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student’s academic, personal, and (American School Counseling As- schools there provided students both
social needs (American School sociation, 2013b). These expertise prevention and intervention services.
Counseling Association [ASCA], areas are developed through a school Students were taking advantage of
2013a). Understanding these massive counseling master’s degree, practi- both individual and group school based
changes in roles, it is not unlikely that cum, and internship supervision and counseling services. Further, Hill et al.
those in the education field could experience (American School Coun- (2012) found that school counselors
benefit from a better understanding seling Association, 2015). were identified as the key provider of
of what school counseling is. In addition to competency areas, the mental health services to students;
The Role of a School Counselor school counselor is expected to have however, it was also noted that there
was not a broad mental health range
a comprehensive understanding of
The major roles of the contemporary multicultural counseling (American of services in schools and that school
school counselor are regarded as School Counselor Association, 2016). counselors had to work within the
the 3 Cs Plus (Bain, 2012; Sink, The American School Counselor As- boundaries of their licensure.
2005). American School Counseling sociation (2016) suggests that coun- In some schools, school counseling
Association (2013b) explained that selors have a caseload of students is not a part of the overall curriculum
the 3 Cs Plus include the role of around two hundred and fifty. Within but rather a side office that may not
counseling, consultation, coordination, this student caseload it is not unlikely always be understood (Cooper, Hough,
and plus (plus typically being large or that students may be diverse. It is & Loynd, 2005). It is important that
classroom social emotional lessons integral to the success of a school- teachers are educated about the role of
and presentations). Similar to mental based counseling department to the school counselor and how to make
health counseling, school counselors provide continual education to sup- a referral for social emotional concerns.
provide counseling confidentially port multicultural awareness, under- Researchers have found that teachers
with students individually, helping to standing, and successful counseling have a tremendous impact on students
support students who have a variety practices (American School Counsel- use of school counseling services (Joy,
of presenting concerns in school or Association, 2016). School coun- Hesson, & Herron, 2011). Clark and
or the home (Bain, 2012). School selors are also expected to adhere Amatea (2004) found that teachers’
counselors often meet with students to the American School Counselor knowledge and experience with school
during school periods, and school Association’s (2016) Code of Ethics counseling was influential in the use
counselors will often work using more and standards of practice. Much like and perception of these services by
directive counseling techniques with mental health professionals, contem- other teachers, administrators, parents,
a solution focused approach due porary school counselors are licensed and students.
to the time constraints of a school school counselors.
day. A school counselor is trained in Conclusion
traditional counseling theory, and will School Based Mental Health All evidence suggests that early
employ evidence-based counseling Services intervention with mental health is
techniques; however, these techniques in the best interest of the child, and
are often adapted to have a school Students in New Jersey who are at- that the use of school based mental
appropriate lens (American School tending public school spend between health services is a way to address
Counseling Association, 2013b). 5 hours and 9.5 hours per day attend- this (Alicea, Pardo, Conover, Gopalan,
ing classes (The New Jersey Depart-
School counselors are assessed by ment of Education, 2014). The 5 - 9.5 & McKay, 2012). Unfortunately, due
core competencies by the Ameri- hours per day does not even factor in to the massive change in the role
can School Counseling Association time for club, activity, or sports partici- and training of a school counselor,
(2013b). The core competency areas pation before or after school. It is not there exists a gap in many educator’s
within the contemporary school unusual for students to spend an ad- understanding of the role, and the
counselor capabilities include advo- ditional 5 to 20 hours a week in sports, availability and accessibility of these
cacy and leadership, assessment and activities, competitions, or tutoring services at their schools (Alicea et
program evaluation, research skills, (Mahoney, Harris, and Eccles, 2006). al., 2012). As administrators, there
consultation, coordination, counsel- These hours combined indicate that lies a unique opportunity to educate
ing, developmental theory and prac- many of our youth are spending more teaching and support professionals
tice, educational theory and practice awake time in school than at home. on the role of the school counselor,
including curriculum development, and to ultimately serve this student
teaching and classroom management With this said, students would benefit population. We are a vital component
skills, interpersonal communication, from having mental health services in providing services to students in
multicultural and diversity training, provided for them at school. Hill, need, and we already have a resource
professionalism, understanding of Ohmstede, and Mims (2012) conducted at our fingertips that we can use.
systems theory and practice, and a study in Nebraska and discovered
finally, knowledge of technology that mental health services in the

Educational Viewpoints -95- Spring 2018