Employee Spotlight: Tracey Sklenar, School Counselor at Buff Elementary

For the month of May, JCSD 509J is spotlighting Tracey Sklenar, school counselor for Buff Elementary, for the work she does every day in her role.
She started working for the district 9 years ago and has been with Buff Elementary for eight of those years. Prior to becoming a school counselor, she was a special education teacher for 10 years!
Her favorite part of the job is being with the students and building relationships with them. She loves that she gets to greet them every morning as they walk into school, and she gets to host clubs and small groups with the kids throughout the day. Even though she loves the job now, she didn’t always think she would work in education!
“I originally wanted to be a marine biologist. So, I was up in Alaska trying to go to school to be a marine biologist,” she said. “I needed a part-time job. I started working at a residential treatment center for at-risk youth and I completely fell in love with the kids and the challenges. I just felt a connection with them.”
Watch the video to learn more about her and the work she does in school!
Music: Bensound.com