As one of our new counselors, Ashley Park is excited to start a new school year here at LCHS.
Ms. Park has an extensive resume working in the education field. She attended UCLA during her undergraduate years, then continued her education at Cal State University of Dominguez Hills. While studying for her Master’s degree, she was working within the Los Angeles Unified School District as a teacher’s and counselor’s assistant. After spending almost a year counseling at a small school in South Korea, she moved back to the United States and became a counselor at Village Christian School.
“Before going to Village Christian, I worked at a college consulting company for three years,” she added. “I was also a freshman college application reader for UC Berkeley, and I’m planning on working in that position again this year. It’s resulted in a lot of late nights, but it’s definitely given me insight into the college application process.”
Throughout all of her experiences as a counselor, Ms. Park has especially enjoyed working in a high school environment.
“High school is a huge period of growth, and it’s so rewarding to have such a big impact on my students’ lives,” she said. “My goal as a counselor is to cater to the students’ needs in academic, social, financial, and personal matters. This is a rapidly changing generation that’ll have many different careers and paths throughout their lives, and I want to encourage my students to be comfortable reinventing and developing themselves. No matter what’s going on, I’ll always be here, and I want them to feel open to meeting with me about anything.”
Ms. Park also quoted Thomas Edison when describing her mindset towards perseverance, in which he stated “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that something won’t work.” It’s a statement that she wants her students to consider as they start planning for their futures.
Outside of school, Ms. Park loves to go rollerblading, hiking, camping, and participating in various outdoor activities. She has an adorable dog named Luca, and has made it her goal to travel to at least two new places each year. Some of her favorite trips have been to Greece, Rome, and London, amongst her other travels.
With her welcoming personality and eagerness to help her students succeed, it’s clear Ms. Park will be a valuable member of the counseling department in the coming months.
