Blog

When you think of school counselors, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? If you’re anything like me, what comes to mind is getting your classes scheduled and receiving pamphlets about countless colleges and universities. The outdated term “guidance counselor” might even spring to mind. Those days are long gone. Who are today’s school counselors? Today’s school counselors are masters-level professionals who have been extensively trained to provide a variety of services within …

“Hurt people hurt people” is an adage that you’ve likely heard before. The notion behind this statement is something along the lines of, “Those who have experienced emotional pain and suffering may lash out and inflict emotional pain on others.” I’m not here to argue the veracity of this oft-quoted saying. Instead, my hope is to see it one day replaced by an altogether different assertion: helped people help people. Every February, we celebrate National School Counseling Week, a …

Back to school.Sometimes it’s a time of hope and excitement. Sometimes, it’s a time of anxiety and dread.“Will they like me?”“What if the work is too much?” “What if I can’t handle it all this time?”No, I’m not talking about students – though they are likely experiencing similar emotions. I’m talking to school counselors.As counselors, we’re not immune to that weird conglomeration of emotions that accompany the back-to-school season. It starts in June when the school supply section goes up i …

“I’m bad.”We’ve all heard it. A child has been told they’re “bad” to the point that they’ve integrated it into their sense of identity. “Bad” goes from being something a child does to who they think they are. Though adults may think this type of language can curb problematic behavior, it actually stands to produce the opposite effect. If a child is bad as a person, why should they try to change their behavior at all? If they are inherently “bad,” it’s not worth the effort. It creates a se …

"It’s not fair!” If you work with children, you probably hear this statement on a daily basis. Young people seem to have an innate sense of what constitutes fairness and can react strongly when they feel this has been violated (and adults are definitely not immune!). In the world of schools, 504 plans and individualized education programs (IEPs) often provide students with accommodations to facilitate their learning. Unfortunately, this leads some students who don’t receive accomm …

Though the world of education always remains vigilant to the negative effects of bullying on our students, the month of October brings with it a renewed focus on awareness, action, and advocacy. October is National Bullying Prevention Month, a month devoted to prevention, intervention, and spreading awareness. Great strides have been made in our crusade against bullying in schools in recent years, but we still have progress to make. The National Center for Educational Statistics reported i …

As we enter into the 2020-2021 school year, a sense of unease, of uncertainty, hangs above students, parents, and educators alike. For most educators and support staff, it is like their first year all over again. There are new rules, new procedures, and new methods of delivery. It is an altogether new normal, if it can be called that at all. With all of these changes comes anxiety, not only from the rapid acquisition of new methods of instruction, but from the floating fear of the unkno …

Working in the school system, I often hear children being asked, “Don’t you know any better?” or “Why didn’t you make a better choice?” These questions are usually met with a confused expression. Then these children look at the ceiling or the floor, searching for a response that won’t get them deeper into trouble. The truth is that there are a lot of children who don’t know better. They have often made the best choice they could, given the information, skills, and resources the …