Liberty Middle School counselor Paula Cotman of Fairfax was named Middle School Counselor of the Year for Fairfax County Public Schools on Aug. 20 — from a roster of about 15 counselors nominated for the award. There are roughly 580 counselors in the county; and about 100 or so work in middle schools.
"It's a huge accomplishment," said Cotman who said it took a while before the news resonated with her. "I think it's certainly something that I never dreamed of receiving. I think it's a milestone that's been reached; it shows the work that I've done."
A counselor at Liberty since it opened in 2002, Cotman lives by these simple words: "Add value to life," "Have a mutual respect," and "Live with intention."
Former Liberty Principal Audra Sydnor said she felt fortunate to have Cotman on her team from the start. "The director of guidance and I made a wise decision in selecting Paula because the counseling department came together like a ‘grand symphony’ because of her skill in working with multiple stakeholders, her ability to move an idea from conception to implementation, her ingenuity in building bridges for teachers and students, and her willingness to pull together parental partnerships."
Current Liberty Principal Catherine Cipperly said Cotman is good at building relationships with students and parents. "She finds leadership opportunities for students and is very good at helping students find a place and purpose in school," she said. "For example, last year she helped interested students become the morning news show anchors, and she worked with identified students to access programs such as the College Partnership Program."
She added: "She is dedicated to working with students in every capacity. She has a gift in her ability to communicate with everyone and makes them feel at ease."
Rich Crowley, the former director of student services for Robinson Secondary, who first hired Cotman into FCPS many years ago, said: "She was available to everyone, adult or student alike ... Ms. Cotman usually was able to get students, parents and faculty on board to work together to create better behavior and habits. I think that it was the confluence of intangibles, charisma and intelligence that makes her as effective as she is."
According to parent Sue Sanders, whose children benefitted from Cotman's guidance, the most challenging time for parenting was the middle school years. "It's caring people like Paula Cotman that pulled us through," she said. "I was most impressed with her listening skills and her identifying, suggesting and promoting the teen and the parent working towards the same goal just as a team would."
She added: "She had an open door policy for both the student and the parent and she is a master at follow-through. If we could clone this lady, Fairfax County Schools would be an even better place to educate our children."
Born in the small town of Mullins, S.C., Cotman worked as a sharecropper on her grandfather's tobacco fields at the age of 5. She comes from a family of educators — her dad, Paul Glen was the first black principal in Union, S.C.; her stepdad Charlie Rogers was a principal in Warrenton, Va.; and her mom Cora Rogers was an elementary school reading specialist.
"Because of my love for children, when I was a young kid, I would teach school in my back yard," said Cotman. "Back in my time, as an African American, you could be a teacher or a nurse; the majority went into the teaching profession."
She added: "Growing up in an impoverished community, it was an inherent goal in our family to get a good education and give back by assisting others."
As a teenager, she worked part-time as a youth counselor, tutor, and coach for underprivileged youth. "Working with people, especially children, gives me an opportunity to make a positive impact on the lives of those with whom I come in contact," she said.
She earned her B.S. in health and P.E., and a master's degree in counseling from Virginia State University in Petersburg. She also received an educational specialist degree from UVA. She began her career in Fauquier County as a P.E. and health teacher, basketball and softball coach, and department chair for 11 years.
"My first personal and professional aspirations were being a physical education teacher and coach," she said. "From those experiences, others often sought my confidence. As a result, I yearned to empower, assist, and arm others with more than my common wisdom. That led to me into the field of counseling."
Cotman moved to Fairfax County where she became a counselor at Robinson Secondary School for 10 years and supervised the summer school program at Longfellow Middle and Liberty Middle Schools. She has a daughter, Chelsea, who is 23.
The secret to her success as a counselor, she says, is that her door is always opened. "I'm a relationship builder ... I'm pretty easy to talk to. Typically you listen and hear what the student is asking," she said.
At Liberty, Cotman says she tries to be visible around the hallways. "I think when you're out and about, people see you more often and they're more comfortable in talking to you. The kids start to become familiar with you and they come up and talk to you," she said.
While counseling students, her motto is to be fair, open and transparent. "I value their opinions; I value who they are ... People just tend to navigate towards me."