School Counselors

Being a school counselor I have an advantage as I enter into the world of school administration when it comes to know what to expect of school counselors. I feel that guidance and special education are two areas that administrators are often fearful of if they don't have any background in either of these areas. In my opinion, school administrators are fearful of these two departments because they are not knowledgable of the content or the rules. Therefore, instead of challenging those in these departments they shy away from them. I feel each individual is an expert in their own content area, but in the areas of guidance and special education especially, people can "hide" for years and not accomplish much of anything. It's very important for administrators to be actively involved in both of these departments to ensure that the individuals in these departments are working to the best of their abilities and simply not "putting their time in" to collect a paycheck. Counselors and special education staff can be huge assets to a district, but only if they are being held accountable in improving student acheivement.