School Counseling Role Paper

A mental health counselor often helps their clients make positive choices and changes due to the decisions and insights they help facilitate. Many counselors work in hospitals with psychiatric patients or with mentally ill adults in continued day treatment programs. Some choose private practice or practice in counseling centers, government agencies, and corporations and youth homes. They usually work in pleasant and comfortable surroundings, working a standard workweek. Some counselors are available weekends or evenings for the convenience and needs of their clients. Mental health counselors are an extremely valuable part of the healthcare system.

The role of a school counselor is an intriguing one because they do not work with a specific type of client. While they will always be working with young children or teenagers, the problems their clients come to them with can be so different from client to client. One session might be dealing with questions about career choices. Another might be about dealing with bullying. Some days a school counselor may even have to be there for a child who was a victim of sexual or physical abuse. It is because of this wide range of demands that a school counselor should be well-versed in many types of counseling theories.

It is my belief, a school counselor must have the personality characteristics of an effective counselor and have a personal approach to treatment. Personal characteristics of an effective counselor are as follows: making life oriented choices, being authentic, sincere, and honest with students at all times. Other characteristics consist of appreciating the influence of different cultures and being passionate with students as they are counseled. Having the respect for others, regardless of culture, race, and ethnicity are also characteristics of being a great counselor. Being authentic, honest, and sincere helps build a great rapport with students, parents, and co-workers. Students need someone to be passionate and show genuine concern when helping them through their educational journey. Each child is a unique individual who needs a secure, caring, and stimulating atmosphere in which to grow and mature emotionally, intellectually, physically, and socially. It should be a counselor’s desire along with teaching staff to help students meet their needs to their fullest potential in these areas by providing an environment that is safe, supports risk-taking, and invites shared ideas.

Just like many helping professions, the counseling field can be very demanding and draining. Due to the wide range of incidents and situations that can occur in the school counseling field, it is important that school counselors understand some challenges they can face and how to effectively deal with them. Although, school counselors have the responsibility to care for children, it is also important that counselors are aware of how vulnerable they are and protect themselves. To ensure counselors are protecting themselves it is essential to be aware of certain dilemmas and understand how to effectively handle certain challenges and remain competent within their profession. Those school counselors who act unethically, incompetent, and irresponsible

School counselors have a key role in advocating for academic success for each student in the school. The advocacy makes the counselors have a leadership role in encouraging and promoting school reforms. The advocacy efforts of school counselors aim to eliminate obstacles preventing the development of students and to create chances for all students to learn. It also aims to ensure students have access to the school curriculum that fits their needs. School counselors collaborate with other people within and outside the school to assist students meet their learning needs. In addition, advocacy promotes positive and systematic change in schools (Trusty & Brown, 2005).

This comprehensive school counseling plan is designed for High Tech High School which is located in North Bergen, New Jersey. High Tech High School was built in 1991 and is one of the several schools in the Hudson County Schools of Technology school district. This school services students that live in Hudson County and are in grades 9-12. Hudson County is a very diverse county with the majority of the population being Hispanic or Latino and with a median household income of $47,377 a year as of 2013 (County Community Fact Book, 2013). High Tech is a very culturally and ethnically diverse school with a student population of about 620 students. The school culture is made up of about 36% Hispanic, 36% White/Caucasian, 19%

A mental health counselor’s role is unlike other roles in other counseling specializations. A mental health counselor will include a broader approach, than other counseling specializations, when treating clients (Smith & Robinson, 1995). Mental health counseling can occur in various settings, which include community centers and agencies, hospitals, and in private practices (Erford, 2014). Mental health counselors also focus on developmental, preventive, educational, as well as the traditional aspects of care for clients. Essentially, their role and function will be to assist the client with restoring their wellness and balance. The processes and approaches are holistic, interdisciplinary and multifaceted in nature. The client is viewed as a person who exists within familial, societal, and cultural contexts while also being an “emotional, physical, social, vocational, and spiritual being” (Pistole & Roberts, 2002, p.10).

