What's your experience with school counselors, social workers and psychologists?
Posted at 6:00 AM on September 16, 2009
by Eric Ringham
(54 Comments)
Filed under: Education, Health
Sen. Al Franken is cosponsoring legislation to help provide more counselors, psychologists and social workers in schools. Minnesota lags behind most other states in its ratio of counselors to students. What's your experience with school counselors, social workers and psychologists?
Comments (54)
My high school counselor failed me when I needed a counselor most. A year ago, a minor family issue came up that involved hitting me. The counselor I was talking to called child services on my parents. The annoying part was, that counselor only listened up to the point where I talked about getting hit- once. I remember my folks getting freaked out and nearly blowing a blood vessel when they heard the news. It wasn't anything big either, just a minor slap. I bruise easily so it looked a bit bad. I felt lied to and used by that counselor. The entire situation just led to my distaste of counselors and mental workers. She didn't guide me through my problem. She amplified it instead.
PS: She also told CPS the wrong details, guess how bad it got?
This is such a great resource that you are providing and you give it away for free. Great post...
Encourage your kids to speak with the school social worker to deal with issues that they may need to resolve.
As a forty-something laid off father of four, I stepped onto the Anoka-Ramsey Community College campus at Cambridge with little true confidence in myself nor did I expect to be taken so very seriously when I asked for information about taking some classes. From the very beginning of becoming a student here I have felt support from the faculty and staff that I should strive to be more than average. I feel that my instructors and counsellors have been great motivators in and out of the classroom and I have become increasingly involved in "campus life" and local activism.
When a teacher/counsellor suggested to me that I might fit in well in a club I took the notion as a real compliment and a bit of a challenge; what a great feeling. I am now involved with Phi Theta Kappa where I have been learning about belonging and leadership and cooperation. I am also a student worker so I get to interact with many people and share the enthusiasm of what my college is doing for me. I think that faculty involvement in student club functions is a treat for the students. I believe that for some it may be easy to cruise through the community college experience getting a valuable education at discounted price, but for me the GPA and transfer credits are not the only things to be gained here.
We are in the beginning of a new and exciting way to teach and learn. Through the WEB we are able to put knowledge and information as close as a fingertip. This enhanced learning could be a very bad thing for the institutions of camaraderie and community. I think that there are challenging questions being put to us all.
"What will happen to the school when it is no longer necessary for the students or instructors to meet?"
"Should I really count on professional and good quality counselling from my Twitter friends?"
The interaction between students and faculty is vital to the learning process. I would like to encourage all faculty to get involved and promote the student clubs as a way to apply all the hard earned learning into groups of doing.
Thanks for the opportunity to have a voice.
You can use whatever you like: all, some, or none; it's okay.
--
Charles "Tony" Tong
Phi Theta Kappa
Vice President - Leadership
Alpha Delta Upsilon
Anoka Ramsey Community College
As a non-traditional student going back to college was one of the hardest things I have done. Thank God, for Isabelle, she is one of the counselors we have on the Anoka Ramsey Community College- Cambridge Campus. If she had not been available to help me I would of been so lost. But with her help and the wonderful Professors that are here on the Cambridge Campus I love my time being here and it has been a wonderful experience. They managed to turn something frightful into an experience that I will never forget!
My School Counselor in high school was an extraordinary support to me through my parent's divorce. He was the primary reason I later pursued a career in school counseling myself. I thoroughly believe that unless we address the social/emotional aspects of students, we will never tap the academic potential we all desire for our children .
Higher education School Counselors and Psychologists are needed and appreciated. I am one of the millions of non traditional college students attending college this year. I was terrified to undertake pursuing my education as a displaced homemaker, however, with the support and understanding of the counselor at the community college, I am now in my second year. In our institution we have only one counselor for the entire student body. I am now pursuing a degree in EBD and Drug Counseling with the intent to work with U.S. soldiers and their families. Without the intervention and direction and faith of my college counselor; I would be on welfare. In order to change the nation we live in we must fund the very foundation of our citizens educational needs; counselors, psychologists and teachers cannot become an endangered species, if we are to thrive as a country, a family, a people.
