By Dustin Smith, ASMS Class of 2014
I graduated from ASMS in May 2014 and immediately went to The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. I didn't really know what I wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to work with kids and people in general. I had worked as a Tutor/President of the Lab of Learning Tutoring Program at ASMS, so I knew I enjoyed working with kids, and working in Education specifically.
I decided to major in Social Work to begin my Sophomore year of college, and I immediately fell in love with it. During my entire college tenure, I continued tutoring and working in schools with the America Reads & Counts Tutoring Program, earning Tutor of the Year in 2016.
During my Social Work courses, I was able to participate in two different internships- with the Tuscaloosa County District Attorney's Office and the Tuscaloosa County School System.
I graduated in 2018 with my Bachelor's of Social Work, and in 2019 with my Master's of Social Work. I then began working in Tuscaloosa as a Therapist with a local non-profit mental health agency. I was contracted through schools in Tuscaloosa to provide therapy services for students.
But then 2020 came and COVID hit. The world "stopped" and I felt stuck. I knew I needed to make a change, so I decided to make a big one. I received a job as a School Counselor in Midland, Texas with a launching campus with IDEA Public Schools. I moved halfway across the country, in the middle of COVID, to try something new. And it was ASMS that even gave me the courage to do so. Spending 3 years of high school over 5 hours away from my family prepared me for anything and everything the "real world" has offered.
After 5 years as a School Counselor, I applied for and received a promotion as an Assistant Principal of Operations (APO) with IDEA Public Schools. Now I am preparing to launch my own school next year.
The 11 years since ASMS has been full of life events (I am now Married with 2 children), but I credit ASMS with preparing me in every aspect of life. From the social aspect of college, to the teamwork and collaboration necessary to make strides in a professional setting, ASMS prepared me fully for my life and career after high school.
