Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/358877
P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y S C O T T B U S C H M A N "Ms. MacInnis has been really helpful to me," says Jana Bonner, a senior who needs help with the CSU applica- tion process. "When I transferred here my junior year, I needed to make up some classes. She talked to my teach- ers. She helped me adjust to a bigger school. She told me that I came here to learn and that making friends would eventually happen. And it has." Seeing students like Bonner thrive makes the job worthwhile to MacInnis, a counselor for 17 years. But it's been challenging and at times overwhelming to meet the needs of so many students, says the Torrance Teachers Association member. "We experienced layoffs and were cut down to three counselors in a school averaging 2,200 students. We're coping, but sometimes we're drowning." The waters may be receding, however. Thanks to Prop. 30 funds, the district recently agreed to hire an additional school counselor. MacInnis thinks the counselor shortage has renewed appreciation for the job. "People sometimes don't know what we do. They think we just sit behind a desk, but we are a really important piece of the educational pie. Because of the confidential nature of our job we aren't braggers, so we don't say, 'I saved a student from jumping off a building today.' But sometimes we do." The important role of counselors David Drotts once made a list of all the things he did in a single day. It went on for several pages and included helping students with scholarships, calling parents whose children were failing classes, meeting with students having trouble in math, helping students plan for future success, and explaining how college testing works. At 9:17 on that particular day at Kennedy High School in Sacramento he noted, "Bathroom/discussion about Marching Band meeting future PE requirements (with band teacher)… Business even happens in the bathroom." Counselors are extremely busy these days, says Felipa Tello, a counselor at Del Vallejo Middle School in San Bernardino. "We are student advocates. We collaborate with teachers who don't have time to catch students falling through the cracks. We are the glue between students, staff and administration." Counselors help in ways that teachers don't have time for, says Douglas Shamburger, elementary school counselor in San Diego. "Counselors run anti-bullying programs. We run grief groups. We help provide resources for students who lack shelter and clothing. If a student is traumatized by domestic violence or neighborhood violence, we talk to them. If a student is having a meltdown, we step in." According to the California Department of Education (CDE), "Effective counseling programs are important to the school climate and a crucial ele- ment in improving student achievement." So many students, so little time Despite their importance, counselors have often been among the first to be pink-slipped. Many were laid off when counseling went into Tier III in 2009, allowing dis- tricts to spend money on other things. Counselors who kept their jobs are feeling the squeeze. The number of seniors in the state's public high schools climbed 26 percent from 2002 to 2012, while counseling positions rose only 8 percent during that time. Many counselors say there's little time for actual coun- seling. A study by the College Board Advocacy and Policy Center reports counselors spend much of their time as clerical workers and schedulers instead of preparing stu- dents for college and the workplace. T h i s s h i f t h a s c o i n c i d e d w i t h s t u d e n t s b e i n g Top:"She helped me adjust to a bigger school," says Jana Bonner of school counselor Christine MacInnis. Above: School counselors like Patty Taylor and Felipa Tello are student advocates, sometimes becoming the "glue between students, staff and administration." Feature 10 www.cta.org