I had a horrible school counselor in high school. He asked me in front of my entire Geography class how I did so well on the math portion of the PLAN because I am terrible at math. He never once gave me any career counseling and I ended up trying to figure it all out on my own. So now I am a school counselor and I work hard every day in the hopes that I am having a more positive impact on students than he had on me. The moral of this story: There are both professional and unprofessional people in all occupations. It is unfortunate when you come into contact with someone who does not perform adequately, but please don't take it out on those of us who do our jobs well.
Most of the people above commenting on putting more mental health workers in schools are teachers or mental health workers themselves and of course they are going to be supportive....As a parent with three special needs children I have had my share of Psychologists, Psychiatrists, social workers, and school counselors. I have not had good experiences with any of them. I think that if mental health workers are going to be hired for the school system they should be employed by someone outside the school system so they will advocate for the student not the school. In our school system the mental health workers are used for punitive action towards the student not as an advocate. My kids are good kids. They have never been in trouble with the law or never had trouble with other kids. They get good grades and work hard. I simply have had such bad experiences that I do not trust mental health workers to advocate for my kids. I trusted them once and I will never do it again. Some books that hit home for me is Pulitzer prize finalist Robert Whittaker's book "Mad In America" and Prozac Backlash by Joseph Glenmullen which illuminates why some people have had bad experiences with mental health professionals. If our politicians are worried about the 30% drop out rate they ought to try to improve the quality of living for our kids. My kids tell me many of their friends have lost hope for a future and are scared to go to college and be in debt so far that it would take them their whole life to pay it off. Cutting class size and updating our antiquated education system, and improving the quality of life for poor communities would be more of a help. It seems the only people getting the "good education" are the wealthy communities.
///Generally, NPR listeners have to understand that their experiences with school counslers likely revolved around scheduling classes and getting into college,...
This was, indeed, my experience in the early 80s. He asked what i wanted to do; I said I wanted to be a doctor. He said I needed to go to college (duh) and ought to study biology or chemistry. He didn't ask what kind of doctor I wanted to be, or for that matter why I wanted to be a doctor at all. Unlike the comment earlier by the electrical engineer ... I didn't become a doctor. Much later I figured out that what I really wanted to do was Public Health. Well, 30 years later, I'm about to finish my MPH, something I wish I could have done long long ago.
Counselors: need to spend more time knowing what types of professions are out there; need to ask *why* students want to pursue a chosen field. But, yes, obviously we need them. We should have them divided into academic counselors and non-academic counselors, rather than pursue the one-size-fits-none approach..
Psychologists:
Being in the back waters of W.Va. in high school, and all over the western hemisphere before that, I've no experience with them as a student. From my experience with psychologists as an adult, I can only say I wholeheartedly support the idea of them being available on a regular basis.
Sisters-in-law: How is it you're not totally screwed up like your brothers?
Me - long pause
Me - because I spent 6 years seeing a really really good psychiatrist.
It has nothing to do with abandoning your parenting to someone else. Some children need more help than others learning how to deal with the hand they're dealt. And, god knows, children need this even more than adults as a preventative function. Just because you think your kids don't need help doesn't mean no one else's don't.
As an educator who has worked in several states, I can attest to the importance of all three of these hard-working professions! While I am sure some not-so-good counselors/social workers/psychologists exist (like any profession), I can honestly say that I have not met one of them. I have worked with many through the years, and consider them all incredibly caring and skilled professionals who are in it for the kids.
I have learned that the roles and responsibilities of each vary by school district and state. For instance, in Minnesota, school social workers are quite common in schools and (in my experience) have a variety of roles within buildings. In other states I have worked in, school counselors served in the capacity that I have seen social workers do in MN. School psychologists are so frequently directly linked to special education, but are trained to do so much more (mental health, behavior, academics, systems-level changes, prevention, etc.)! It is unfortunate to see psychologists restricted in the amount of support they can provide to schools and students due to time constraints or budget issues.
Overall, whether you want to believe it or not, and whether you believe it to be the school's "job" or not, students and families come to our schools with a variety of backgrounds and needs that MUST BE addressed and met before true learning can happen. It is my opinion that school psychologists, social workers, and counselors are in invaluable roles to help meet the needs of ALL students, and I am grateful for the ones I have worked with and know personally!
