Amanda Zambiasi

A familiar face, Amanda Zambiasi, has returned to campus this year after a short year-long break, but instead of her previous position as the head cross country and track coach, she has come back as a counselor. She went to college at Texas Woman’s University and studied in School Counseling at Amberton. Since then, she has worked at Denton ISD and then transferred to Frisco ISD, where she spent the next six years as a Redhawk.

Recently, Wingspan sat down with Zambiasi to talk about her decision to return to campus. 

Wingspan: Where are you from?

Zambiasi: “I was born in Houston and grew up in Lake Dallas.”

Wingspan: What did you plan on becoming when you were in high school? Have you always and had an interest in psychology and counseling? If not, what changed your mind? 

Zambiasi: “I don’t think I fully knew what I wanted to do when I was in high school. While in college, I pursued my passion to be a teacher/coach. I had so many coaches in my life that made an impact in my life and I wanted to pass that on. I realized while being a coach that all of my favorite parts of my position I could do as a counselor and with a larger group of students.”

Wingspan: Do you prefer being a coach or a counselor?

Zambiasi: “They both have aspects that I love.”

Wingspan: Do you miss being a coach?

Zambiasi: “I definitely miss the kids. I miss those relationships. I miss the conversations that I got to have with my group of girls each day. I truly watched them grow up in four years. After having my own child, I realized that all of those additional hours I was spending at school, before school, after school, and weekends, I wanted to spend them with my own daughter. It was a hard decision to leave coaching, but I don’t regret it.”

Wingspan: Do you ever regret anything you’ve done in your career, from being a Special Education teacher, to a track and cross country coach, to now a high school counselor?

Zambiasi: “I have no regrets. I am a big believer in the idea that everything happens for a reason. There are so many moments and things that happened to me as a special education teacher and a coach that prepared me to be the counselor I am today.”

Wingspan: What is your favorite thing about being a counselor and a coach?

Zambiasi: “Most definitely the kids and the relationships!”

Wingspan: Tell me about your decision to return after a year break? What influenced it? 

Zambiasi: “I always loved Liberty! I took a position as a middle school counselor last year at Clark Middle School. I enjoyed my time there but knew that my heart was always with the high school students. When there was an opening at Liberty, I jumped at the chance to come back.”

Wingspan: What’s the most challenging thing about being a counselor versus a teacher and coach? And vice versa?

Zambiasi: “I would say that the most challenging thing in both positions is taking my work home. So many of my students now and athletes as a coach have things going on in their life that will break anyone’s heart. I worry about those kids when I leave school. I worry about the kids that I can’t reach or that may slip through the cracks.”

Wingspan: What are you most excited about for this year?

Zambiasi: “While this year is going to challenge all of us, I think it is going to help us all grow in ways we didn’t know possible. We are all going to need to step out of our comfort zone and get creative. We must get comfortable being uncomfortable.”

Wingspan: What are your concerns and struggles about virtual learning and how it impacts you?

Zambiasi: “We, as a counseling team, are trying to be creative and come up with ideas of how we reach our virtual students. My biggest concern is the students that we don’t reach because of the additional hurdles of students being at home and not on our campus.” 

Wingspan: What is one piece of advice that you wish you were told as a teenager and would tell all of your students?

Zambiasi: “I wish I would have realized that all of the things I was worried about then will not matter in a few years, or even days.”