South Pointe welcomed new guidance counselor Sonya Williams this school year.

The former Nation Ford Falcon joins both stepchildren as Stallions, one of whom graduated last year and the other who is currently attending.

Leading up to her career in counseling, Williams always loved the idea of guiding students in the right direction.

“I always knew that I wanted to be around education and kids. That was kind of like the next step for me in life,” says Williams.

Williams started out as a finance major at Clemson University, but as the months went on, she realized that finance management wasn’t her thing. She wanted to become a teacher, but as a junior in college, it was too late. Her plan was to finish her degree and then figure out what to do next. After a talk with a former teacher from high school, she was inspired to become a counselor and wanted to help students prepare for their future. She also wanted to help them have a great experience in school.

In 2003, after completing her master’s degree at Winthrop, Williams became a counselor at Great Falls High School, a school, in a rural area, with about 350 students. After working nine years there, she soon began to work at Nation Ford High School , where she stayed for six years. Although her experience was great, there were several suicides and it was difficult for her to handle at the time.

“Dealing with one suicide is enough and to have it happen every year is very difficult,” Williams stated.

Her role as a counselor meant that she had to deal with the aftermath, working with families and close friends of the victim. She decided that it was time for a change.

Williams expresses that “It can be challenging from day to day because you deal with a lot more than just what classes they’re going to take. You have students who are dealing with a lot emotionally, maybe self-harming, or they are defiant.”

Williams has always been attracted to South Pointe and she had heard good things about it. She really loves the way Principal Dr. Al Leonard and many other staff members connect with their students and she felt like she should be a part of that. The commute to work is faster because she lives in Rock Hill and the connection she has with students is amazing.

She wants students to feel comfortable and allows them to be honest.

“I’m here for them. I’m not here to judge or degrade them,” Williams said.

She feels that her role as a counselor is to help students figure out what they want to do once they leave and she’s determined to do that.