Say hello to Mr. Smith, the newest counselor here at OHS.

Mr. Smith grew up in northwest Pennsylvania, and later attended both Lycoming College and Marywood University in the same area, earning his undergraduate degree in psychology and master’s degree in school counseling.

“Once I finished graduate school, I worked for a couple of years in a high school as a school counselor,” Mr. Smith said.

While in Pennsylvania, Mr. Smith also met his future wife. The pair married there before moving to Minnesota in 2002 to be closer to her family. After moving to Minnesota, he worked at a day treatment program in a high school for thirteen years, supporting students as they worked on their mental health.

Following his time at the day treatment center, Mr. Smith transitioned into working in an educational setting.

“The past six years I’ve been working at an alternative high school in Dakota County […] working with students.”

Since coming to OHS, Mr. Smith has had a great time.

“Orono’s been a really good school community, very welcoming,” Mr. Smith said, “I think our counseling team is a great team and they’ve been super supportive and helpful.”

Through his time at Orono, Mr. Smith has noticed that many students are heavily involved in extracurricular activities — sometimes to an overwhelming degree.

“[Some students are] just in too many activities that they can’t handle. […] Like if you’re in six or seven different clubs, how are we really investing in any of those?” Mr. Smith said.

Mr. Smith believes the solution to this is doing an initial exploration of interests when you first enter high school, before choosing a few activities that you really like.

“Maybe [do some exploration] your ninth-grade year, and then find a couple that you really like, and then invest in those,” Mr. Smith said.

Outside of school, Mr. Smith enjoys staying active and spending time outside. Gardening, running, cycling, and paddleboarding are among his favorite outdoor activities.

“I love summer in Minnesota because I can be outside pretty much all the time. I do a lot of paddleboarding, some running, […] and cycling,” Mr. Smith said.

Let’s give Mr. Smith a warm welcome to OHS!