Guidance
THE ROLE OF THE PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELOR
http://www.schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=240
The Role of the Professional School Counselor:
Professional school counselors are certified/licensed educators with a minimum of a master’s degree in school counseling making them uniquely qualified to address all students’ academic, personal/social and career development needs by designing, implementing, evaluating and enhancing a comprehensive school counseling program that promotes and enhances student success.
Professional school counselors serve a vital role in maximizing student success (Lapan, Gysbers, & Kayson, 2007; Stone & Dahir, 2006). Through leadership, advocacy and collaboration, professional school counselors promote equity and access to rigorous educational experiences for all students. Professional school counselors support a safe learning environment and work to safeguard the human rights of all members of the school community (Sandhu, 2000) and address the needs of all students through culturally relevant prevention and intervention programs that are a part of a comprehensive school counseling program (Lee, 2001).
Delivery
Professional school counselors provide culturally competent services to students, parents/guardians, school staff and the community in the following areas:
- School Guidance Curriculum – This curriculum consists of structured lessons designed to help students achieve the desired competencies and to provide all students with the knowledge and skills appropriate for their developmental level. The school guidance curriculum is delivered throughout the school's overall curriculum and is systematically presented by professional school counselors in collaboration with other professional educators in K-12 classroom and group activities.
- Individual Student Planning – Professional school counselors coordinate ongoing systemic activities designed to help students establish personal goals and develop future plans.
- Responsive Services – Responsive services consist of prevention and/or intervention activities to meet students’ immediate and future needs. These needs can be necessitated by events and conditions in students’ lives and the school climate and culture, and may require any of the following:
- individual or group counseling
- consultation with parents, teachers and other educators
- referrals to other school support services or community resources
- peer helping
- psycho-education
- intervention and advocacy at the systemic level
Professional school counselors develop confidential relationships with students to help them resolve and/or cope with problems and developmental concerns.
- System Support – System support consists of management activities establishing, maintaining, and enhancing the total school counseling program. These activities include professional development, consultation, collaboration, supervision, program management and operations. Professional school counselors are committed to continual personal and professional development and are proactively involved in professional organizations promoting school counseling at the local, state and national levels.
References
Lapan, R. T., Gysbers, N. C., & Kayson, M. A. (2007). Missouri school counselors benefit all students. Jefferson City, MO: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Lee, C. (2001). Culturally responsive school counselors and programs: Addressing the needs of all students. Professional School Counseling, 4, 163-171.
Sandhu, D. S. (2000). Alienated students: Counseling strategies to curb school violence. Professional School Counseling, 4, 81-85.
Stone, C. B. & Dahir, C. A. (2006). The transformed school counselor. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Revised, 2009
RESOURCES:
A national directory of colleges, universities and technical schools that offer online educational options
Website : http://www.onlineschools.org/guides/
Online postsecondary schools in Massachusetts
Website: http://www.onlineschools.org/guides/Massachusetts/
Federal TRIO Programs
The Federal TRIO Programs (TRIO) are Federal outreach and student services programs designed to identify and provide services for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. North Shore Community College has four different TRIO programs to serve and assist low-income individuals, first-generation college students, and individuals with disabilities.
Website: http://www.northshore.edu/trio/
Federal Trio Educational Opportunity Centers are here to help you:
We help low income and first-generation students gain access to higher education.
Applying to college can seem overwhelming. Guess what? We are here to help you through this process by providing free one-on-one advising.
- We can help you understand the college application process and help you fill out an application.
- We can help you understand the financial aid process and how to complete the FAFSA.
- We can help you decide what to study in college.
- We can help you choose an academic program that matches your career interests.
- We can help you transfer to another college
TRIO locations: http://www.northshore.edu/eoc/make_appointment.html (North Shore Community College Location)
www.tericollegeplanning.org (Boston location)
What is Tuition Break?
NEBHE's Tuition Break program, the New England Regional Student Program (RSP), enables thousands of New England residents to enroll at out-of-state New England public colleges and universities at a discount. Students are eligible for the RSP Tuition Break when they enroll in an approved major that is not offered by the public colleges and universities in their home-state
Website: http://www.nebhe.org/programs-overview/rsp-tuition-break/overview/
Financial Aid Made Simple
- Unbiased, non-profit aid education for students and parents
- Create a personalized higher education financial plan with aid comparison tools, checklists, alerts, and learning modules
- Integrates financial literacy instruction – the key to reducing overall college costs
Website: http://www.tuitionedu.org/
Mass Restaurant Association Educational Foundation: Every year, the MRAEF helps high school seniors and undergrads to continue their education in the restaurant/foodservice industry at accredited post-secondary institutions with individual scholarships of up to $2,000 awarded competitively to qualified applicants .
Accredited career colleges and technical colleges in Massachusetts, with links to information about scholarships and financial aid, and free scholarship search:
Website: http://www.college-scholarships.com/massachusetts_career.htm
Website for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that is required in order to receive Federal financial aid for college or career/ technical college programs
Website: http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/
CollegeBoard SAT registration
Website: http://sat.collegeboard.org/home?affiliateId=nav&bannerId=h-satns
The Massachusetts Career Information System (MassCIS) free on-line to all Massachusetts residents. MassCIS is designed to provide occupational and educational information to help people make better-informed career and school choices.
Website: http://masscis.intocareers.org/
Apprenticeship Training Resources
Website: http://www.khake.com/page58.html
Occupational Information Network
Website: http://www.onetonline.org/
Office of Adult and Vocational Eduation
Website: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/index.html?src=mr
Vocational Information Center
Website: http://www.khake.com/page95.html
Community Service:
Students will be required to earn .1 credit of community service to complete graduation requirements. This credit may be earned through membership in community based student activities and clubs. Credit may also be aearned through participation in out-of-school volunteer activities and through special projects at SeaCoast. Twenty-six(26) hours of volunteer participation is necessary to earn the required credit. A list of accepted forms of community service is available through the guidance department. Community service must be completed before graduation.