This year, Oak Park High School has a new addition: the Wellness Center’s new counselor, Fatima Hernandez. Hernandez enjoys being a part of the Oak Park community and spending quality time with her family and students.

“I was born in El Salvador and moved to the United States when I was five years old. I moved around cities a couple of times growing up; I lived in El Monte and Pomona,” Hernandez said. “I finally settled into Thousand Oaks in 2008.” 

Hernandez has experience in the counseling department; she worked at Medea Creek Middle School before she came to work at Oak Park High School. After enjoying her time at MCMS, Hernandez found out about the new counseling position and decided to apply. 

“Last year, I was working at Medea Creek Middle School as a long-term school counselor,” Hernandez said. “I was there the whole year, and once it got close to the end of the year, I was told there was a Wellness Center opening up and a new position.”

Besides counseling, she also tutors around Oak Park and enjoys staying active in the community throughout the year. 

“As a Wellness Counselor here, my job is to run the center and create activities and workshops for the students but now I think the main focus is just getting it open and furnished, finding the process of how students come in during school hours and what kind of workshops can we do here,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez enjoys doing many things outside of work, wanting to stay busy such as working, ballroom dancing and spending time with her family. 

“Outside of work I like to stay busy doing things I enjoy. I tutor students around the community, I enjoy hiking, going to the gym, playing with my nephews, reading (currently reading book three of Harry Potter), playing with makeup and I recently just began taking ballroom dance classes,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez is located in Room H-16, for any questions students or staff may want to ask.