"Perceived Roles"

I actually have a mixed opinion on the role of counselors because the role of my counselor in high school is much different than the role of the counselor(s) at the school that I teach at currently.  I remember being able to walk into my counselors office and sit down and talk about anything. When I got ready to begin applying for colleges, I really had no idea what I was doing because no one in my family had gone to college prior to me.  She helped with all of the applications including the financial aid piece.  At my current school, we are now working on a third counselor within the last 3 years. Our last counselor was introduced to the students last week and right after telling them her name she announced that she did not want any of them coming to her office without a hall pass. As a matter of fact, she reiterated that point several times in her short introduction.  I got a chance to work with the last counselor regarding pathway completer's, and I sensed that she was so overwhelmed, many of my emails and requests went unnoticed for long periods of time.  However I saw a change in her behavior toward me as well as the response times to my emails when I walked up to her one day and said hi, and asked her to reach out to me if she needed anything. I realized that her role is certainly not one that I would ever want because it even though there is a job description in place, there are so many other hats that she had to wear and there is simply not enough time for one person to give 350 students who are at or below the poverty line what they need.