To the Bermuda High School for Girls, 2009 was a new year full of familiar faces, new year's resolutions, but one new teacher: Niamah Denbrook.

She began her BHS career as a guidance counsellor in January of 2009, and was welcomed with smiling faces and open arms.

Taking over from Ms. Tina Nash, who has recently been appointed as National Director of the Duke of Edinburgh programme in Bermuda, Ms Denbrook left her position with the Bermuda Department of Tourism (BDOT), to become the BHS school counsellor.

However, this was not Ms Denbrook's first position as a school guidance counsellor. After gaining her National Certified Counsellor status in 2002, her first role as school counsellor was at Berkeley Institute.

Prior to that she was teacher at Purvis Primary School, but many will recognise her from her most recent position as Manager for On-Island Communications for the Bermuda Department of Tourism.

The main inspiration behind her decision to become a guidance counsellor was, in fact, her high school guidance counsellor who touched many lives around her.

"I wanted to help people the way she helped me," says Ms. Denbrook. "Of course I was interested in psychology and how our thoughts really determine how we feel and how we behave.

"Change your thoughts, change your life. The mind really is an amazing and powerful tool."

Although being a guidance counsellor to teens has its difficulties, Ms Denbrook recognises that there are also many rewarding elements to the job.

"It's wonderful to watch teenagers mature and grow into adults," she says. "At times it is challenging because even with great advice, teens will makes mistakes.

"It is all a part of exploring your independence. Change doesn't happen overnight and sometimes we fail more than once before we achieve our goals.

"Helping students to be and do their personal best is the best feeling in the world!"

Ms Denbrook truly enjoyed the people she worked with at BDOT, who are all very talented and work very hard. There is a lot of positive work going on within the Department, and Ms Denbrook would like the media to focus on this aspect more.

"I loved working for tourism and I love my country," continues Ms Denbrook. "The most rewarding aspect of my job was sharing my love for Bermuda with travel writers and seeing them communicate this through their articles to prospective visitors."

We asked her what she thought would improve the tourism industry in this economic trouble. "What we really need in order to improve the Tourism industry is you.

"We need bright young Bermudians to take an interest in the wide variety of careers available in tourism, especially management and higher-level positions," said this role model for our young women. "Often I have heard people say they wish airfares to Bermuda were more reasonable.

"This is commencing now especially with flights departing from US gateways. I hope that the government will be able to continue working with airlines to secure more reasonable airfares from European and Canadian gateways. This would certainly help increase visitor arrivals."

BHS is happy to have Ms. Denbrook as our new guidance counsellor and she seems happy to be here.

"I love my job and we should all be brave enough to live life on our own terms and have a career we love!" says Ms Denbrook. "I'm lucky enough to have had two careers I love: counselling and tourism!"