BUCKEYE, AZ — "They usually like us," Counselor Sherry Saylor explains affectionately.
But at Buckeye Elementary School, the students don't just like Saylor...they love her! And it's easy to see why.
"I would say this: I am the last person on the planet who still likes junior high drama! I still find it entertaining and fun and when they come in, I love to listen and help them work through it but I'm not tired of it...I want them to feel like this is a home, a home away from home. Sometimes they call me the mom of the school," Saylor says. "I want them to know I am there to comfort and love them."
And it's that love that's kept Saylor as a counselor here for four decades.
"Did you ever think when you walked through the doors 40 years ago that you'd be here all these years later?" ABC15's Nick Ciletti asks.
"That's a good question. I never did think that way. I fell in love with the job, the school, the people," Saylor says.
"What do you love so much about being a guidance counselor?" Ciletti asks.
"I think the fact that kids do trust you with the most important things in their lives," Saylor replies. "They come in here and share their hearts with you... and I love the fact that we can meet the needs of these children so they can be successful academically."
Since she started in 1984, Saylor acknowledges that not only has the Buckeye Elementary School District changed, but so have the students.
"Number one would be social media," she explains. "The increase of the influence of social media that these kids are exposed to...Now we have phones. The phones have opened up a great world in many respects, but also a difficult world. They are comparing themselves to each other and they are exposed to things on TikTok and all the other mediums out there that are not appropriate for them...Another thing I am dealing with that has increased over the years is increased anxiety. A lot of kids come in and are anxious about things outside of school and inside school."
Saylor, along with several partners in the community, is meeting these kids where they're at, helping them with basic needs outside the classroom - from shoes to school supplies and everything in between.
One of those endeavors is making sure all kids have backpacks. We noticed boxes of donated backpacks in Saylor's office when we interviewed her. She says they are all loaded with school supplies and ready to go to kids who need them.
"If we expect them to learn and do well academically, we make sure they have those basic needs. I even keep snacks under my desk because kids are hungry all the time."
We also asked Saylor to speak about the guidance counselor shortage that schools all across Arizona and America are facing.
According to data from the American School Counselors Association, Arizona has the fewest number of counselors per student in the entire nation.
But Saylor says she is grateful the Buckeye Elementary School District has counselors in each of its schools and community partners who help make it all happen.
"I have a lot of other people helping me with this job, with the social work and everything else, but I'm just saying it's difficult. It's not just counselors, it's teachers too. There is a shortage of folks going into the field."
But almost half a century later, Saylor says she wouldn't dream of doing anything else.
"I've said this before - I have the best job in the whole school because I help kids and families all day long."
