By Sabrina Sun｜Staff Writer

This year, in response to the LCAP (Local Accountability Plan), a modification in the school district’s funding system, Irvington has hired a new counselor, Ms. Leilani Velasquez, specifically for Freshmen.

LCAP, a new system for school funding, has been integrated in Irvington for three years now.  Whereas previously the school’s funds were distributed in a certain category and could be used in that category alone, LCAP allows schools to personalize their financing. Schools now can spend varying portions of their money on areas that they believe need more attention. This year, the staff voted on funding more counselors. The addition of Ms. Velasquez has allowed the needs of the large Freshman class to be adequately met.

This is not Ms.Velasquez’s first year working with Irvington. She previously rotated between Irvington and Horner Jr. High as a transitional counselor, assisting At Risk students. This year Ms. Velasquez will be devoting her full attention to Irvington’s entire 9th grade class, who will transition to the general counselors once they enter 10th grade.

“I love working with the 9th graders,” Ms. Velasquez said. “I originally worked at a school with large number of students, so even if this year’s Freshman class is big, it is a comfortable workload for me.”