Student Services

Student services are a part of Advent’s effort to ensure that students are strengthened to meet high expectations by supporting and encouraging each child to strive for his or her personal best. Through collaboration with parents and teachers and other resources, our environment fosters each student’s ability to flourish academically, physically, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.

Advent provides responsive services to our community through personal counseling, crisis counseling, problem-solving, or consulting. Students are supported through Student Support Plans (SSP) and Student Learning Plans (SLP), which outline the specific accommodations the school is able to provide to help meet your individual student's needs. Each concern is treated individually and may result in a referral to an outside resource.

Responsive services are carried out through individual, small-group, or whole-group counseling. To best support each family, students are monitored by the counselor to assist in student success.

Academic Advisor Program

Starting in sixth grade, the academic advisor plays an important role in guiding students as they engage in academic goal setting, reflection, struggle, growth, and celebration. A wide variety of Upper School teachers who teach  grades 6 - 8 in the middle school serve as academic advisors to small (often multi-aged) groups of students. Students typically stay with the same academic advisor throughout their middle school years. The primary role of the academic advisor is to help students develop a growth mindset and to realize their own agency in their academic experience. The advisor acts as an academic advocate to their advisees. The primary mechanism used to guide the advising process is the student digital portfolio and the preparation for the spring student-led conference. Academic advisors are responsible for:

  • Meeting with their advisories during assigned advising flex periods which take place during one week each quarter or during days with special schedules 

  • Facilitating activities which aid in the process of reflection, goal-setting, etc.

  • Guiding individual students as they work to achieve specific, academic goals

  • Serving as an advocate for the academic needs of that student at occasional meetings with faculty and/or parents

  • Preparing students for student-led conferences

  • Participating in the student-led conference with their advisees each spring

  • Reflecting on student-led conferences and serve as an active member of a team of teachers working to improve the academic advising experience each year

Self-Awareness

Students develop their strengths and opportunities for growth. They learn to identify when help is needed and how to ask for help.

Self-Management

Students learn how to express their feelings and how to handle their actions appropriately. Students work to set goals and achieve them.

Social Awareness

Students demonstrate care and learn how to work with people different from themselves. Students understand and respect others’ thoughts, feelings, and perspectives.

Students demonstrate care and learn how to work with people different from themselves. Students understand and respect their thoughts, feelings, and perspectives.

Relationship Skills

Students interact in ways that foster positive relationships. They learn how to handle conflicts in healthy ways.

Responsible Decision-Making

Students learn to act in ways that are respectful and safe. They consider how their choices will affect themselves and others.