Over the past two decades, research on urban schools has focused predominantly on achievement gaps. However, achievement gaps exist because of gaps in opportunities for urban, low-income, and racially/ethnically diverse students. Partnerships among schools, families, and communities can provide the enrichment opportunities, support, resources, and…

In this article, the value of integrating family systems theory into a school counseling curriculum is explored. Some programs have historically placed school counselors in a difficult position by not adequately preparing them for the demands of incorporating family systems and community collaboration into clinical practice. The rationale for…

School counseling interns are on the boundary of communities of practice. This study explored how school counselors develop competence during internship experiences by analyzing an online dialogue taking place among a small group of interns. Feelings of being on the boundary intensified with unsatisfactory supervisor-intern relationships (lack of…

In 2011, the National Office for School Counselor Advocacy launched a journal series to support and build awareness of the issues and challenges raised by the College Board Advocacy & Policy Center's research report, "The Educational Experience of Young Men of Color" (youngmenofcolor.collegeboard.org.) The intent of the series is to…

Serious social and economic consequences affect the local and national levels when students drop out of school. Research has shown that collaboration among schools, families, and communities in the academic progression of students can decrease their drop out probability. The author presents findings related to a qualitative study conducted in…

While admission to a community college is simple--"apply and you're in!"--the institution itself is quite complex. Community colleges serve several purposes: transfer, vocational, recreational, and remedial. Community colleges see students through many lenses. Can we bring clarity and focus to the picture of the community college student? What…

This article considers some of the key processes and methods needed to reenvision and transform comprehensive school counseling programs (CSCPs) as strengths-based, prevention-focused learning communities. Specifically, following a discussion of evidence-based "school as community" models found in the literature and how they relate, in part, to…

Developing an active, collaborative relationship between schools and parents, with a goal of enhancing the career equity guidance of young adolescents, is a difficult task. The school counselor, by training and school position, is often the individual change agent who spearheads the development of innovative programs designed to involve and…

Over the last quarter of the 20th century, the counselor role moved substantially from one that focused primarily on remediation to one that focused on prevention. This chapter discusses the possible move toward a third role shift focusing on a developmental framework. The shift to this developmental focus rests on the premise that counselors need…

School counselors can play a powerful role in closing the achievement gap when they incorporate the principles of social justice into their practice. In this much-needed resource for preservice and inservice counselors, the author addresses factors (such as racism, sexism, heterosexism, and classism) that can contribute to academic failure, and…

This guide is designed for therapists who are looking for faster, more reliable ways of preventing and solving child problems. It focuses on the variety of family-school collaboration that is school-based and involves interaction between families, school, and community agencies. Chapter 1 presents a collaborative model called FACETS (Families and…

A plan to update a county school system's school guidance professional development program is described. The "Counselors of Tomorrow" model served as the impetus for this plan. The process in which the school counselors participated is described and includes these steps: (1) counselors participated in a conference which culminated in the…

This document, which presents a model for sex affirmative guidance and counseling programs in secondary schools, is the result of the collaborative efforts of 23 Michigan secondary school counselors who attended a seminar on "Building the Model Program: Achieving Sex Equity in Counseling and Guidance Programs." Four program audiences are…

Youth today face many health, educational, and social challenges not experienced at such epidemic levels by previous generations of young people. By providing collaborative, comprehensive services that address student needs and promote learning and healthy development, a coordinated school health team can help students succeed in school, as well…

Designed to help school counselors facilitate the transition from high school to postsecondary education, this annually updated handbook provides information about the various kinds of postsecondary educational opportunities available in Florida. Procedural and financial information, important to those students who will be seeking additional…