I went to see my high school counselor about going to college. He asked what I wanted to study to which I responded engineering. While this was almost 30 years ago, I remember the response being something like this:
Well, I can give you an application for Anoka Ramsey Community College and they have a transfer program with the University of Minnesota. You should consider another field because I don’t think you’re going to make it as an engineer.
This is what happens when people dispense advice to people they really don’t know and haven’t taken the time to learn about. My counselor advised me solely on a quick review of my high school Grade Point Average and completely ignored my personal attributes.
The result: I ignored the demoralizing advice and following high school I received my Bachelor of Science Electrical Engineering degree and later obtained a Master of Science Management of Technology degree from the University of Minnesota. I have a highly successful career in engineering and engineering management.
As a marriage and family therapist I spent my first three years of clinical training working for an agency that provided "life skills" workers (therapists in training) to work with children considered to be "emotionally disturbed". We were to do in-home family therapy as well as work with the child individually, sometimes at school. I got to see some GREAT social workers, special ed teachers and regular classroom teachers at work, trying to help my clients. The problem was getting the parents to cooperate and learn how to meet their children's emotional needs. The parents tended to have their own emotional problems that they were not willing to address. I was not aware of any counselors or psychologists available in the public schools I visited. I felt I was doing work that social workers, counselors and psychologists were simply not available to do. Social workers seemed to focus on helping kids and famililes find the services they needed. I don't know whether counselors or psychologists, if there had been some around, would have provided the emotionally focused therapy I felt my clients and their families needed.
School counselors and psychologists can be an enormous asset but they can also cause a lot of damage. When in high school I was suspended and required to undergo a psychological evaluation (at the school counselor's recomendation) simply for having a panic attack in class. It wasn't until I was in a different school that I met a psychologist without whom I do not think I would have made it through college.
Yes, as a teacher I agree that we have some very troubled children coming to school. And if money were't not an issue it would be good to have more services, but currently I have to say that we don't have the resources to TEACH the children. This is our primary job and we need to make sure we have resources for instruction first. I have taught the whole spectrum of students but when I taught gifted ed, a position that was cut because of financing, it was extremely frustrating when student recognition, counseling, orientations, special needs groups, are all put BEFORE academic needs. Many children come to school prepared to learn and they should be given that opportunity.
Carol
As a junior high teacher, I do not know how we would survive without our guidance councilors. They are responsible for 275 students. We no longer have a social worker because we could no longer afford one. We truly miss our social worker and the resources she brought to the school.
Thank you very much for posing this question today. My name is Dan Hyson, and I am a school psychologist in southeatsren Minnesota and the President-Elect of the Minnesota School Psychologists Association. Student services professionals like school counselors, social workers and school psychologists are essential leaders in working with educators, administrators and parents to ensure the academic, social and emotional well-being of ALL students.
In addition to being an important part of a team of student services personnel, school psychologists offer a unique set of skills as well, including special training in data analysis, special education, mental health and crisis intervention. As someone else above mentioned, even in a progressive state like Minnesota, the ratio of students to school psychologists still falls well above the recommendation of the National Assocation of School Psychologists (NASP). Minnesota has approximately 1250 students for every one school psychologist, whereas NASP recommends at most a 1000 to 1 ratio. This shortage of school psychologists deprives our children and adolescents of a critical support in helping all of them reach their full potential.
For more information about school psychologists, I encourage you to visit NASP's website, nasponline.org. Thanks again for rasising this question.
As an Elementary School Counselor for the past 11 years I can tell you that I have had many mixed reactions to my position and role within a school. Some parents do not see the need for counsleors/social workers/schoolpsych. in their child's life. They think that it is their job to discuss problems and issues with their children. I could not agree more. The problem is that not all parents/adults are doing this or are capable of having those discussions with their children. My role is to help ALL students and families within my school. I do lessons on hygiene, bullying, friendship, diversity, families and many more. If a child already knows these lessons from their family, great then my lesson was a review for them. Hopefully I am able to teach something new to perhaps the student who sits next to that child so they do not disrupt the learning enviornment for others in the class or the teacher. It is too bad that some people are not able to see the value of supporting students so the teacher can teach and all students can participate and learn while at school.
School counselors at all levels are fighting a stereotype that all we do is schedule and drink coffee, becuase for many adults that is how they "remember" their school counselor.
