DEBBIE VELDKAMP
MYKKA CITY ELEMENTARY School | MANATEE COUNTY
With great pleasure The Florida School Counselor Association (FSCA) announces Debbie Veldkamp as the 2025–2026 Florida School Counselor of the Year Finalist (SCOY).
Debbie is a school counselor at Myakka City Elementary School in the Manatee County School District and serves 319 students in grades PRK-5th.
Debbie has been a school counselor since 2014. She earned her bachelor's degree from Florida State University and two master’s one from Florida State University in Elementary Education and the other from Argosy University in School Counseling.
Debbie works hard to make students her priority and has advocated to ensure that they have access to her and a comprehensive school counseling program. When she first started at Myakka City Elementary, Debbie was tasked with every non-counseling related duty the principal could find. She advocated for her work with students by using data and showing what she was not able to do for students due to those tasks. After that first year, she was relieved of some of those responsibilities.
"By the end of the next year, she continued showing the discrepancy of supports and Debbie was relieved of all non-counseling related responsibilities,” said Larissa Bennett, School Counseling/School, Climate/MTSS Coordinator, School District of Manatee County.
Creativity and use of data showcase Debbie’s services. Larissa Bennett shared.
“Debbie creates opportunities for her students and uses data to identify what careers her unique population is interested in," Bennett said.
Debbie created a career day that meets her students' interests, including having cows brought on property, a large animal veterinarian with a scale model of a horse, the one and only beautician in the area, and a fishing captain who showed the students how he makes a living on the water.
“The Florida School Counselor of the Year application process is rigorous and the selection process highly competitive,” said Dr. Rebecca A. Schumacher, FSCA Executive Director.
“Debbie demonstrates the determination, skill, use of data, advocacy, and passion to make significant differences for her students and community every day. On behalf of the Florida School Counselor of the Year Selection Team, FSCA is pleased to award Debbie Veldkamp the Florida School Counselor of the Year Finalist,” Schumacher said.
Debbie will be celebrated at the 2025 FSCA Convention this November.
