A broom hidden behind her office door.

A mini vacuum under her desk.

They’re how College Access Coordinator Jasmine Thomas keeps the stress of the college application season under control.

Her hands move nonstop – scheduling college visits, issuing passes, reading essays – all while helping students manage stress during the application season. For Thomas, it’s an emotional time for both parents and students.

“It’s a lot of tears from not just me, but from students and parents, because it’s an emotional time,” Thomas said. “I’m here as a service to students. I’m not necessarily just college help, I’m here to help students have a plan after high school.”

Thomas discovered her love for college counseling while teaching a pre-preparatory program, Advancement Via Individual Determination Center (AVID), and working with underclassmen on college readiness.

“Kids can start in middle school, but it’s typically grades 9 through 11,” Thomas said. “I fell in love with AVID because I was able to see the fulfillment of student success, of students being able to graduate and go to college.”

Some students walk into her office convinced that they won’t be accepted to the college of their dreams. But one of Thomas’ students, certain she wouldn’t get into the University of Illinois, left Thomas’s office with an acceptance letter in hand and a wide smile on her face.

“Seeing a student that didn’t think they would have the finances to go to college, and seeing that they’re able to go is the most rewarding part of this job,” Thomas said. “Being successful in helping kids and seeing them excited about it [makes it worth it].”

Thomas applies what she learns when studying to become a licensed professional counselor – breathing techniques and coping mechanisms – to her daily life to help young women and women of color ages 18 to 33 to succeed.

“I do a lot of listening to figure out who the students are,” Thomas said. “A lot of times, students really just need to say that they’re stressed, and have somebody to talk to that’s not their parents or friends – people who they’re competing with. I’m constantly learning and educating myself on how to make sure kids who have too much pressure on themselves relax. At the end of the day, you’re going to get into the college that is for you.”

Some days, Thomas’s schedule stretches past 5 p.m., and she skips meals to make sure everything gets done.

“I read a lot of body language and ask questions not related to academics,” Thomas said. “Sometimes people just need to cry it out and move on, and I’m one of those people – sometimes I’ll just cry. One, because I’m a sap, but secondly, because I just need to get it out so that I can move forward.”

With nearly 700 seniors this year, Thomas said supporting each student requires careful strategic planning. Last year, she faced an even larger class of 742 students.

“I work with the kids at the top, I work with the kids at the bottom, but it’s the kids in the middle that I feel like I don’t have enough time with,” Thomas said. “I feel like I don’t spend enough time truly sitting down with each student and showing them what resources they have, so I wish I could do more of that. I want to be able to help all of the kids.”

Despite the workload, it’s the laughter and the memories that make the long hours worth it.

“I love seeing kids that I’ve never seen before,” Thomas said. “Just wandering in here and sitting down, and feeling comfortable enough to be here. This is my office, right? But this is your space – that’s my favorite memory.”

Her dedication to helping students was shaped by the person who inspired her most, her mother, Dr. Sophia Willis Rolling.

“My mom grew up in a time where it was really hard to move up higher because of the color of her skin,” Thomas said. “She graduated from college in the three years in the town she was from, but couldn’t find a job because they wouldn’t hire any black teachers.”

Rolling’s influence on her daughter went beyond academics. When she was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer when Thomas was in third-grade, Rolling saw a new side of her youngest daughter.

“I remember the day when I was diagnosed,” Rolling said. “I said to [Thomas], ‘I’m probably going to lose all my hair,’ because the doctors told me that I would have to go through chemotherapy. The first thing [Thomas] said to me was, ‘That’s okay Mommy. When you lose all your hair, you can cut off all mine too, and I’ll be bald like you.’ That’s when I knew there was something special about that kid.”

Rolling said Thomas’s heart for others and ability to lift people up makes her “truly” special.

“She’s a great daughter,” Rolling said. “As a mother, I can honestly say that I could not ask for more beautiful daughters. My God has really blessed me with beautiful children that love their mother and humanity, and will go out of their way to help people.”

For Bellaire High School graduate and current Howard University student Angel Harper, Thomas is very loving and easy to talk to.

“When I first met her at the beginning of senior year, I was nervous to start all the college stuff, but she was so helpful and supportive,” Harper said. “Some college counselors like to sugarcoat things or make it like you have a bigger chance than you do, but I feel like she was very honest about my chances of going into different schools.”

That honesty extended beyond the admissions process, as Thomas was included in Harper’s college decision process.

“I was really debating between Howard, Trinity, and some other school,” Harper said. “She told me, ‘I really think you should go to Howard because you’ll find your community, and I think you need to be in touch with your culture.’ If it wasn’t for her saying that and really pushing me to go [to Howard], I don’t think I would have come.”

Harper said Thomas supported her not just academically, but personally, too. When Harper felt uncertain about where she belonged, Thomas helped her feel seen.

“Thank you so, so much,” Harper said. “Even though I’ve only known you for a year, you’ve made such a lasting impact on me. You helped me figure out where I wanted to go, you dealt with me when I was being a big procrastinator, you were patient, and you made sure I stayed on track. I don’t know if I would be where I am if you weren’t there to help me.”

This story was originally published on Three Penny Press on October 7, 2025.