Find one’s career path is life can be truly daunting and scary; I have realized that I want to find a career path that plays to my strengths as well as my passion. I truly find joy in helping people in any manner. I feel that that altruistic quality in me makes me truly satisfied and happy. I enjoy listening to people and counseling them and giving them the correct and appropriate resources to be able to achieve their goals and dreams. Given all of these qualities and passions, I have decided to pursue the career path of being a guidance counselor. In this paper, I will explore the academic and professional credentials needed to become a guidance counselor, how guidance counselor serves as a backbone in the lives of their students and what measures need to be taken so that guidance counselor are not excluded from the lives of their students. I have also interviewed my co-worker, who is in this field so that I can get her perspective on this matter.
According to the American School Counselors Association, school counselors design and deliver school counseling programs that improve student outcomes (American School Counselors Association, 2019). School counselors are required to be certified and licensed in their academic fields; this means that they have to have at least a master’s degree in school counseling (American School Counselors Association, 2019). The purpose of having a master’s degree is so that the guidance counselors can properly guide and aid all of the student’s career, academic and cultural developments (American School Counselors Association, 2019).
In addition to this, studies show that the ratios of students to school counselors are vital and essential to the success of the students so that the students can be successful in school and perform better on state tests. The ideal ratio of students to school counselors should be 250 students to one school counselor (American School Counselors Association, 2019).
According to a report from the American School Counselors Association released on February 1st, 2019; that seniors in high schools with a lower student-to-school counselor ratio were more engaged in college counseling learning activities and these activities aided students to make more informed and college decisions (American School Counselor Association, 2019).
Furthermore, the Center for Disease Control as of 2009 has identified and realized that adults or school mates in their school who care about their learning is the number one driving factor to promote in school as well as out of school success (American School Counselor Association, 2019). Also, the American Counselor Association National Model of implements promotes a raise in personalized relationships between students and their respective guidance school counselors as positive in increasing the success of every student (American School Counselor Association, 2019). Consequently, these personalized and special relationships, showed that the student has more knowledge about colleges and has aspirations to achieve a college degree (American School Counselor Association, 2019). Finally, these personalized relationships have been identified as a meaningful and important indicator and predictor or college success (American School Counselor Association, 2019). These students will then have the necessary tools to explore options for going to various post-secondary academic programs and how to finance their post-secondary education (American School Counselor Association, 2019).
Schools that had a lower student-to-school-counselor ratio were more interested in their respective college-decision making process (American School Counselor Association, 2019). These meetings between students and school counselors developed and increased the match of students to their respective post-secondary academic plans and programs and a result; this also increased the number of on-campus college visits of these students (American School Counselor Association, 2019).
According to Lisa Irish, there was a bill that was passed recently by Governor Ducey in 2019, to hire about 124 school counselors in Arizona (Irish, 2019). This plan was developed by Safe Arizona Schools from the information and data collected from parents, teachers, principals, and students as well as therapists and lawyers (Irish, 2019). This plan included allocating a budget of $12 so that this plan can take into effect. The purpose of this proposed plan is to reduce the number of students per guidance counselor (Irish, 2019).
Unfortunately, the current ratio of students to guidance counselors is 903 students to one guidance counselor. This figure is surprising and appalling. It is completely reasonable for one guidance counselor to be able to emotionally and academically support a total of 903 students.
According to Janine Menard, this is a ‘great fresh start. We are very happy and excited that we part of his proposed budget, but we know that it’s not enough so we’re just kind of plugging away and getting out the word as best we can to get the pubic to support for these bills’ (Irish, 2019).
The House Bill 2562 was sponsored by Representative Jennifer Pawlik and Senate Bill 1344 was sponsored by Senator Sean Bowie (Irish, 2019). These bills would help each school district and charter school to hire a minimum of one guidance counselor for every 550 students and would also give a budget of $285 million from the state general fund over five years (Irish, 2019).
According to the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection, about 44 percent of Arizona high school students are restricted from accessing their guidance school counselors (Irish, 2019). This figure is very low because guidance counselor plays an essential role in the lives of their students; they give them the necessary tools and leadership to be able to successfully move on in their lives and be able to take the necessary steps to reach their dreams. These dreams can often include going to university and pursuing a degree in a field that they have a passion for and are enthusiastic about. Without the proper direction and leadership of their guidance counselor; these students and many others will be left behind. They won’t be able to reach their ambitions and aspirations. Perhaps these students plan to give back to their communities and play an integral role in providing a better future not only for themselves but also for their families.
