Today is the first day of National School Counseling Week - a week that celebrates the important role of school counselors. ICAN works in partnership with the school counselors of Iowa to promote career and college readiness, and we are proud to partner with the Iowa School Counselor Association (ISCA) to bring more resources and training to school counselors to help in this mission. To help kick off National School Counseling Week, today's blog comes from Iowa School Counselor Association President Aimee Hospodarsky.
It's National School Counseling Week! This is one week
in the year when we get to celebrate the unique contributions that school
counselors make in the lives of students. Historically speaking, school
counselors have suffered from a lack of role definition. There are a
number of stereotypes, few positive. So, just what is it that school
counselors do, anyway? If you were to try to sum it up, you could
say that school counselors help students to be college and career ready.
They accomplish this in a number of ways.
One way is by addressing academics. They assist with
academic support for students. They collaborate with other school staff
to make sure that students are getting needed supports. They meet with
students to make sure they are on track for their postsecondary pursuits.
They can help students to set academic goals and make plans to achieve
them.
Another way that school counselors prepare students for
college and career readiness is through social emotional learning and
support. Perhaps there are barriers to a student's learning that need to
be addressed. There are also a number of non-cognitive skills, including
employability skills, that fit into this category. School counselors
assist in ensuring that students are getting those much-needed skills so that
they are prepared for life after high school.
Lastly, school counselors focus on career education.
This could include everything from exposing students to careers they aren't
aware of, to examining personal skills and interests and careers that fit them,
to helping to arrange job shadows or fill out the FAFSA.
School counselors want to help students succeed, and are
advocates for all students. Of course, I may be a little biased, but they
are generally some of the most approachable, friendly people around. If
you haven't taken advantage of the services your school counselor provides,
make an appointment to meet with him/her soon. And while you are at it,
wish him/her a Happy School Counseling Week!
Aimee Hospodarsky
President
Iowa School Counselor Association (ISCA)