It is beyond me why MN is dropping the ball for the support of our students in regards to the counselor: student ratio. MN is one of the worst states for having the least counselors...WI is one of the best. WI is required to have at least one counselor in each school at ALL levels! MN needs to get there! The well-being of our students is far more than just academics. Counselors help students continually develop academically, emotionally, socially, and provides ample opportunity for career exploration for their futures. They are trained professionals in dealing with some of the tough issues that students face on a daily basis. School counselors are vital in helping students succeed. Support school counselors! :)
Licensed School Counselors help students in a variety of ways: individual and group counseling, prevention activities, developmental guidance, career exploration, academic advising, etc. Unfortunately as cuts happen and "non-counseling" duties are put on our plates, the students and families are the ones who suffer. Less and less time is available to students. Student-to-Counselor ratio needs to improved. Realistic expectations of proper use of Licensed School Counselors needs to be addressed as well. The job of the Licensed School Counselor has evolved dramatically over the past 20 years.
As a Licensed School Counselor, I can almost say I've heard it all. On a typical day in a 5th-8th grade building, I can hear any one of these issues:
academic concerns, school anxiety, harassment/bullying, drugs/alcohol, cutting, suicidal thoughts, grief (divorce, death, loss), fighting, classroom behavior, family issues, sexuality (pregnancy, risky behaviors), attendance concerns, abuse/neglect, hygiene, social skills, etc.
I believe that people who entered the profession of School Counseling are in it because they care deeply about kids. We believe that every student has the potential to be successful, however, how can a student think about math when there are social/emotional problems, neglect, or harassment happening? This is where Licensed School Counselors can make a difference in the lives of the students.
In many districts I have worked with school psychologists play an important and integral role in the PREVENTION of academic and social emotional problems as well as providing much needed support and assistance for students, parents and school staff. Prevention and a positive overall school experience for our students reaps great dividends in a plethora of ways. School social workers and school counselors also function as a critical piece of the overall support system in schools and communities.
Just a few thoughts:
1. We need more school counselors, at ALL levels - Elementary, Middle, High School and College. The statistics don't lie... MN is one of the worst states in terms of student:counselor ratios.
2. Counselors are there to help support students in several ways - with academic, career and personal issues. This can be done through several avenues - individual appointments, class presentations, workshops, groups, etc. When there are not enough financial resources, at best, those positions are not ulitized to their full extent, and at worst, they are spread way too thin.
3. Counselors are an additional source of support for students of all ages. They are not meant to replace the need for parents or teachers or anyone else. With the changing world we live in, people need more support and more resources, not less.
4. We need to "walk the walk" not just "talk the talk". If Minnesota values students, their success (in their education and the rest of their lives), their growth and their contribution to society... then we need to support the funding that is necessary to keep the positions/people in place that contribute positively to these things.
5. I am extremely lucky to have great parents and a strong social support system. Even with a solid family foundation and wonderful support systems in my life, there were times that I just needed a neutral person to talk to. Fortunately, during my years as a student I have been surrounded with FANTASTIC school counselors and college counselors that I could turn to. They were a safe and non-judgemental place for me to process what was happening in my life. I am certain that many other students would say the same.
Please support school counselors in every way that you can.
School Psychologists play a very important part in helping students succeed in school, not only academically (helping with school-wide initiatives to increase achievement) but also emotionally/behaviorally (helping students learn social skills and coping mechanisms). Funding for school psychologists needs to continue to help all students succeed.
Not only students are helped by social workers, counselors and psychologists; their work supports the families of students and also the teachers who are busy dealing with the needs of hundreds of students. My daughter's high school classes have 35-40 students each, and a teacher will have 5 of them. Imagine learning the names of 200 students and teaching them. where is the time to attend to all the emotional, social and physical problems that might manifest themselves in school? If it hadn't been for staff like this, my sister's dyslexia would never have been diagnosed, and she would have grown up believing she was stupid or a failure; instead, we were able to support her learning needs with the school as a family, and her education and success in life are a direct result of that.
