Counselors, dogs helping kids cope with Oso mudslide aftermath

Counselors of the two and four-legged variety are helping school kids cope with the mudslide disaster.

KIRO Radio’s Tim Haeck visited the Arlington school district, where a first grader and a seventh grader are among the missing.

In town and in the schools, everybody knows somebody, who knows somebody impacted by the devastation.

Schools superintendent Dr. Kristine McDuffy says counselors and therapy dogs are available, when needed.

“The children just seem to be drawn to them, and it has a calming effect on a classroom or the whole school,” she says.

McDuffy says the focus has been on trying to return a sense of normalcy to school following the tragedy.

While there has been some staff absenteeism, McDuffy says most feel compelled to be at school where they can do the most good.