Join us in celebrating National School Counselor Week! Thank you to all our school counselors for helping our students achieve academic success through your hard work.

Learn more about three of our school counselors below.

Laurie Moody, Garfield Elementary School

Laurie Moody has been an elementary school counselor for 20 years, including 13 years with Garfield Elementary School – Cedar Rapids. Along with her professional therapy dog, Hopkins, Laurie can be found in classrooms helping students with various issues, including building social/emotional skills.

“I absolutely LOVE being a school counselor! What could be better than helping students learn and grow and dream? And my students teach me something new every day. I’m so glad to be part of the CRCSD family,” says Laurie.

Sara Fry, Harding Middle School

Sara Fry has been a counselor in Cedar Rapids Community School District for 19 years, including Harrison Elementary School, Roosevelt Creative Corridor Business Academy, and Harding Middle School, where she has spent the past five years.

“A lot of people think that middle schoolers are a tough age group to work with. At times they are, but it’s also such an exciting time in a person’s development, and it’s fun to be a part of that,” she says. “Kids this age can make so much growth as they mature though their middle school years—socially, emotionally, and academically. I enjoy working with this age group because you can see a tremendous amount of progress in just three years’ time.”

Tara Wheatley-McLaughlin, Metro High School

Tara Wheatley-McLaughlin has been a counselor in Cedar Rapids Community School District for nearly 16 years. She has worked with Metro High School students for the past eight years, and, before that, McKinley STEAM Academy and Jefferson.

“My favorite part about being an alternative high school counselor is exploring possibilities with students that they never knew existed for them; connecting them to future-ready opportunities during and after high school; advocating for them, and teaching them to advocate for themselves in order to knock down barriers standing in their way; and instilling hope by giving students the tools to take that next post-secondary step into their future,” says Tara.