Provide information about how counselor positions are budgeted and allocated to schools.
BUDGET PAGE REFERENCE: Chapter 1-3 through 1-26
School counselors address how student concerns and needs impact a student's ability to access education and to succeed in the learning environment. They work in partnership with school staff to teach skills that are necessary for academic success and to promote positive academic, personal, interpersonal, health, and career development for all students.
Elementary counselors are allocated 1.0 per school except in smaller schools that are allocated a .5 and in the three largest schools that are currently allocated 1.5 FTE or an additional .5 position. There are four teacher-level positions in each school: counselor, staff development teacher, reading specialist, and media specialist. Smaller schools have a total of 3.0 or 3.5 FTE positions allocated, and the school determines which of the four positions will be full-time and which will be part-time depending on the school and student needs. In FY 2015, a total increase of 8.0 FTE positions is recommended to increase the 3.0 or 3.5 positions to 4.0 positions in smaller schools. In addition, 5.5 positions, specifically for counseling, have been added to the elementary budget to support our largest and most highly impacted schools.
Secondary school counselors are responsible for student scheduling. Also, high school counselors are responsible for working with students on the college application process. This includes everything from college preparation to writing recommendations for each student. As a result, secondary counselors are allocated based on a guideline of 250 students to 1 counselor.