After working in the business world for seventeen years, I returned to school to become a licensed teacher. Before entering the field I don't think I would have believed there was a need for school psychologists. i probably even rolled my eyes at the very thought. Now, entering my fifth year as a teacher, I can't imagine a school without them. My students, and my own children, have benefited from the help of school psychologists, It's easy to judge from the outside looking in, but my eyes have been opened. I am so grateful to the many school psychologists I have worked with - they help countless children everyday.
When my son was in college, his girlfriend of 3 years broke up with him. He was devastated and suicidal. Had it not for the college counselor who offered him caring, professional support I do not know if I still have my son who just earned his graduate degree from Harvard in June. My son and I love each other dearly. But sometimes it takes someone else other than a parent to intervene. Counseling services on college campuses are much needed resources, especially with students coming from diverse backgrounds, they bring with them very different and complicated issues.
I am a school psychologist. I am very blessed to work in a district that values psychologists, however, I hear from many teachers "we need the psychologist here everyday" due to the high needs of our students. I feel valued by my principal but additional funding is not used to increase my time at the school. The pressure put on schools to make AYP does at come an expense.
I also feel that my School Social Workers are hard working, talented individuals who positively impact the lives of so many of our students and parents. Without them my job would be harder.
I am not lucky enough to have a School Counselor at my schools. When I had them in the past, they too have been talented and under recognized individuals. I would like to see a counselor in every building.
WOW!!
It seems being a happily married father of two boys with open communications with teachers puts me in some kind of a minority. Sounds like everyone that has piped up so far would like to see someone else do the parenting for them.
I would like minimum interference from ANY Social program in my life. DON"T TREAD ON ME.
School counselors are one of the greatest resouces we have to ensure that issues related to mental health and relationships are identified. My daughter who is now 14 has is doing well but partly because she has had consistently strong school counselor input over the years. At age seven I was given information and feedback that helped us direct her towards appropriate ways to interact with peers. I feel now at the Jr High level we are reaping a huge benefit. Parenting has no instruction manual but I see school counselors very valuable tool for both parents and students who can benefit from a advocating perspective. For some students, the school counselor with appropriate training can be the safety net to help them make better, even life saving choices.
I've worked as a Family Therapist in a school-linked mental health program. Unfortunately, the current model does not address mental health issues in schools. I believe the public would be alarmed to learn that, because of insufficient funding, school psychologists and social workers are limited to academic issues such as IEPs and graduation requirements and provide virtually NO mental health related services. School counselors are often not licensed as mental health professionals and typically have little training in psychotherapy. this leaves a huge gap between therapy and kids primary system-- the school.
As a school social worker in St Paul I know all too well that my days are full of student both identified and unidentified with mental health needs. There are many children and families that are struggling to get through their everyday and being able to provide some social emotional support to them helps their children or the child have more academic success. The mental health needs of children are growing and the access to meeting these needs is decreasing; consequently the unmet needs are impacting classrooms across our state. Having student support professionals in the schools is imperative to increasing school success for all.
I have a very close friend who is an elementary school teacher in the St. Paul School district. She has spoken many times about her school and her students. I am amazed at the problems of many of these students. They are serious, numerous and often reflect significant difficulties in the home. Yet there are too few counselors and social workers to support the education function of the schools.
This same teacher believes the money is available to rectify the problem but it is being spent in areas that are wasteful and unnecessary. Perhaps a new superintendent will be mindful of these needs??? It is a sad state of affairs in that system.
The availability of real counseling services in the public college system in MN is also to seriously lacking.
All of this is unfortunate for the Minnesota taxpayers. So much money is wasted on education because of the minimal counseling and social work assistance available to students in this state.
I am a Clinical Social Worker in a Federal Level 4 school settting and work with approx. 25 Special Education students. The ratio of assigned kids to a Social Worker is approximately 25-30 students, whereas a Teacher works with approx. 7 students. We only employ Social Workers and not School Counselors and the role of Social Workers is generally misunderstood and misused. Social Workers provide intense learning opportunities to help kids learn different skills, help family systems have a different experience and truly work with and build on the strengths each child has.
As a principal on an elementary school, I have the good fortune to have a school counselor in our building. She is an incredible asset in meeting the many needs of our students’ social and emotional needs. Our counselor is also a great resource for our parents. It is hard to imagine trying to meet the increasing needs of the elementary students without her support.
