The Guidance Office at Hudson serves many roles. Students are introduced to the Guidance Office in Grade 9, through workshops focussed on developing leadership qualities in students. The Grade 9 group meets once a month with a Guidance Counsellor to discuss various aspects of self-direction, teamwork, future-planning and other issues relevant to being an upper school student.
The Guidance Office works with each student throughout their four years of high school, for academic, social, and emotional support. Academically, the Guidance Office initiates one-on-one meetings with them in order to assist with course selection. Guidance will also create a Personal Education Plan (PEP) matched to each student’s personal interests and needs while also preparing them to reach their post-secondary goals. The course selection process is dynamic, and with the PEP re-evaluated regularly to reflect new interests and academic or career goals as they evolve. Students are also introduced to the MyBlueprint program, which helps them to make informed decisions about course selections and career paths. Socially and emotionally, the Guidance Office door is also always open for students, even for just a friendly chat!
Additionally, the Guidance Office works closely with teachers to ensure that there is timely and effective communication with parents regarding their daughter/son’s progress at Hudson.
Once students reach Grade 12, the Guidance Office is instrumental in helping them build strong university and college applications for schools within Canada and abroad. The process starts with a visit to the Ontario Universities Fair. Hudson also hosts its own mini university fairs that the Grade 12 class attends. Once students have researched their various options and collected all the relevant information, the application process begins. The Guidance Office supports students throughout the entire process. When a student has questions about courses, post-secondary programs, or even a non-academic concern, the Guidance Office will give them full attention and support, and will regularly follow up on each student.
Starting with the transition to high school in Grade 9, and continuing through Grades 10, 11, and 12, Hudson’s Guidance Office is an invaluable resource for both students and parents. The smaller class sizes at Hudson enable our staff to put significant time, effort, and energy into the success of each student, forming an important part of our Total Personal Support™ system!