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LHS guidance counselor reflects on 30 years

Lead Summary
By
Jason Berghorst, reporter

Each year, in his role as Luverne High School counselor, Craig Nelson gives LHS freshmen a list of careers.
The list includes college professor, Mars exploration scientist, director of scouting for an NFL team, retractable stadium engineer, professional dancer and Big Ten Coach, among others. 
Nelson then asks the students what all of these careers have in common. The answer often surprises the students. 
All of these occupations are currently held by Luverne High School graduates living all around the country. 
“I tell them people doing these jobs sat in these same desks, walked in these same halls and had the same teachers as our current students,” Nelson said. 
“My goal has always been that when you leave LHS, you can do whatever you want for the next 50 years of your life,” he said. “Whether it be a four-year college, technical school, the military or a good job.”
Nelson, who grew up in Sioux Falls and graduated from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, came to Luverne in the fall of 1984. He began his career in Waubay, South Dakota, where he was a teacher, counselor and coach for two years before beginning his 32-year career as counselor and coach in Luverne. 
“I wanted to get closer to the Sioux Falls area,” Nelson said. “I still remember driving into Luverne for the interview. It's hard to believe it's been 32 years.” 
Nelson is retiring from Luverne schools at the end of this school year. 
In his first years in Luverne, Nelson worked primarily as the counselor for grades 9-12 with some responsibilities at the elementary level before the district hired Marie Atkinson-Smeins as the elementary counselor about 25 years ago.
According to Atkinson-Smeins, Nelson has been a leader among counselors in the region. He was selected as the Southwest Minnesota School Counselor of the year in 2003. 
She also points out that, because of Nelson's efforts, Luverne has been a host site for ACT testing and a regional college fair for over 30 years. 
When Keith Erickson retired as middle school counselor in 1999, Nelson was shortly thereafter assigned the counseling duties for grades 6-8 in addition to his previous responsibilities. “It was a big change; it doubled my workload,” he said. 
Other changes have occurred over the years. When Nelson was hired in Luverne, there were no computers in the office and he did student scheduling by hand. Since then, technology, standardized testing, and the number of students attending college have all increased significantly. 
“Thirty years ago, about one third of our graduates went to a four-year college, one third went to the military or a technical school, and one third went right into the work force,” Nelson remembered. "Now, it's about 60 percent to a four-year college and another 20-30 percent to a technical program or the military.” 
Every few years Nelson has collected data from recent LHS graduates to study the results of their post-secondary plans. His unofficial research has often found that more than 80 percent of those graduates have successfully completed their post-secondary education or training. 
“That's well above the national average,” he said. “The community can be very proud of that.” 
In addition to the normal guidance counselor tasks, a wide variety of other student needs have kept Nelson busy over the years. 
“You rarely know on any given day what issues you are going to be presented with,” he said. Common issues that he works with students on include grief, bullying, depression, friendship and family challenges. 
“I often tell people it doesn't matter what size school you are in — you will deal with everything you can imagine as a school counselor,” Nelson stated. 
As he looks back on more than three decades in Luverne, Nelson says he feels fortunate to have been part of the team of educators in the local schools. 
“The community has always placed a high value on education and that sets a great foundation of success for Luverne graduates,” he said. “The vast majority of kids have taken advantage of that.”

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