Guidance & Wellness

Personal Counseling and Wellness

I know being a teenage girl is hard work, so I'm here to help our girls in any way I can.  Each student is on her own journey to figuring out what kind of adult she's going to be. I can help guide her through that process. 

- Kathy Witherspoon, MSW, Dean of Student Life

Body, Mind & Spirit...The whole person...That’s the core of a Holy Names education.

At Holy Names, our full-time school counselor plays such an important role in the commitment we've made to care for our students - in body, mind, and spirit. Our entire Counseling program exists to bring balance into our academic and spiritual base. We want to do all we can to help each student develop a strong and healthy emotional framework for her life.

We are, first and foremost, responsive to individual needs and concerns. But we also provide group and classroom activities. We’re here to help all of our students in dealing with real problems, like peer pressure. We’re also here to help them become good decision makers, confident individuals, and happy, productive learners.  

New students get extra attention. We want to have the period of adjustment go as smoothly and quickly as possible.  

A guidance counselor can also assist parents who want to improve the parent-child relationship, and achieve greater understanding of the social-emotional needs and developmental changes of adolescent girls.

Our faculty and administration also call upon the expertise of Guidance to better understand student behavioral concerns and address individual student needs.

Wellness at Holy Names

Our commitment to the education of the whole person includes a strong emphasis on health and wellness. When students function at their highest level --physically and emotionally, as well as intellectually -- we know they're much more ready to take part in all the educational, recreational, and spiritual opportunities we have here for them.

Our Health & Wellness Office is staffed by a registered nurse who serves as both a nurse and an educator. She's an expert in the development of adolescent girls, and is a comprehensive resource for us:

  • Recommending health treatments  
  • Modifying health practices and educational programs, when students need that extra help
  • Providing in-service training to all our staff on health and wellness issues
  • Implementing programs that enhance the health and well-being of our school community, such as the annual Wellness Fair and Red Cross Blood Drive.

List of 4 members.

  • Photo of Linda Carothers

    Linda Carothers 

    Social Worker
    (518) 438-7895
  • Photo of Tina Pantuso

    Tina Pantuso 

    Social Worker
    (518) 438-7895 Ext. 245
  • Photo of Kathy Witherspoon

    Kathy Witherspoon 

    Dean of Student Life
    518.438.7895 x224
  • Photo of Karen McKenna

    Karen McKenna 

    School Nurse
    518 262-3131