Photo taken by: Ota’Ota-Mele Letisi
Tracy Isham went from cleaning tables at a restaurant to becoming a counselor at South Salem High School, and for 23 years she has been a licensed counselor. Her parents were teachers when she was younger so she was already used to the school schedule. After college, she was coaching volleyball and teaching in a school as an instructional assistant .
“I really liked working in schools and I was coaching, it just was a good fit like, I need to get my master’s degree or do something and so then I figured counseling seemed like a good fit,” Isham said.
Another reason why she decided to become a counselor was because she wanted to be involved in coaching. In college, one of her friends told her that she would be a good counselor. That is when she decided she was going to become a school counselor.
“I really liked the idea of becoming a school counselor because we don’t do therapy and we help with educational academic stuff like college and career planning, what are you going to do after high school, and then also the personal social stuff.” Isham said.
Some advice she would give to students who are wanting to work in a school one day is to find ways to be involved in multiple roles.
“For me in the years when I was just a counselor and it wasn’t my coaching or trying to do other things, it was fine, but I just didn’t feel as connected.” Mrs. Isham said.
When asked what is one of her biggest inspirations, she said that it is strong women. One of those women being her great grandmother. Her great grandmother and grandfather escaped Germany during the beginning of the Nazi regime. They fled to Russia and later on settled in South Dakota, where they started farming. Mrs. Isham has an old black and white photo of her great grandmother with every one of her kids.
“My grandmother is sitting in a chair and has all of her children surrounding her. And she looks tough. Like she was wearing a dress and was leaning in the chair and has her hair back. And everyone held their face straight. And I love that photo because she made something” Isham said.
Her grandmother was also a good business woman. When she had gotten her home built she made sure wires for electricity were built in even before they had electricity.
“That house had lasted years. My mom grew up in that house and I am really impressed by that. Every one of her kids who got married and she was able to provide them with something big that they would take to kind of start their life and to me that’s pretty impressive.” She said.
