BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Now that school is back in session, there’s one counselor who knows all too well how important it is to support students’ mental health.
Yamica Carmouche is a dedicated counselor at the Eva Legard Center for Coastal and Environmental Studies. She says she is living the dream every day.
“I love teaching. Teaching has been something that I have always dreamed of,” Carmouche explained. “I walk around and do daily self-checks, so I go in the classrooms and say ‘good morning.’”
When she is done checking in, her students often visit her. She said kids need someone to talk to. She also keeps a jar of peppermints on hand, along with bandages and the willingness to give out hugs.
“It’s very important to build that rapport because if you build that rapport, they trust you,” she said.
Carmouche has an open-door policy for students and teachers.
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“She even inspires me to, you know, become more organized and just follow in her footsteps, you know, and be not only a leader for these teachers but for our students as well,” said literacy coach Dennis Johnson.