I have been a Licensed School Nurse at a middle school in a large urban district for 12 years. Our school social worker, counselor, and psychologist are invaluable. I am constantly amazed at how well the social worker knows so many of our students and their families and all the needs she meets. Our psychologist is an incredible resource and has a wealth of knowledge in both academics and mental health. She is definitley under utilized due to time constraints and budget. Our counselor is new this year and I have already seen the difference she is making for our students. She, too, is very engaged with our students and familes and has already gotten to know several of them since school started. I am very thankful to work with these professionals!
The SSW in our elementary school makes all things possible; sheltered students that need food and clothing. She gives special attention to students that are enrolling to find out if there are any special needs, and to make families feel welcomed at school. The SSW also links families to outside resources and agencies. The additional skill of being able to speak Spanish has been invaluable with our diverse population. Homeless and Highly Mobile students all have contact with our social worker, this assure that students are attending school everyday and on time!
Added to the many regular duties of attendance and due process for the special ed students, comes paperwork. Mountains of paper work that must be completed timely and correctly. Our social worked puts in many extra hours, because she is dedicated and knows that everything she does makes a difference in the lives of families.
Then there is the duties of sitting on the various committes for CTARS (student support meeting with teachers & parents),
the Emergency Team - planning for evacuations, lockdowns and fire drills.
Our SSW is an important part of intra-school operations, she assists in many, many ways when the principal is out of the building.
This might include behavior issues, taking students home, assisting staff with issues and much more.
The only real thing I know about school psychologist is that you can not move a student into a special program or different setting without her involvement. And that they send our psychologist when there is a tragedy at school (like the death of student).
School counselors are so vital to the success of all students in the school, and are at the core of the good things that happen in schools as systems to promote the development and well-being of young people. We are very fortunate to have a knowledgeable and forthright advocate like Senator Franken.
As a social worker in an urban elementary school, I want to let everyone know how much of a difference a trained support professional in a school can make. It may just mean greeting a child with her name, or remarking on his new shoes. Or it may mean daily check-ins with a student who is anxious and feels disconnected from peers. Or facilitating friendships, or processing the upsetting issues at home (death of a pet or family member, family fight, etc.) Often I help parents understand what is happening for the child at school, or help them access services and resources in the community. Everything I do is geared toward helping the student get to class, and be more ready to learn. With larger and larger class sizes, and students with increasingly traumatic life experiences, the roles of social workers, counselors, and psychologists are even more important now than in the past.
I have worked as a school psychologist for 8 years and I can speak from first hand experience that I am not being utilized to the potentional of my training (a total of 8 years in undergrad and grad work...ehem). I believe that if we had stronger ratios (1:500 as is recommended by the National Association of School Pschologists) then we would be able to increase student achievement and help produce stronger more mentally healthy adults for the future. With better rations we would have the time to work directly with students and families as well relieve the complexities our administrators and teachers have taken on which would then free them up to get back to teaching!!
When my son, a college sophomore, was in first grade, his teacher called in the school psychologist because he constantly chewed his fingernails. After one observation, she scheduled a meeting to announce to us that he had obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and would need extensive therapy. We were devastated. After getting a second opinion, we decided instead to bribe him with a really nice gift. He quit chewing his nails before we could meet with the counselor again. She apologized for her error. My reaction to this news, then, is that more mental health professionals in schools may find more problems that aren't there unless they are better trained than ours was!
It is a PURE SHAME that MN lags behind most other states in ratio of students to Social workers, Psychologists or Counselors. This was not the case years back. What has happened to this state and our educational system? Hopefully Al Frankin gets what our kids need. Social Workers and other mental Health support staff being one of them. With less and less funding for mentally ill children, most families have no where else to turn but to schools to offer support or resources.
The counselors and social workers at our high school ROCK!! I've been in the business of education for quite a few years and the counselors and social workers here give 110% always and all ways!!
I had a wonderful counselor in the mid-70's when I was in high school. She made a sincere effort to know each student and, because I was a particular shy and retiring kid, made a special effort to draw me out. I always remember Mrs. Lee with gratitude. I wish every child had a mentor like this. I can see how desparately they are needed now. Our society is so much more complicated, stressful and demanding. Kids don't have the freedoms I did because of the dangers that we have now. I would like to think if we support the mental health of kids in school today, the future would better for everyone, but I'd be happy if the future of the kids would be a little better.
