Perceived Roles

When I was in High School, at the same school I now teach in, my perception of the guidance counselors was they helped you plan for your future after you graduated. When you walked into the guidance office you saw college posters and racks of recruitment material. The military recruiters would arrange meetings in the guidance office and speak to the staff about potential recruits. All of the pre-college tests were scheduled through the guidance office. You could obtain scholarship information and work with the guidance staff to insure you had the necessary courses for your post high school career or education. All course schedules were handled by the guidance office and the two guidance counselors.

My perception of the guidance office now is clouded by my high school days. I still expect them to do the same things but school and the students have changed. For a time we had guidance counselors that also served as behavior counselors too. Our counselors were over worked and had little time to be academic/ career counselors. In the past year that has changed and they are now back to providing educational guidance and becoming a liaison between the students,teachers,recruiters and the work force.