About Me

Gustavo A. Ramirez is an educationist with many years of experience in the field of education. He has worked in capacities as teacher and guidance counselor in secondary schools since 1978, and has been instrumental in incubating and nurturing guidance counseling through systems, curricula and people development, both in Belize and the United States. Ramirez, a professional educator, completed pioneering research studies and worked with students of three Belize high schools (1977-1978). “The Need for Vocational Guidance Counseling in Secondary Schools in Belize” was published by the University of Wisconsin in 1978.  He has worked since that time in several different high schools (private, public, charter, and continuation) both in Belize and in the United States, and has in-depth knowledge and experience in providing guidance counseling to secondary school students. His training and experience give him a global perspective and an insight into best practices and key success factors that enable him to customize educational and guidance counseling services to the requirements of individual schools and students.
He writes several columns dealing with the constant need for adapting and embracing “change” in Belize’s Education systems.  Ramirez holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Psychology (Guidance Counseling) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education from the University of Wisconsin.  He attended Holy Redeemer Boys School, St. John‘s College, and St. Michael’s College (Sixth Form/Junior College) in Belize City.


As a guidance counselor and as a school professional I,

• specialize in helping students make decisions about their many personal, educational and academic needs
• provide information about post secondary education and any other life choices that students may be interested in pursuing
• have educational requirements that include a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education and a Master’s degree in guidance counseling (Educational Psychology)
• have “hands-on” teaching experience at public schools, private schools, continuation schools, and charter schools (Belize and the USA)
• have personal characteristics that are a “must” for counseling, in addition to educational requirements, that include being caring, patient, and open-minded, and believing that any student can change for the better
• work with one main goal -- to help students understand themselves so that they will be able to develop into adults who are capable of living productive and fulfilling lives

As a guidance counselor I help students plan for their future. In Belize today students have more occupational and educational options available to them than at any other time before. As a guidance counselor I help them choose a path in life after high school. However, in addition to Belizean students having more opportunities available to them today, they are also faced with far more varied problems and concerns of our society than ever before. Changes in our society, throughout Belize, seem to happen so rapidly and the amount of new information people are expected to absorb grows just as quickly. All of these factors require a trained guidance counselor who is available to help students learn to lead meaningful and satisfying lives in today’s society.

These articles on Education are not intended to be comprehensive or complete. They are written and contributed in an effort to provide a “starting point” for valuable discussion amongst educators, students, and the community. When we discuss and review students’ learning capabilities and the ways in which we currently try to educate them, we learn from our mistakes as well as success. Here’s to finding the best path to follow, fellow educators!