Real Talk with Alana Shockley at Bolivar High School
Alana Shockley leaves open time on her Google Calendar for students, staff, and parents. If you need help with your next step, that detail is good to know. The Bolivar High School college and career counselor works with students in Bolivar, Missouri, through rootEd. She wants seniors to pay attention and ask questions as she helps them along.
Her school day starts with coffee, music, and getting her own kids to school. Her office has art she made herself. A Dr. Pepper is part of the day, too. Those details sit right alongside the work she cares about: helping students and building relationships that make her want to stay in public school.
In this Real Talk interview, Alana shares how she plans her week, what she wishes students knew, and why she wants to keep her family’s fall weekends slow. If your dates live in several places, our guide to using a calendar during a busy week gives you a place to start. Below, you can get to know the person behind those open blocks on the school calendar.
Meet Alana, College and Career Counselor at Bolivar High School
What's your name and what do you teach?
Alana Shockley, College and Career Counselor (rootEd) at Bolivar High School
What does your morning look like before students walk in?
Definitely coffee. Vibin’ to my music! Still getting ready 🤪 Trying to get my own kiddos to school!
What’s your favorite thing about being a teacher?
It will always be the students. They’re precious to me, and they are the reason I don’t plan to leave public school!
What is your ideal teaching environment?
Being around people who are both motivated and unbothered, if that makes sense! Willing to do what it takes and to figure it out, while not stressing every step of the way.
What's your go-to drink or snack that gets you through the day?
Anyone who knows me, knows that I need a Dr. Pepper a day! If it’s a splurge situation, Dr. Mallow from Creator, or a Cherry Chai from Deja Brew!
What are you reading right now?
This is not fun or cute at all, but I’m working on my certified financial aid specialist credential, and that’s all the reading I have in me these days 🤪
What's a book you'd hand every student if you could?
The Battlefield of the Mind (Joyce Meyers)
How do you actually plan your week: are you a planner person, a sticky note person, a "it's all in my head" person?
If it isn’t on my Google Calendar, it isn’t happening! LOL! Any open time on my daily schedule should be open to students, staff, and parents. But yes, big planner here. 🤪
What's one routine that keeps you grounded during a busy stretch?
Mark one thing off of the to-do list at a time. Then move on to the next thing on the to-do list. I also love to prioritize my to-do list from most important to least time sensitive!
What made you want to do this, and is that still the reason you stay?
I have always been a people person who thrives on connection. I know I could do a similar job somewhere else and make more money, but I stay for the positive relationships and that “making a difference” feeling.
What’s your go-to hobby outside of teaching?
I actually love to make art! I made all the art in my office/classroom space and in my home. Nothing too crazy, but sometimes my Type A nature needs a creative outlet!
What do you wish students or parents knew about how to make the most of your class?
I hope they know that I realize that they have never been a senior before! I say it all the time. 😃 So I don’t expect them to automatically know what to do next, or how to do it. I expect them to pay attention and ask questions as I guide them along each step of the way.
What do you know now that you wish you could go back and tell yourself as a student?
That it will truly all work out. Soo so many times did I fear I was making a bad decision. And I absolutely did make many bad decisions 🤪 They all, ironically, got me exactly where I was meant to be. Those bad decisions were the best lessons I could have possibly learned, even though they left me with some regret in those moments!
What are you genuinely happy about right now?
I feel genuinely happy that home is my happy place. I feel true peace there. My brain can quiet and I can actually enjoy being with the people I love the most!
A few favorites outside the school day
current song on repeat?
Must Be Love by Niall Horan
favorite way to reset after a long school day?
Definitely a bath and Netflix LOL 😆
current fixation: drink, snack, show, anything?
I literally love sooooooo many drinks, snacks and shows 🤪 🤪 🤪 🤪 As of this moment, I have rekindled my love for popcorn with M and M’s while I finish up Outerbanks!
one thing you're looking forward to?
Personally, fall seems to be the slowest time for my family. Weirdly, I want to keep it quiet and slow. We always have the urge to book our every weekend with something when it’s open; I’m going to resist that urge and keep our weekends slow! That, and hot tub season 😝
Ask Alana about the next step you need
Alana makes room for the fact that you have never been a senior before. You can bring the question you have now, even if you are still thinking about life after school. Her answers give you a clear starting point: pay attention, ask questions, and work through the steps with her.
What can a college and career counselor help you with? rootEd describes its work with high school seniors as one-on-one help with career choices, college or training programs, applications, and financial aid. Those plans can include a university, community college, an apprenticeship, technical training, or military service. Ask Alana which steps fit the path you want to explore.
Before you talk, write down the part you want help with. You might have a school in mind, a job you want to learn about, or a form you do not understand. Bring that page or link with you. It gives you both something specific to look at, and you can leave with notes you can use.
Put the answer where you will find it again
Alana uses Google Calendar to plan her own week. She also works through her to-do list one item at a time. You can borrow that approach after a meeting with her, using the calendar or paper planner you already have.
When a task has a due date, add the date while you have it in front of you. Write the name of the task with it. If you need to return to a form, save the link beside that note. If the next step depends on someone else, write down who you need to ask and what you need from them.
You can also keep a short list of questions for your next meeting. Add a question as it comes up, so you have it when you see Alana again. Our guide to planning your week on paper walks through where to put dates and tasks. Choose the format you will look at during a school week.
Bring your own goals to the conversation
Alana says relationships keep her in this work. For a student, that makes the person-to-person part of planning worth noticing. When you talk with her, you can share what interests you, what you want to try, and which parts of a plan still feel unclear.
What should you bring to a college and career meeting? Start with your own questions. If you have saved a program page, bring that link. If a date on a form seems unclear, bring the form. If you are choosing between options, name the parts you want to compare. Ask which details you should check next.
You can tell her when an answer raises another question, too. A word you have not heard before is worth asking about. Write the answer in words that make sense to you. If you want to explain the plan to a parent later, you can ask Alana to help you check that you have the next step right.
Leave some room for life after school
Alana looks forward to slow weekends with her family. She knows the urge to put something on every open weekend, and she wants to resist it this fall. That choice belongs beside her calendar habits: an open block can hold time with people she loves.
As you plan your week, include the plans you want to enjoy after school. You might already have a game, a family meal, or time with a friend on the calendar. Look at what is there before you add another commitment. Decide which open time you want to keep for yourself or your family.
How do you plan a busy school week? Start with the dates you know, then look at the time around them. Our guide to making time for school and the rest of your day can help you work through that page. Alana’s own weekend plans offer a useful detail to keep in mind: you can choose to leave a weekend open.
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