Counseling Team | American Community School of Abu Dhabi

High School Counseling Team

Claire Ruz

Counselor

Claire has taught IB DP economics for 14 years and worked in college counseling for over a decade; she holds both a MBA and a Master's in Counseling. Her experience spans the United States, Morocco, and, prior to joining ACS, she worked in Lithuania for the past eight years. Originally from France, Claire has spent most of her life both in the United States and abroad. She has two daughters: the eldest who just graduated from McGill University and is currently living in Barcelona and youngest who is studying at Central Saint Martins in London. During her free time, Claire enjoys reading, exercising, and she is learning Spanish and salsa. She loves traveling and values quality time with friends and family.

Phil Abraham

Counselor

Phil previously worked as a High School Counselor at GEMS American Academy (GAA) Abu Dhabi. Prior to that he worked as a counselor, teacher, and social worker in Chicago, Illinois. He holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and a Masters of Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Mr. Abraham's counseling background ranges from K-12 and focusing on students' personal, social, and academic development as well as their post-secondary planning. Having been in Abu Dhabi for many years, Mr. Abraham is familiar to many ACS families through his involvement in local high school and community athletics, specifically, wrestling and rugby. In his free time, Mr. Abraham enjoys spending time with his family and friends, playing and watching sports, traveling, and discovering new places to eat.

Jasmine Elshear

Counselor

Born and raised in New York City, USA, Jasmine proudly embraces her Egyptian heritage and fluency in Arabic as part of her identity. Since joining ACS in 2019, Jasmine has served in a variety of roles supporting the High School and its students. She holds a Master of Arts in K-12 School Counseling and Guidance from NYU and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from St. Joseph’s College in New York City, USA.

Her career trajectory started in the corridors of the United Nations, where she interned and worked with various UN agencies and civil society organizations, only to be captivated by the world of education during her tenure at a school in the heart of New York City. She continued to earn experience in counseling, working with Philadelphia Performing Arts: A String Theory Charter School and IQ Academy Minnesota.

While many people have influenced her journey, the most significant presence is undeniably her remarkable mother. She enjoys spending time with her husband, friends and family and being in Egypt. When not in school, you can find her exploring malls, either shopping or enjoying a meal.

Patrick Stenger

Counselor

Having spent most of his career internationally, Patrick has served as a high school counselor/university and careers advisor at the International School of Beijing, a university and careers advisor at Bangkok Patana School, a high school counselor at Shanghai American School-Pudong and K-12 school counselor at the Osaka International School. He began his career internationally as a K-12 counselor at the International School of Aberdeen in Scotland. He holds a Master of Science in Educational Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.

Middle School Counseling Team

Bernadette Brown

Counselor

Bernadette’s career as a school counselor began 17 years ago in South Carolina and then Northern Virginia. Her appreciation and interest in experiencing different cultures led her to Guangzhou, China, where she worked as a comprehensive school counselor and university counselor. Her next stop was Maputo, Mozambique, where she served as a secondary school counselor. Bernadette believes that when students feel safe and nurtured and their uniqueness and self-worth are recognized, then they will succeed to their fullest potential. She has a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Education Specialist in Counselor Education.

Kia Beguesse

Counselor

Kia has spent the past 21 years working in education. In addition to being a School Counselor (EC-12), Kia is a Licensed Professional Counselor and National Board Certified Counselor. Her career began in Texas teaching middle and high school social studies. During that time, Kia realized her affinity for helping students with social, personal and emotional issues. She spent one year as an elementary counselor before becoming a high school comprehensive counselor. Since 2013, Kia has worked in international schools in Dubai and London. Kia is excited to return to the region and to join the ACS community

Elementary School Counseling Team

Farwa Devji

Counselor

Having spent the past 18 years in education, Farwa began her career as an elementary classroom teacher, teaching all grades from Kindergarten through Grade 5, before transitioning into school counseling, where she has spent the last eight years at ACS working with students, teachers, and families to nurture social-emotional development and a sense of belonging within the school community.

Farwa holds a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, a Master's of Education in School and Educational Psychology with a specialization in Mental Health Practices in Schools, and a Master's of Arts in Counseling Psychology. Her combined background in teaching and psychology fuels her passion for supporting the whole child; bridging academic, emotional, and developmental needs in a holistic and compassionate way.

A proud parent of three, Farwa’s daughter is a recent ACS graduate now studying at McGill University in Montreal, while her two sons are current ACS students. A third culture kid herself, Farwa calls Abu Dhabi home and always strives to bring a global, compassionate, and culturally attuned perspective to her work with students and families.

Dana Allen

Counselor

Dana started out her career as a psychiatric social worker providing individual, family and play therapy for children and their families in her home state of Connecticut. She then went on to work as an anti-violence counselor for Joe Torre’s Safe at Home Foundation in a middle school setting in Union City, New Jersey. It was there that she discovered her passion for working in schools with teachers, students and their parents. She went on to work in schools (grades K-12) for the next eight years as a school social worker before moving to Abu Dhabi with her family. Since then she has been a parent volunteer, Girl Scout Troop leader and member of School Social Workers of America. Last spring she covered for Ms. Robin’s maternity leave as Elementary School counselor, and she is so excited to be returning to ACS this fall. She holds a Master of Social Work with a concentration in Casework and a specialization in School Social Work and Substance Abuse and Addiction, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Studies.

Ghinwa Masri

Counselor

Ghinwa holds a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology with a focus on School Guidance and Counseling and a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Math and Science, both from the American University of Beirut. She also holds a Professional Educator’s License (K–6) from the State of Indiana.

Ghinwa began her career as a classroom teacher, teaching second grade in Saudi Arabia. During these years, she taught core subjects including math, science, language arts, and social studies, while fostering strong classroom communities and integrating social-emotional learning into her teaching practice.

Her passion for supporting students’ emotional well-being led her to transition into school counseling. As an Elementary Counselor, Ghinwa implemented a range of social-emotional learning programs, including the DESSA (Devereux Student Strengths Assessment) to track student growth and tailor interventions. She taught Second Step lessons on bullying prevention and child protection, led parent workshops on positive discipline, and collaborated with teachers to design behavior intervention plans.

As student advocates, ACS counselors work in partnership with students, educators, parents and the community, to foster an inclusive and collaborative school environment central to the success of the ACS mission. ACS counselors provide an accessible program that is comprehensive, developmentally appropriate and addresses the academic, career, and social/emotional development of all students.

ACS counselors believe:

Every student has the right to have a caring adult advocate
Every student should feel safe, supported, and accepted
Every student is unique, capable, and developing as an individual
Every student, with support, possesses the ability to advocate for themselves and generate solutions to problems
Students learn through a variety of learning styles, depth and comprehension
Students should maintain balance with their academic and non-academic lives
Counselors should work within professional counseling code of ethics and adhere to standards of confidentiality
Our counseling program requires continual review and revision in order to meet the needs of the school