Counselor's Corner
Cristina Figueredo, Counselor

Hello Rhinos! I created a short video for you all to view on "Getting to Know Your School Counselor." I can't wait to meet all of you VERY soon!
Counselor Corner Message 08272020
Hi Rhinos!
My name is Cristina Figueredo and I am Rylander’s school counselor. This is my 11th year in education working with elementary students. I graduated from Sam Houston State University with a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies and an M.Ed. in School Counseling from Houston Baptist University. I am excited to serve the students, teachers, parents, and community of Rylander!
What is my role as a school counselor?
School counselors work with students, teachers, parents, and administrators to create a caring and safe school environment that provides developmentally appropriate counseling services to promote academic success. These services of a school counselor support the social, emotional/personal, academic, and career development of students. This promotes not only school success, but effective interpersonal skills and emotional health through education, prevention, and intervention services.
Services
Guidance Lessons
Guidance lessons are taught in the classroom by the counselor throughout the year. These lessons provide strategies and skills that help students to be successful. My goal is for those skills to be carried over into lifelong learning in all avenues including academic, personal, and social interaction.
Individual Counseling
In a school setting, the counselor does brief counseling which addresses problems within a few sessions. The school setting is different than a therapeutic/clinical setting where diagnosis and treatment plans are created and treatment is administered for a longer period of time. The goal of school counseling is to address issues which impact learning while at school. If issues continue to impact the student's learning at school, after intervention by the counselor, a referral to an outside resource will be suggested to the parent/guardian.
Group Counseling
Sometimes a child's needs are best served through the use of group counseling. In group counseling the students come together to work on a common need or concern. The counselor facilitates groups and strives to provide the students with strategies that will aid in their success.
Programs
KEYS
KEYS (Keep Encouraging Youth toward Success) is a district program in which adults can apply to mentor students on elementary, junior high, or high school campuses. Rylander students are nominated for this program by RRE staff members, and parent consent is required. If you are interested in becoming a KEYS mentor please contact Mrs. Figueredo.
PALS
The Katy ISD has a very special mentoring program called PALS (Peer Assistance Leadership Skills). Rylander has been paired with PALS from Cinco Ranch High School who will act as mentors to selected students at Rylander Elementary. These high school students have met eligibility through training standards and participated in a selection process to become one of these dynamic peer leaders. Rhino students are nominated for this program by RRE staff members, and parent consent is required.
PBIS
What Is PBIS?
PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions and Support) is a proactive, school wide framework to teach and positively reinforce behavior within our building.
Relationship building with students is critical.
Expectations are set and taught for all settings (classroom, hallway, café, etc.).
Interventions help teach appropriate behaviors to students.
Acknowledgement of students displaying appropriate behaviors is essential.
PurposeFull People
PurposeFull People is Character Strong's Pre-K-5 Toolkit. It is intentionally designed to support work around Character Education and Social-Emotional Learning. It is packed with practical and easy-to-use tools that focus on developing character and social-emotional skills in students, staff, and families.
The PurposeFull People Trait
for January 11 - 29th
Honesty

Contact Information
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns.
Email: CristinaFigueredo@katyisd.org
Office number: (281) 237-8386