As a teacher in St. Paul, I work in close contact with counselors, social workers and psychologists. They are CRITICAL to successful schools. They support students not only academically but also socially. These individuals help students keep track of credits, apply to college and survive in an often brutal world. They help students who are suddenly homeless find housing. They help parents understand ways in which to positively reinforce education and how to navigate the educational systems to better serve their families. They help teachers by ensuring that schedules are appropriate and classrooms are balanced. I have had nothing but extremely positive experiences with these individuals. We need more of them as the student/counselor in most buildings is TOO large.
As a school counselor I find it heartbreaking that MN places 49th in counselor to student ratio. A day in the life as a school counselor finds me working with students on mental health, friendship skills, social skills, family/personal issues, along with going into classrooms to teach anti-bullying curriculums, preparing students for college, not to mention the numerous things that just pop up during the day. I absolutely love my job and the counseling profession although each day finds me stretched thin and wishing I had more hours in my day. The demands on todays students is devastating. Please support the children of today because they are our future.
It really would have been nice to have all of these special counselors and helping people when I was in school. But I went to school in North Dakota with the lowest teacher pay in the nation. Rural schools still do not have the luxury of all these professionals available to people. So many of our students get labeled as trailer trash, or even worse because of single parent families.
There needs to be more one on one work with troubled teens and their adult supervisors, but we have a governor who goes abroad on trips while cutting services to the poorest of the poor.
It really would have been nice to have all of these special counselors and helping people when I was in school. But I went to school in North Dakota with the lowest teacher pay in the nation. Rural schools still do not have the luxury of all these professionals available to people. So many of our students get labeled as trailer trash, or even worse because of single parent families.
There needs to be more one on one work with troubled teens and their adult supervisors, but we have a govenor who goes abroad on trips while cutting services to the poorest of the poor.
As a school social worker, I see the struggles that many students and their families face everyday. More and more students are relying on the school employed professionals to provide mental health services, rather than outside services due to insurance/fees/waiting lists. I completely agree with this legislation since the number of student support services is dwindling due to budget cuts. Even though I find the student to counselor ratio misleading (the ratio does not take into account the number of other student support services such as social workers and psychologists), MN students come to school with mental health needs that are not being met, which will have long lasting implications.
School counselors and psychologists are a valuable resource in our schools. Five years ago, my son lost a 17 year old classmate suddenly and he still struggles with issues surrounding this today. We tried to contact his high school and see if a psychologist could meet with a group of kids affected by their peer's death but were told there were no resources for this. Though I understand they are overworked (and probably underpaid), I still think more formal support through the school system where he was spending most of his day would have been beneficial.
As a middle school counselor I have had numerous students say that I am the only person they can talk to. Being able to problem solve with their school counselor allows them to focus in class. The counselors at my school work to advocate for students, prevent violence (through mediation processes), and close the achievement gap.
This school year we had to cut our school counselor entirely due the Governor's hold-back and the difficulty that Charter schools like us have in getting loans to make up the difference in cash flow.
I think the most important thing to remember is that the field of educational mental health has changed considerably in the past ten years along with the needs of their students. As a graduate of the 1990's, I didn't even know who my counselor was. As a current high school counselor, I can say that I know the majority of our student body along with their parents. I have always viewed my main job as being the student's advocate in any situation (college, mental health, academics, social isssues), and I believe that more student advocates are needed with the changing environment in and outside of school .
Generally, NPR listeners have to understand that their experiences with school counslers likely revolved around scheduling classes and getting into college, however, as a public high school teacher, this question resinates. Every day I am confronted with students whose personal problems and home life are beyond my imagination or worst nightmares. School counselors, psychologists and social workers are essential to providing these students with the services they so desperately need to be successful in school and social settings. However, these services are stretched so thin! The demand far exceeds the services available.
School psychologists are extremely valuable. The services they provide help people learn to read, establish healthy relationships, and-in the long term-stay out of jail. I know because my wife is a school psychologist (and yes, I realize that my comment can now be read a couple of different ways). Seriously though, I think school psychologists and social social workers play a huge role in everything from helping to close the achievement gap to helping avoid future school shootings.
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