Staff Profile: Ms. Serkez

Who is Ms. Serkez? Ms. Serkez is the new seventh-grade counselor at Rosemont Middle School. She started her career in South Florida at an elementary school, and has been in the education industry for over 22 years. After teaching in Florida, she moved to California and started teaching in Burbank, then at South Pasadena Middle School, teaching English. When she realized that her true calling was to become a counselor, she went to graduate school to get her second master’s degree. Then, she applied for her first job at South Junior High School as a counselor, but then decided she wanted to move back to Los Angeles, so she applied for the counselor position at Rosemont, hoping she would get the job.
Ms. Serkez loves to travel. She has been to many different places, from Greece to Japan to Mexico, and is going to Italy this summer. She loves listening to music and going to concerts all over LA. She also enjoys yoga, hiking, and adventures, and likes to try new things. Her favorite subject is English, because she likes to read and write about different topics.
Ms. Serkez always focused on her students’ social and emotional well-being as a teacher, which inspired her to become a counselor. She loves working with middle and high school students, because she thinks it is a cool age for everyone to have their own unique personality, and wanted to find a job that focused on helping the students instead of teaching them academically. Her advice to RMS students is to have a growth mindset and an open mind. She says, “The things that might be challenges now may not be challenges in the future. Try to be yourself and embrace your unique qualities. They are special and show your true essence. You don’t have to change to be like everyone else, even though it may feel like that sometimes!”