Lucas Correia-Covert part of replacement guidance team at ARMS

Last May, after allegations of transphobia on the part of counselors, students, and staff at Amherst Regional Middle School were published in The Graphic and were investigated by a lawyer hired by the district, three school counselors–Delinda Dykes, Hector Santos, and Tania Cabrera–were placed on leave pending investigation. Cabrera’s employment with the district was not renewed, but Dykes and Santos are still on paid leave pending the result of a Title IX investigation.

Since then, two new counselors have been put in place: Sonia Molina, who had previously been employed at ARMS as a Dean, and Lucas Correia-Covert, a new hire. Erin Kolasinski-Neil, an adjustment counselor and advisor to the LGBTQ Club at ARMS remained in her position.

While Molina, who is the seventh-grade counselor, declined to be interviewed for The Graphic, Correia-Covert said he was happy to talk about his new role and his goals of being a supportive and LGBTQ+ positive presence.

Correia-Covert is the 8th-grade school counselor. He hopes to be “a friendly face in meetings with teachers and students,” and he is there to greet them “in the morning, in the cafeteria for lunch duty, and at the end of the day.” 

Correia-Covert said he wants students to see him as “a benefit to the school community.”

Early in his career, Correia-Covert worked as a ninth grade teacher at the High School of Science and Technology in Springfield. But he was drawn to being a counselor because he “loved working with kids but saw unmet mental health needs in school systems,” he said. 

As a result, he moved on to a job at Mental Health Association, Inc. in Springfield, then grad school at Springfield College, while continuing to work at MHA. He worked at Pioneer Valley Regional School for five years as a counselor before landing at ARMS.  

ARMS is “bigger and more densely packed school [than PVRS],” so he has more students on his caseload to support but he is “excited to have a positive impact on the school culture at ARMS.” 

Correia-Covert and his husband of four years Christian Correia-Covert live in Ludlow. The couple also have their own business as Shamanic Practitioners. During sessions, their goals are to help clients find spiritual healing, self-love, and empowerment.

Correia-Covert grew up in Seekonk, a town in southeastern Massachusetts, and went to UMass Amherst from the fall of 2006 to the spring of 2010, majoring in journalism. 

He subbed for ARPS in 2012 and joined the nonprofit agency DIAL/SELF. In 2018, Correia-Covert got his master’s degree at Springfield College in school counseling. 

DIAL/SELF is an organization that provides housing and school outreach support for teens locally in Western Mass. Correia-Covert is the vice president of the board of directors at DIAL/SELF which he said has core values of collaboration, accountability, innovation, respect, and equity.

The Western Massachusetts Counselor Association (WMCA) is another organization that Correia-Covert is a part of. He is on the Executive Board and serves on their Professional Development Committee. 

Supporting LGBTQ+ students at ARMS is “one of the main things on my mind when working at ARMS,” Correia-Covert said. 

His “door is always open” and if someone can’t find him physically present, he encourages them to “send a message.”