For the past 20 years, Boston Latin School Director of Guidance Ms. Megan Clougherty has supported students throughout every stage of their academic careers.
Although no two days are the same for Ms. Clougherty, she spends most of her time meeting with counselors and students. Part of her day also includes completing administrative tasks, like maintaining Naviance and student records.
Her work has especially benefited seniors as they work through the college application process. On the second day of school, seniors are introduced to the support that is offered. Each senior is given a monthly checklist and access to a website with information on applications and events. Throughout the year, Ms. Clougherty meets with seniors in one-on-one meetings to guide them.
Ms. Clougherty also helps run multiple senior support programs, including her favorite, Pizza and Apps. Held twice every year, the program involves her and her team staying after school to support seniors on their college applications, as well as ordering pizza for them
College planning starts as early as ninth grade, with the first few years of high school spent determining a student’s interests and the corresponding courses they could take. By junior year, Ms. Clougherty and other counselors begin working closely with them to prepare for the application season.
When asked how Ms. Clougherty had helped him, Max Haskell (I) replies, “Ms. Clougherty — she’s always seemed like she really knows what she’s doing. […] I could just walk into her office [and] ask her a question, and she just knew the answer. [She] had it there for me.”
Ms. Clougherty herself has a caseload of students who work with her directly. Although she does so many different things throughout the day, she still believes that this is the best part of her day.
“I’ve always been interested about how people work. […] Working at BLS specifically, I’ve never met two students who are exactly alike,” she says. “Every time I meet a new student and they let me into their world a little bit, I’m just more intrigued by who they are.”
Ms. Clougherty first started at BLS as a guidance counselor, working to support students throughout the school year. She then became the Director of the Guidance Programs, allowing her to work more closely on the student welfare.
Before her work at BLS, Ms. Clougherty considered going into law. While working in a law firm as a paralegal, she found her love of helping clients. She decided then that she wanted to be a school counselor. Her parents, who worked as teachers, had always encouraged her to consider a path in education.
Ming Pan Hern (I) recalls, “She was a really great support when I was confused on any component of the college application process. I remember asking her many questions. […] She was also really supportive and uplifting when it came to colleges.”
As the school year draws to a close, Ms. Clougherty has planned a lot of fun activities for the graduating class. Although Ms. Clougherty has not disclosed what these activities may be, she has stated that the events are in the works for Senior Week, which started on June 2.