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Advocacy Platform 2013-2014

Our goal: address the needs of all students, promote school counselor professional excellence, and

advocate for closing the achievement gap between groups of students.

FOR ALL STUDENTS

TOPIC: PROVIDE SUFFICIENT PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELORS FOR EVERY FLORIDA

STUDENT, SCHOOL AND DISTRICT

ISSUE: Many Florida schools do not have a certified counselor or have an insufficient number ofcounselors to provide access to a quality school counseling program. Additionally, counselors are

assigned to non-school counseling related tasks which prevent them from fully implementing their

programs in compliance with the Floridas School Counseling and Guidance Framework and

national standards. Such programs include activities implemented and/or monitored by counselors

to promote best practices in academic development (readiness to learn, classroom and learning

skills, and achievement strategies); career development and planning (academic advising, school to

post-secondary or career transitions, and workforce effectiveness); Personal and Social

Development (ensuring appropriate social skills and self-management to perform adequately in the

classroom and school, as well as, facing challenges to school success including bullying, suicide,

addictions, and abuse); and, Community Involvement (providing service and connectedness toones class, school, community, state and nation).

POSITION: Florida must mandate, monitor, and fund sufficient certified professional schoolcounselors at a ratio of 1:250 per school (as recommended by the American School Counselor

Association, the American Counseling Association, the American Psychological Association, the

American Medical Association and other organizations). Research shows that schools with

sufficient counselors implementing comprehensive and appropriate student development

programs have improved student and school performance. This is especially true of low performing

and high drop-out rate schools. Floridas overall ratio has grown from 1:450 to 1:491 over the last

five years. Florida must also ensure that school counselor job descriptions and assignments are

consistent with their training/expertise.

PROGRESS

Through its legislative champions, FSCA has sponsored the Student Failure

Prevention Actwhich would mandate an overall district ratio of 1:350 and provide

boundaries for school counselor assignments to make the most effective use of

their highly specialized training and services. Companion legislation has been

filed in Floridas Senate and House in 2013 (SB 154 and HB 801).

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FOR PROFESSIONAL EXCELLENCE

TOPIC: PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELING EXCELLENCE (PREPARATION, TRAINING,

REWARDS, RECOGNITION)

ISSUE: School Counselors must have parity in incentives and support for teaching/professionalexcellence, professional development, rewards and recognitions with other instructional personnel.

POSITION: Ensure that the most prepared school counselors are recruited and retained inFloridas schools.

Develop consistent accountability measures for school counseling/student developmentprograms that follow mandates that each district/school implement an approved program.

Align with school counselings national model (ASCA) and modernize Floridas concept of schoolcounseling by replacing the currenttitle, guidance counselor with School Counselor.

Support school counseling professional development with state funding for counselor andprogram recognition. Also, provide certification support for expertise in addictions, abuse,

sexuality, parent involvement, and violence prevention.

Require districts to conform job descriptions, tasks, and evaluations to ASCA school counselorcompetencies and CACREP professional preparation and standards.

Reward school counseling preparation programs that have CACREP designation by accepting itin lieu of DOE standards (similar to NCATE) for School Counselor Certification.

Support incentive programs for all instructional personnel who achieve National Boardcertification through the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).

Require professionally trained/certified school counselors be staffed as career specialists, SAFEpositions, and other counseling-related positions to ensure highest quality services.

Recruit and retain the most qualified and experienced school counselors in Florida schools byensuring parity with other instructional personnel with salary increases, DROP, incentives, andappropriate merit pay.

PROGRESS

Working with its partners in ASCA, Floridas DOE, Floridas Legislature, CEES,

through the statewide FSCA annual recognition program and through its own

advocacy network, FSCA has engaged several of these issues in the Student Failure

Prevention Act, its annual convention, on-going professional development, and

targeted advocacy/legislative alerts, FSCA has kept counselors informed and lead

efforts to make sure that school counseling professionals have the support and

recognition that they earn every day with Floridas students.