Health and Wellness on Campus: School Counseling

At Holderness, supporting students means caring for the whole person. Our counselors and wellness professionals play an essential role in that work, building relationships that help students feel known, supported, and confident enough to ask for help when they need it.

From fostering meaningful, face-to-face connection to helping students navigate the pressures of adolescence and develop a healthy identity beyond athletics, Carol Dopp, Joanna Lightburn, and Ginger Comstock ’92 bring experience, empathy, and a deep commitment to helping Holderness students thrive.

Carol Dopp | School Counselor

In a world where so much of teenage life now happens on TikTok, Snapchat, and other virtual platforms, Carol Dopp is helping Holderness students put down their phones, look up, and connect.

“What social media is doing is taking away one-on-one, face-to- face conversations that kids used to have and now they don’t have,” says Carol, now in her 18th year as a school counselor at Holderness. “The risk involved with asking somebody something face-to- face is gone. My sense is, risking being rejected, has changed.”

Carol, a fun and outgoing presence on campus who radiates ‘favorite aunt’ energy, is the kind of person who naturally draws people together. As a longtime member of the school’s counseling office, she helps lead school-wide efforts like ‘One Trusted Adult,’ an initiative that ensures every student has at least one adult on campus who they feel comfortable going to for help. She’s also part of a weekly meeting of adults—counselors, athletic trainers, and the school’s Chaplain, to name just a few—who exchange information about how kids are doing, who might be struggling, and who may need help. “It’s certainly a team effort,” says Carol, who has master’s degrees in school counseling and curriculum development. She even works closely with the school’s dorm leaders, the seniors who often shape the culture of their dorm and their classmates’ well-being. “The senior leaders are really often influential in helping kids through some tough times,” Carol says.

While Carol is dedicated to improving the lives of her students, she says they often return the favor. “I’m 68, and I’d feel 78 if I didn’t work with teenagers. They make me laugh,” she says. “I find them to be real and open to honest conversations around adolescent issues. The topics they explore through the internet often provide them with information, but without any education or context on these important areas.”

This year promises to be a good one for Carol—and Holderness. After spending the 2024–25 school year off campus for her Henderson-Brewer-van Otterloo Chair Year, she’s glad to be home. While she enjoyed her time away, Carol says she’s ready to get back to work making Holderness a stronger—and more connected—community.

“I can’t stop laughing or smiling because I’m here. I’m back. This is the place that brings me joy,” Carol says. “My siblings often ask, ‘When are you going to retire?’ I tell them I’m not. Why would I retire? This is great.”

Joanna Lightburn LMSW | School Counselor

When did you start working at Holderness?

My husband and I joined the Holderness community in August 2023. We previously worked at the Darrow School, a small, independent boarding school in upstate New York.

What inspired you to work as a school counselor?

Growing up, I always thought I’d become a teacher. That was my initial focus during undergrad at Northeastern University. But during a Co-op placement at an alternative high school serving students with social, emotional, and behavioral challenges, I realized I was more drawn to supporting students emotionally than teaching them in the classroom. That experience sparked my passion for school counseling and set me on the path I’m on today.

What challenges are today's students facing, versus what they faced 10 or 20 years ago?

Students today are navigating a far more intense and complex world than they were a decade or two ago. Mental health concerns—especially anxiety—have increased significantly. On the positive side, students are more open to talking about their emotions, but that openness comes with a greater need for support. In addition, technology adds a constant layer of pressure. Social media and smartphones make it hard to disconnect, leaving students with less downtime and fewer opportunities to build deep, in-person relationships.

They’re also still processing the social, emotional, and academic fallout of COVID, all while growing up in a political and global climate that can feel unpredictable and overwhelming. So, while this generation is incredibly resilient and has more tools than ever to understand themselves, they’re also carrying a heavy emotional load.

What’s the most challenging aspect of your job?

Probably the 24/7 nature of the role. Because students live on campus, support doesn’t end when I leave my office. I often check in with kids during evenings or weekends, especially when someone is struggling. It can be emotionally demanding to support students who are far from home and facing mental health or social challenges without their families nearby. Balancing confidentiality, student safety, and communication with faculty and parents can be complex, especially in a tight-knit community where roles often overlap. Setting boundaries and making time for self-care is important, but not always easy.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of your job?

Along with the opportunity to work with a fantastic group of coworkers, the most rewarding aspect of my job is building strong, meaningful relationships with students and their families. Watching their growth over time and being part of their journey at Holderness means a great deal to me, and it’s a privilege to be someone they trust and turn to for support. I have the opportunity to see them develop academically, emotionally, and socially, and nothing is more fulfilling than witnessing a student I’ve supported through challenges walk across the graduation stage feeling proud of who they’ve become.

Ginger Comstock '92 | Sports Psychology Counselor

High school sports have changed dramatically since Ginger Comstock ’92 was a Holderness student-athlete.

“When the fall ended, we hung up our cleats and put on our ski boots or hockey skates or got on the basketball court and moved to the winter sport,” says Ginger, who now works at her alma mater as a sports psychology counselor, advisor, and dorm parent. “When the winter was done, we put away our skis and skates, and we moved on to the spring sport. There was very little year-round training and rarely any sport specialization.”

While Holderness still requires its students to play three sports, many of today’s student athletes have specialized in a single sport from early childhood, with summers dedicated to showcase events, sports camps, club practices, and club tournaments. As a result of that intense focus, many athletes have developed an all-or-nothing mentality that leaves them far less psychologically resilient when life’s inevitable athletic disappointments—an injury, a tough loss, or lack of playing time—occur.

“Today, many athletes’ identities are so tied to their sport that when a sport doesn’t go as well as they would like, their identity can crash,” Ginger says. “There’s a name for this in sports psychology. It’s called identity foreclosure state.”

A big part of Ginger’s job is to help students develop the proper perspective to move beyond that state—or avoid it altogether. When a student is at a crossroads in their athletic career, Ginger is there to help them realize that they are more than the sport they play. “I had two athletes this year that had this issue and one actually said, ‘I don’t know who I am without hockey,’” Ginger says. “And I said, ‘You are a student, you’re a brother, you’re a son, you’re a friend. We need to develop life beyond hockey for you.’”

When Ginger counsels a student-athlete about overcoming disappointment and developing a healthy relationship to sports, she speaks from experience. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis at the age of five, Ginger continued to play sports despite joint and spinal pain that resulted from those conditions. “I was never going to be on the podium because of my physical pain and limitations, but I loved to compete hard,” Ginger says. “I kept playing with and competing alongside of great athletes, and I experienced firsthand how strong your brain and your mind can be in adverse situations.”

Now entering her seventh year as sports psychology counselor, Ginger is a highly valued resource for the school’s student-athletes. In addition to one-on-one work with students, she also meets with teams to help strengthen their culture, improve communication, and make a detailed plan for achieving their goals.

“Athletes will now proactively ask coaches, ‘Can we have a Ginger Session?’ because they see and experience the value of the sessions,” Ginger says, laughing. “That’s what they call them. I call it sports psychology; they call it a Ginger Session.”

Those Ginger Sessions are having a big impact. Not only are students developing their identities beyond sport, but they’re also playing better together and winning more competitions with the tools Ginger has given them.

“I really try to go to as many games as possible so that I can see some of what we’re working on take place on the field,” Ginger says. “When I see the things that we’re doing in our sessions manifesting on the field or on the ice or on the hill, it’s incredibly rewarding.”

Originally published in Holderness School Today, Fall 2025.