Three SPPS school counselors recently won counselor of the year awards from the Minnesota School Counselor Association (MSCA).
Errol Edwards, a counselor at St. Anthony Park Elementary (SAP), was named the 2022 Minnesota Elementary School Counselor of the Year. Errol is in his fifth year as an SPPS school counselor. Prior to his role at SAP, he was a school counselor at Barack & Michelle Obama Elementary. He was nominated by his elementary counselor peers because of his passion for equitable outcomes for students.
John Eschenbacher, a counselor at Johnson Senior High School, was selected as the 2022 Minnesota High School Counselor of the Year. John started with SPPS as an Educational Assistant 22 years ago and has been a school counselor for 19 years. As a counselor, he is very knowledgeable and familiar with the American SchoolCounselor Association (ASCA) model, implementing building-level and district-wide innovations and development related to school counseling, where we support every student’s career, personal/social, and academic development.
Jeanette Vyhanek, a counselor at Wellstone Elementary, was named the overall Minnesota School Counselor of the Year for 2023. Jeanette is in her first year with SPPS. Prior to joining the SPPS counseling team, Jeanette served in the Minneapolis Public School District for five years at the middle school level. Jeanette is a stand-out school counselor - her authenticity, her bilingualism, her competency, her humility, and her fun yet serious presence - are the things that draw students and families of all cultures and backgrounds to her. Jeanette was selected last fall and will be recognized at a gala in Washington, D.C. in February 2023.
All three award winners were able to celebrate this honor with their counseling colleagues at the MSCA 2022 conference in early November and were recognized at the Board Meeting on November 15. Congratulations to Errol, John and Jeanette!
