Ashley Childers works in the train station.

Not literally, but that is what she and her co-workers call the counseling office at George Rogers Clark High School. It’s always busy with students in and out, trying to get on the right track or letting off some steam.

Childers, the freshman counselor at GRC, said a lot of people think the counseling office is a breeze with its individual offices, its one-kid-at-a-time mantra unless, of course, it’s a group conflict. But that’s not the case, she said. Her load includes nearly 460 first-year students.

“Usually, most of the counselors up here don’t even get to eat lunch because it’s so hectic,” Childers said. “But we won’t trade it for anything … We know we’re here for the students, and we want to be as supportive for them as we can … We’re glad that they feel comfortable that they can come in and talk to us.”

Childers, a native of Glenville, New York, received her bachelor’s in psychology from Morehead State University. She moved to Kentucky to attend Morehead, earning a spot on its competitive cheerleading team.

“(Cheerleading) was my main reasoning for coming to Kentucky because Kentucky is one of the best states for cheerleading,” Childers said.

At first, she was a pre-med major at Morehead. Growing up, she couldn’t decide between being a doctor or being a kindergarten teacher, but Childers said life took her a different direction.

“I never really thought counselor until I just ended up here,” Childers said. “I can’t choose a better profession than being a school counselor. I love being able to work with the students day in an day out and help them prepare for their future or help them through difficulties and triumphs in their life. It is a very rewarding job to see students come through some of the worst and best times of their lives.”

It was a general education course on psychology that sparked the interest in her future career. After that first class, she took another class and then another.

“I kept taking more psychology classes, and decided to completely change my major to psychology, just because I was so fascinated with the brain and just why people do what they do,” Childers said.

After graduating with her bachelor’s, she decided to stay in Kentucky.

“I decided to stay in Kentucky because I fell in love with the bluegrass state,” Childers said.

She went on to attend Eastern Kentucky University to get her masters in school counseling. Childers said she went that route because, for her, it was easier to connect with students.

“I knew I wanted to work with children and individuals in school just because all students and all kids have to come to school, so you’re more likely to be able to impact those students,” she said.

During that time, she began a yearlong internship at GRC. When she graduated in December 2018, there was an open position on the counseling team.

“I applied, and here I am,” Childers said. “It worked out good.”

Getting hired on after her internship also made for a smooth transition.

“I already had those relationships,” Childers said. “I felt I had built rapport with the students already. So it just flowed once I came into the position. That was it. That was probably the most helpful thing I could have hoped for going into a career.”

Childers said her favorite part about her job is getting to talk to the students about their goals in life.

“There are so many different goals among all the students,” she said. “So it’s very interesting to see what might have impacted them to lead them to a certain goal that they have.”

Though, it can be challenging to put her job to the side and relax once she leaves her office at the end of the day.

“Even at home, I check my emails all night long, and I’ll respond,” Childers said. “Even if it’s late, I want to respond.”

But when she does have spare time, Childers, who currently lives in Richmond, said she enjoys hiking, going to the lake and being outside in general, enjoying the sun. Childers, who describes herself as passionate, authentic and sassy, said her marriage to a Kentuckian has even sparked new hobbies such as fishing. Her husband is a police officer based in Frankfort.

Childers, who has earned championship titles during her cheerleading career, also coaches cheerleading for various teams across the state. Though, her career also came to an end due to an open fracture on her leg in high school caused by cheerleading. But that didn’t stop Childers, she said. She worked through the injury, allowing it to heal and still went on to reach her dreams of cheering in college.

Childers said she hopes to see her students through tough times and help them reach their dreams. Though, Childers said she sees a lot of students who go through some tough, tough times that some people couldn’t even imagine.

“Seeing them through that situation and seeing them on the opposite side and how they’re positive and being helpful toward their peers is very hopeful,” Childers said. “Seeing how they can even affect their peers and the future people that they might come in contact with just by having the experience that they went through.”

Childers said she hopes her students remember there’s someone always cheering them on, even after high school.

“Every student that I work with, I hope the best for them, and I hope they’ll reach their goals,” Childers said.

And that’s her advice to students as well: chase your dreams and goals.

“If you don’t know what those goals might be right now, that’s OK because you have time to figure it out,” Childers said.

Childers said she wouldn’t be opposed to getting another master’s degree or a doctorate in counseling. For now, she plans to keep chugging along as a counselor at GRC.

“I would love to stay here for a while,” she said. “This is the best school I could ever hope for. The counseling department is very cohesive. We all get along and work very well together.”