Megan Buoniconti

By Zoë Eitel
When she was looking for graduate schools to attend, Megan Buoniconti was immediately intrigued by DePaul’s Counseling program because of the people she met, the opportunities it would provide her and the reputation of the program—the Counseling program has graduated multiple winners of the American School Counselor Association School Counselor of the Year.
Megan met with the Counseling program’s Dr. Melissa Ockerman prior to enrolling and was drawn in by her welcoming attitude as well as the things about the program she shared with Megan.
“I chose DePaul’s counseling program over other schools because I wanted to continue to work full time as a teacher during my first two years of graduate school,” Megan says. “DePaul’s counseling program offered night classes, so I was able to continue to work full time and go to graduate school full time for my first two years of the program.”

School Counselor at Lake Zurich High School

MEd Counseling 2020

After learning all about DePaul and the program, Megan decided it was the only graduate school she was going to apply to and she is happy with how her education here has prepared her for her industry.
“DePaul’s counseling department instills in students the importance of being agents of change and counseling using a multicultural lens,” Megan says. “This is something that has been critical, especially in light of the current events of the past year.”

“DePaul’s counseling department instills in students the importance of being agents of change and counseling using a multicultural lens. This is something that has been critical, especially in light of the current events of the past year.”

Megan decided to make the switch to counseling because when she was working as a teacher, she learned about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and how students with trauma in their lives were the ones struggling to learn the most. She wanted to be able to better support her students beyond her role as a classroom teacher.
“Being a counselor really appealed to me because I realized I was not able to give students the one-on-one attention they needed and deserved, while teaching a classroom of almost thirty learners,” she says. “As a counselor, I feel better equipped to help my students navigate whatever obstacles they encounter.”
Megan is now a counselor at Lake Zurich High School, and she spends her days helping students navigate obstacles in their lives, whether through individual mental health counseling, group therapy or preparing them for life after high school.
“What I love most about being a counselor is being able to help advocate for teaching, and eventually teaching students how to advocate for themselves,” Megan says. “As a counselor, I’m able to help students feel a sense of hope and learn to have strong self-efficacy skills.”
Starting this job during the COVID-19 pandemic, Megan has faced a school year that looks much different than any other in her previous seven years of teaching. She has relied on Zoom and teletherapy for students who are remote learning.
“Because families are enduring a global pandemic, many students are struggling academically and/ or with social and emotional concerns,” she says. “Administering needs assessments and checking in with students who need additional support has been more important than ever.”
Learning has shifted from being remote to hybrid to in-person, and counselors like Megan have been in charge of accommodating students’ learning location preferences throughout the pandemic. Megan feels grateful that she was able to start her new job in person at the beginning of the school year as she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to connect with her coworkers right away.
“This was a huge blessing because I have heavily relied on the help and support of my team, especially as we navigated a school year unlike any other,” she says.