamaine Thomas
School Counselor
Westbury Middle School
High school counselors guide scholars through the four-year plan, testing, the college and career search, financial aid, and the transition to what's next. Read: The Essential Role of a High School Counselor →
Abby Archdeacon
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Sandra Auguste
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Kyle Bollar
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Rachael Castillo
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Drew Harrison
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Janesse Trinidad
School Counselor
Westbury High School
Dinah Freeman
Administrative Assistant
Westbury High School
What happens
and when.
Counseling at Westbury runs on a K–12 rhythm: the same categories of support recur every year, building on each other. Exact dates change annually; find them on the district calendar or in SchooLinks.
Building the foundation
- Classroom lessons on goal-setting, cooperation, and self-regulation
- Early social-emotional check-ins and small-group support
- First introduction to the idea of "college and career" through age-appropriate exposure
- Practicing self-management: following routines, naming big feelings, trying again after setbacks
Finding footing
- Transition support into middle school, then into high school
- SchooLinks introduction, interest inventories, and career exploration
- Study skills, time management, and early advocacy skills
- Practicing decision-making and help-seeking as responsibilities grow
Setting the plan
- PROSPER orientation and grade-level town halls for incoming scholars
- Four-year plan built and reviewed with a counselor
- PSAT exposure, resume building, and first college fairs and campus visits
- Building communication and self-advocacy skills for talking directly with teachers and counselors
Making it real
- College Application Month, college and career expos, and HBCU / bilingual family nights
- SAT/PSAT school-day testing, NCAA eligibility workshops, financial aid nights
- "Show Me the Money" scholarship workshops, senior check-ins, and the Senior Awards Ceremony
- Managing stress and staying resilient through decision season
This year's college & career calendar
Pulled directly from the district's official 2026–27 calendar: every fair, test date, and financial-aid night that touches the college and career process. View the full district calendar (PDF) →
Gold markers are national/school-day test dates. Regents and IB exam windows also affect scheduling in January, May, and June; see the full calendar for every date.
Go further.
Challenge yourself. Earn distinction. Get real-world experience.
Real ways Westbury scholars can leave with more than the minimum: each runs through its own office, not through Guidance alone.
IB Diploma Programme
A two-year, college-recognized program for juniors and seniors. Any WHS student can also take individual IB courses without pursuing the full diploma.
IB at Westbury →NYS Seal of Biliteracy
A gold seal on the diploma for graduates fluent in English and another language, open to English Language Learners, heritage speakers, and world-language students alike. Applications open junior year.
Seal of Biliteracy →Work-Based Learning
Real workplace experience through Nassau BOCES: internships, career and technical programs, and apprenticeship connections, coordinated through Guidance.
Work-Based Learning →Also worth exploring: Pupil Personnel Services (special education, 504, and transition planning), STEM, Fine & Performing Arts, English as a New Language, Social-Emotional Learning. For adults continuing their own education, there's Adult Continuing Education and the Adult Learning Center.
Make it happen.
The tools, resources, and support to turn your plan into your next step: SchooLinks & Financial Aid, Testing & Exam Prep, Scholarships, and Transcripts & Records.
How We Get You There
SchooLinks & Financial Aid
Turn your plan into a path forward.
Every story on this page started here: research, applications, scholarship matches, and a direct line to a counselor, all in one platform.
- Research colleges and build a prospective list
- Track application materials and see predicted outcomes
- Search scholarships and explore careers via CareerZone
- See which colleges are visiting Westbury High School
- Message your counselor directly
Westbury also runs Financial Aid Information and Completion Workshops each year; see this year's calendar for dates. For the forms themselves: FAFSA, NYS TAP, and the NYS DREAM Act for undocumented and other eligible students.
New to SchooLinks?
- Click "I'm new and need to register"
- Enter your registration code from your counselor
- Create your account and complete your Interest Inventory
Testing & exam prep
SAT & PSAT: 2026–27
National SAT administrations at Westbury High School: Dec 5, Mar 13, May 1, and Jun 5 (7:00 am). School-day SAT/PSAT: Oct 21 (SAT/PSAT) and Apr 15 (PSAT, virtual day).
Official registration deadlines →Free prep resources
SAT/PSAT preparation materials are available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. Ask your school counselor for the current guide, or access official free prep through Khan Academy's partnership with the College Board.
Official SAT practice →NCAA eligibility
Student-athletes hoping to compete in college should register with the NCAA Eligibility Center and attend the annual eligibility workshop hosted by the counseling department.
NCAA Eligibility Center →Scholarship Resources: Investing in Your Future
Scholarships aren't reserved for a handful of top applicants: they recognize leadership, service, athletics, the arts, financial need, and dozens of other qualities, and awards range from a few hundred dollars to full tuition. Here's where to start.
Search 240,000+ scholarships
Big Future's scholarship directory lets scholars search by interest, background, major, and eligibility across a national database of scholarships.
Search Big Future →District scholarship directory
A running list of local, regional, and Westbury-specific scholarships curated by the counseling department.
View the Directory →Matched to your profile
SchooLinks surfaces scholarships based on the interests, activities, and academic profile a scholar has already built.
Open SchooLinks →Read the letter from our Director of School Counseling
A Message from the Director of School Counseling
Dear Students and Families,
Financing college, career training, and other postsecondary opportunities is one of the biggest parts of planning for life after high school, and scholarships can make it far more affordable. They aren't reserved for academic achievement alone: opportunities recognize leadership, community service, athletics, the arts, career interests, cultural experience, financial need, and perseverance.
Start early and stay consistent. Applying shouldn't be a senior-year scramble: students build a strong profile over four years, through academic progress, meaningful activities, and documented accomplishments.
Why Scholarships Matter
- Reduce the overall cost of college and postsecondary education, and reliance on loans
- Recognize achievement, leadership, service, talent, resilience, and personal accomplishments, not just grades
- Build real skills: completing applications, writing personal statements, requesting recommendations
- Support informed financial decisions as part of the college and career planning process
This works best as a partnership. Students own the research and the applications; families help with organization, deadlines, and encouragement; counselors help identify opportunities and strengthen applications. Most importantly, don't assume you won't qualify. Smaller awards add up, and every completed application is worth submitting.
Start early. Search often. Apply broadly. Meet every deadline.
Your future is worth the investment.
Director of School Counseling
K–12 School Counseling Department
Transcripts, diplomas & verification letters
For current students, these requests go through your school counselor. Alumni requests are handled by mail or phone as outlined below.
Request a transcript
Alumni must mail: name while attending, year graduated or left, date of birth, phone number, and the address to mail the transcript to, along with a $3 payment (exact cash or money order).
Processing time: 3 business days
Request a diploma
Alumni must mail: name while attending, year graduated or left, date of birth, and phone number, along with a $56 payment (exact cash or money order). We'll call once it arrives.
Processing time: 6–8 weeks
Request a verification letter
Alumni, students, parents, or legal guardians can call Guidance at 516.876.5054 with the student's name, date of birth, and phone number.
Processing time: 3 business days
From Westbury
to what's next.
A plan only matters if it leads somewhere. A few of the places Westbury scholars have taken theirs.
Kamaria L. Holt
Five Towns College → M.Ed, St. Joseph's University
Education
Faith Shaw
Exercise Science & Wellness
NEC Discus Champion & Record Holder
Andrew West
University at Albany
Environmental & Sustainable Engineering, with honors
Christopher Berry
BFA, NC A&T · MFA, Brown/Trinity Rep
Executive Director, The Playwrights Realm