Codrut, it was very thought-provoking to read your post and realize that there are other campuses similar to the one where I work. It is a reality that students all across the nation are in desperate need of interventions. Correspondingly, due to behaviors such as the ones you describe it is imperative to be proactive in assisting students and helping them understand that regardless of the situations they might be facing there is hope for them by counseling them and assisting them in creating short and long term goals. “With the increased prevalence of mental health and emotional issues in children and adolescents, professional school counselors need to take an increasingly active role in understanding these disorder and facilitating services

Also, the counselor could have students that are dealing with this issue join a counseling group with other students in similar situations so that they are able to express their feelings in a safe environment, learn problem solving skills, and identify strengths to build on in order to cope with the situation (Lambie & Sias, 2005). In addition, the school counselor would also provide referrals, if necessary, to mental health facilities or substance abuse treatment centers (Lambie & Sias, 2005). These types of strategies would help the student to understand that they are not alone and identify coping strategies that work for

School counselors are concerned with providing a comprehensive school counseling program that addresses what students know in regards to academic, career and social/personal development. They aim at providing supportive services that address individuals and group needs, issues and concerns that prevent students from reaching academic success. Professional school concerns are not only concerned with students who are motivated to learn, they also aim at encouraging students who at risk of failing or dropping out to continue striving for success and setting goals that encourage productive citizens in their community. In order to attain a comprehensive school counseling program, one must first recognize their own assumptions, perceptions and

For future use I think it is important to include and not only the roles and responsibilities of a professional school counselor but to include additional information such as interesting topics that coincide with roles and responsibilities. For example it would have been interesting to include a video clip on bullying and therefore discuss the different ways counselors will or have dealt with these issues in the past. Also, as for interactions it would be useful in the future to use video clips to interact with the audience members. For example, by using a video clip on bullying and presentation may also ask the audience members to get involved and make suggestions as well as listen to the feedback presented by the counselor. In addition,

National trends and demographics have changed the role of the professional school counselor in various ways over the years. Today’s school counselor roles differ from that of yesteryears. Change has taken form to reflect society’s economy, demographics, and overall trends relevant to that time period. Looking back to the inception of this career at the turn of the 20th century, the main roles reflected a nation with an influx of European immigrants that lacked the tools and resources needed for gainful employment during a time of the Industrial Revolution and urbanization. To better meet the needs during this time period focus was mainly on vocational guidance and counseling. Attention to individualized education led to

1. I want to be a school counselor because it seems like fun. As a school counselor you have many responsibilities but they mainly involve children and although I don’t personally like children they do seem to like me for some unknown reason making it easy for me to deal with them, and I like doing easy work. Counseling doesn’t really get paid to well but you can get summers off if you're good at negotiating though you don’t work you don’t get paid so you would have to find another job to keep you in your house over the summers. Counseling is not something that the faint of heart should get into because it is very possible that you could hear or see things that would

In 1993 administrators perceived school counselor roles as school leader, case consultant, clerical direct service provider, administrative team player, and substitute teacher. In contrast today principals do not place as much emphasis on disciplinary administrative actions and scheduling, but incorrectly continue to consider substitute teacher duties, clerical responsibilities, and test coordination as primary functions of a school counselor. Because of this discrepancy, counselors report it is difficult to fulfill what they perceive as their primary role — facilitators of the academic, social, and personal development of students.

Mental health counselors work with individuals, families, and groups to address and treat mental and emotional disorders and to promote mental health. They are trained to address a wide range of issues, including depression, addiction and substance abuse, suicidal impulses, stress management, problems with self-esteem, issues associated with aging, job and career concerns, educational decisions, issues related to mental and emotional health, and family, parenting, and marital or other relationship problems. Mental health counselors often work closely with other mental health specialists, such as psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses, and school counselors. (US Department of Labor)