Partner Spotlight: New Student Assistance Program Counselor (SAP) at BHS

Although our staff work with her on a weekly basis in our shared work of supporting students, we sat down with Heather Washburn, the new SAP at Burlington High School for an interview to introduce Heather and her work to Burlington caregivers and community.

We asked Heather to share about her role as SAP and what that means: “I’m here to develop relationships with students and support them where they are at. I am able to provide additional mental health support in the school and I’m available to work with anyone for any reason. When substance use occurs, students are referred to me as an extra layer of support. I provide assessment, therapeutic support in the school setting, and referrals to outside providers, among other things.” Heather also works with BPHC to collaborate on substance prevention and education efforts for the high school through a partnership agreement.

Heather shared what guides her substance use and prevention work: “It’s important to support building decision-making skills in youth so they can make informed decisions about what they want to do with their lives and who they want to be in the world. A big part of my work is awareness-building and talking about the role use plays in their life.” She said one key component of that is, “identifying their [students’] values, goals, and what matters, then working through questions that help us figure out if what we are doing is moving us towards that vision or away from it.”

While Heather is still new to BHS and her job, we asked her if there were any themes coming up a lot or impressions she thought were important to share: “I see and hear a lot of misinformation, around vaping in particular. Students think it’s helping their mental health or use it to cope [with challenging situations]. There seems to be a lack of understanding that vaping nicotine or cannabis is likely doing the opposite. I’m excited that we’re developing messaging for the students this school year around this exact topic area as part of BPHC’s BHS Elevate campaign.”

She went on to share that students, “… aren’t really thinking about their age or how their brains and bodies are still developing differently than adults who choose to use cannabis. As cannabis became legal and now is more culturally acceptable, this appears to be leading to more acceptance so students think it’s not really a big deal—it’s part of the culture now.”

Heather has her MA in Psychology from St. Michael’s College, which is what drew her to Vermont. She is a licensed Psychologist, and has dedicated her entire professional career to working with adolescents and their families. She lives in Burlington and shared that building and supporting this community is important to her. She shared she is “excited to be able to fill this role after a year+ that it was unfilled at BHS and offer support to students more immediately when something happends.” She pointed out that often getting support in the broader community can involve more delays.

Heather’s primary role is to center and support students, but she is also here for parents and caregivers who need a listening ear. If you have questions regarding your student at Burlington High School or are worried about their substance use, Heather invites you to reach out to her to connect to supports and resources. You can email her at hwashbur@bsdvt.org.