Recent Graduate Students

As a CHS graduate, have you experienced a “cannonball moment” that influenced your decision to be in a helping profession?

I can vividly remember the day I had my “cannonball moment” and realized I wanted to become a school counselor, Originally, I went to college to be an Engineer, but I quickly realized doing high level math and physics everyday was not for me. I then turned toward the world of Journalism, and took an Intro. To Psychology class at the same time. In the early weeks of that course my professor was diving into the various professions that degree in Psychology could lead to and school counseling immediately caught my interest. I thought back to my time in high school and realized I didn’t even know who my “guidance counselors” were. I really could have benefitted from having the support that our professions provides and now I get to provide that to my students everyday.

Zachary Watters, M.S. Recent Graduate, School Counseling

While in my undergraduate CHS program here, I experienced a“cannonball moment” which stemmed from my first internship experience. I was nervous and fearful I wouldn’t be good enough, and that it would be too difficult to connect with clients, that I was in the wrong field, etc...Upon entering the organization, I quickly discovered a genuine passion for working with these individuals. I saw a population which was generally overlooked and misunderstood, and it became clear to me that I wanted to advocate for and continue my work with this population. My fears of being in the wrong profession and of being inadequate disappeared as I had truly found my passion.

Emily Howells Recent Graduate, Counseling & Human Services

I’ve had many experiences throughout my journey in counseling but my most recent cannonball moment was during the pandemic. I was blessed to get my current position as a Vocational Counselor, but I worried about the impact of the pandemic. One of my Spanish speaking patients came with a list of tasks they wanted to accomplish but never started because of the difficulties they faced. His list consisted of learning English, getting government assistance, getting an education, eventually finding a job, and much more. We both worked hard to stay motivated regardless of the constant challenges that he faced. Despite getting denied benefits, failing exams, and struggling to find resources for Spanish speakers in the pandemic, this patient consistently came to our sessions. Some days, there was not much to talk about but he still came and reflected on his journey. Months later, this patient shared they passed their GED exams and were getting called for job interviews. The patient shared they knew other people had bigger accomplishments, but they were proud to be able to say they did this. This was a reminder that not all of our patients have people in their lives that can or are willing to support them. This patient put in the effort and showed he just needed the support to keep going. This was my cannonball moment because I learned that this patient just needed a safe space to“fail” without judgement. As someone who is results driven, this helped me gain a new perspective to show future patients the importance of embracing all aspects of their journey before only acknowledging their success.

Rose Rosado Hernandez, MS Recent Graduate , Rehabilitation Counseling