Tami Santa, Director of Mental Health & Wellness for Westerville City Schools, has been named the 2021 Advocate of the Year by the Ohio School Counselor Association.
School counselors Serena Casale and Alisha Porter led the nomination effort among the district’s school counseling team, who cited her support and advocacy for the profession and its impact on the district’s students.
“She encourages each School Counselor to utilize their strengths and provides us all with the appropriate amount of autonomy to support our building stakeholders in each of our 23 unique school buildings,” school counselors wrote in her nomination.
“(Santa) is also a strong advocate for all of our students but especially vocal when it comes to our students belonging to the BIPOC community. During this wild year of 2020, Tami has been the touchstone that kept everything running smoothly. She stood firm in her beliefs that every person should be treated with respect and kindness.”
The association will formally recognize her during its statewide conference Oct. 28 at the Columbus Convention Center.