During the Great Recession, public schools in Arizona were heavily impacted and therefore their budgets significantly decreased (Irish, 2019). Some schools in Arizona reduced the number of guidance school counselors; however many other schools decided to let go of their guidance school counselors completely (Irish, 2019). This is a very unsettling fact for the reason that the state of Arizona decided to cut funds to support guidance counselors so that that money can be allocated to another area. Perhaps the state of Arizona decided that money needed to be put in somewhere else, rather than the of their students.
A former superintendent of the Flagstaff Unified School district remarked on this fact by saying ‘ any school site that has counselors would agree that the kinds of support that counselors can provide for students and families is crucial for emotional health and academic success and that those two things go hand-in-hand’ (Irish, 2019).
Furthermore, elementary and middle school guidance counselors aid students by providing them with emotional counseling, helping students deal through personal ordeals and difficulties, assisting students with their academics, and promoting for students (Irish, 2019). All of these duties are essential in ensuring the success of the future of the students.
Currently, I work at a company called Primavera Online High School and Middle School. This company is located in Phoenix, Arizona. This is an online school is accredited, completely online and tuition-free. I interviewed a co-worker who works as a guidance counselor. I asked her about her educational background, how she go into this field, how this field has changed and what advice would she give to those, who are planning on being in this field. Her name is Jenny Davis-Tindall.
Her educational background includes three bachelor’s degrees in Psychology, Business Administration and Accounting. In addition to this, she has two Master’s degrees in Education and Counseling (Tindall, 2020).
I started by asking her how she got into this field. She says that she started as a classroom teacher (Tindall, 2020). She taught in every classroom and she was specifically focused on children who have special needs. She was later trained to specifically care and teach children who had Autism and Asperger’s syndrome (Tindall, 2020). She was also employed as a traveling math and science teacher; before moving to Arizona, she taught in a small college in the Midwest (Tindall, 2020). Overall, she has about 22 years of experience in both the fields of education and counseling (Tindall, 2020).
Her deep concern and altruistic qualities have truly made her stand out as a guidance counselor to me. She went on to say that in third grade, she was searching for what her future career might be. At that time, she wanted to be an astronaut and after that; she then decided to become a lawyer. The reason why she wanted to become a lawyer was becuase she realized that lawyers had to counsel people who were distressed and were experiencing some sort of difficulty (Tindall, 2020).
In 1998, she began teaching in a mental facility for youths, who had experienced emotional difficulties. In this facility, she taught all subjects of all ages and at all academic levels. She then took part in a program, in which the sole purpose was to teach children who were had Autism or Asperger’s syndrome (Tindall, 2020). After this, she went on to pursue a double master’s in education and licensing professional counseling. She was then asked to work as a traveling teacher in various schools (Tindall, 2020).
She then moved to Arizona; where she worked in and out of schools as a therapist for the past 14 years. She has found that it is very rewarding and gratifying to have the gift to change the lives of adults and students. Her ultimate goal is to work in private practice as a Licensed Professional Counselor (Tindall, 2020).
When I asked her about what advice, she would give to someone who is planning on becoming a guidance counselor; she said that it is very important to know oneself. She also says that understanding the mental, emotional and physical health of oneself is extremely important (Tindall, 2020). She seeing a therapist at least once a week so that you do not have to pester your co-workers with your personal and emotional problems (Tindall, 2020). In addition to this, she recommends seeking out other possibilities in one’s filed and to also have a plan and a back-up plan; in case things do not work out. Lastly, she recommends seeing out a mentor; to look up to and follow (Tindall, 2020).
In conclusion, a guidance counselor has an enormous workload to handle and they are responsible for not only their students but also the futures of their students. A guidance counselor serves as a therapist, an academic counselor and sometimes even a friend to their students. They offer them emotional, academic and professional advice on all matters. They provide them with a large number of resources so that every student can be successful and can achieve their dreams and goals. The background of a guidance counselor does matter because it shapes how they can counsel their students and provide them with the best resources to be able to become successful and thrive in their lives. The ratio of one guidance counselor to students is extremely vital and essential, for the reason that it increases the performance of the guidance counselor as well as that of their students. If the ratio is appropriate; then a guidance counselor and students can allocate their time and energy in attaining and reaching their goals and pursue higher education. Students can then become more prepared to handle various situations in life and become more prosperous adults.
