2025-2026 Program and Budget Handbook

K-12 School Counseling Services

The primary role of an Elementary or Secondary School Counselor is to eliminate barriers to academic success by providing comprehensive support in academic achievement, college and career readiness, and social-emotional development. School counselors play serve a critical role in helping students reach their full potential and achieve successful outcomes, ensuring they graduate prepared for post-secondary opportunities. They work with students to develop individualized graduation plans that incorporate strategies for prevention, interventions, and enrichment. As student advocates, school counselors promote equity and access for all students. For Secondary Schools, this position may be funded to reduce the student-to counselor ratio once the base program has been met.

• Monitors student progress by creating, facilitating, and maintaining Individual Graduation Plan (IGP) to monitor student progress and increase student achievement (secondary schools); • Supports students with dual enrollment; • Participates in various multidisciplinary teams, such as the Student Support and Progress Team (SSPT) to identify necessary support services, e.g., referrals within and outside of the school community, student assessments, interventions and layered continuum of supports; • Collaborates with school administration and staff in developing student knowledge, skills and attitudes that promote personal, social/emotional and academic growth; • Provides individual and group counseling to students in the academic, personal/ social, and career domains; connects students with appropriate resources; • Assists in the collection and analysis of data relative to attendance, behavior and achievement and communicates/ interprets the data to students, parents and teachers; • Consults and collaborates with the administrative and school support staff on

student referrals for supplementary counseling, psychological evaluation, and case conferences, including crisis intervention; • Participates in the development of the total educational plan of the school to improve school-wide outcomes; • Assists in the preparation of information for entry on student cumulative records; • Analyzes data relevant to student needs; • Assists with the development of transition programs to support successful student articulation and matriculation between grades and school levels; • Provides professional development and parent education workshops; • Develops programs to address student attitudes, understanding of self and others, peer relationships, goal-setting, conflict resolution, career awareness, college preparation and post-secondary planning; • Consults with parents, school personnel and community agencies as a means of helping students with educational and personal issues/concerns that may interfere with their learning and success in school.

Only a Title I Schoolwide Program (SWP) school can purchase this position. For additional information, please call (213) 241-7510.

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