The present work describes the development of a new measure of school counselors’ perceived self-efficacy regarding their knowledge of information and processes necessary to effectively guide their ...students through the college transition process. Researchers developed the School Counselor Efficacy for College Knowledge Questionnaire and examined data from a national sample of 600 school counselors to determine its psychometric properties and factor structure. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported use of a modified five-factor model. Results showed strong internal consistency and preliminary evidence for convergent and divergent validity of the resultant scales.
Following a population‐based randomized design, we investigated changes of school counselors’ psychological empowerment, multicultural competence, and leadership practice, as well as their perception ...of school climate from before to during COVID‐19. Specifically, school counselors were randomized into two conditions: (a) the pre‐COVID‐19 condition (n = 506) and (b) the current‐COVID‐19 condition (n = 542). Participants in the pre‐COVID condition responded to survey items following a retrospective manner based on their experiences between September 2019 and March 2020. We found that participants in the current COVID‐19 condition scored significantly higher in psychological empowerment and perceived school climate and lower in multicultural competence and leadership practices compared to the participants in the pre‐COVID‐19 condition. Regardless of directionality of changes, results supported the significant impacts that the pandemic had on school counselors’ roles related to addressing systemic issues. We discussed implications of the results to school counseling practice and school counselor training.
Since 1965, the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) has recommended a student-to-school-counselor ratio of 250:1; however, a large disparity exists in school counselor caseloads across the ...United States. To date, most of the literature highlights the positive impact that lower ratios have on student outcomes, yet literature exploring the potential relationships between school counselor caseload and ecological contextual factors is scant. This study examined the association between student-to-school-counselor ratios and school-level variables, school counselor demographics, perceived school climate, and leadership practices. The results, based on a national sample, revealed that school counselors’ racial identity (i.e., identifying as White), school-level variables (i.e., percentages of students with disabilities, students who are bi/multilingual, White students, and White faculty members) were significantly associated with school counselors’ odds of meeting a 250:1 student-to-school-counselor ratio. School counselors with a ratio of 250:1 or lower scored slightly lower in leadership practices. This article discusses implications for practice, policy, and future research.
The authors examined whether school counselors’ emotional intelligence predicted their comprehensive school counseling program (CSCP) implementation and whether engagement in transformational ...leadership practices mediated the relationship between emotional intelligence and CSCP implementation. The sample for the study consisted of 792 school counselors nationwide. The findings demonstrated the significant mediating role of transformational leadership on the relationship between emotional intelligence and CSCP implementation. Implications for the counseling profession are discussed.
Leadership as part of school counselor competence remains under-addressed in supervision. Grounded in prior research models, we introduce the Model for Supervision of School Counseling Leadership ...(MSSCL) which is a 10 x three x three framework. We provide examples for each of the 90 different leadership x Focus x Role combinations through an appendix that can be used in supervision, discuss the use of the MSSCL, and identify implications for practice, training, and future research.
There is a dearth of literature that has empirically examined ecological factors that influence school counselors’ engagement in leadership. Thus, using hierarchical regression analysis, we examined ...whether sociocultural factors (i.e., race/ethnicity, childhood socioeconomic status, current socioeconomic status, age, gender), professional developmental experiences (i.e., leadership experience, supervision, mentorship, leadership training), intra- and interpersonal factors (i.e., multicultural competence, leadership self-efficacy, psychological empowerment), and school climate significantly and uniquely predicted school counselors’ leadership practices. The final hierarchical regression model, using 647 school counselors nationwide, accounted for 57% variance in these practices. Sociocultural factors, professional developmental experiences, and intra- and interpersonal factors significantly and uniquely contributed to the school counselors’ leadership practices. We discuss implications for the profession.
School counseling leadership is essential in addressing systemic inequities and barriers that negatively impact students’ personal/social, academic, and college and career development. The American ...School Counseling Association has long-identified school counseling leadership as a cornerstone and has primarily operationalized this construct through program implementation. As such, the profession’s empirical understanding of school counseling leadership is still in its infancy. Specifically, there is a dearth of literature that has conceptually or empirically identified or examined the individual and systemic factors, specifically through an ecological lens, that influence school counselors’ leadership. Thus, using hierarchical regression analysis, this study examined the relationship between sociocultural factors (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity, childhood socioeconomic status, current socioeconomic status, and age), interactions between sociocultural factors, professional developmental experiences (i.e., leadership experience, leadership training received, supervision received, mentorship received), intra- and interpersonal factors (i.e., leadership self-efficacy, multicultural competence, psychological empowerment), and school climate as a systemic factor and the leadership practices of school counselors. Results from the analyses of 647 school counselors revealed that sociocultural factors, interactions between sociocultural factors, professional developmental experiences, and intra- and interpersonal factors significantly predicted the leadership practices of school counselors. Conversely, school climate was not found to be significantly influential on school counselors’ leadership practices. Implications for counselor education, school counselors, and future research are discussed.
In this paper, we describe how school counselors can use Marcia's theory of psychosocial identity development to provide differentiated career advisement for adolescent students. Furthermore, we ...identify how school counselors can use Marcia's theory of psychosocial identity development when collaborating and consulting with teachers and parents to assist them in supporting the career development of students. We explain how school counselors can determine a student's identity status, and we provide highly specific strategies for career advisement for adolescent students in accordance with each of Marcia's identity statuses.
This study examined what school counselors perceive to be consistent barriers to implementing a program that adheres to the ASCA National Model. The Recognized ASCA Model Program (RAMP) designates ...such implementation. Principal component analysis revealed six common barriers: lack of confidence, lack of administrative support, time spent on clerical and office work, lack of teacher and parent support to implement aspects of the ASCA National Model, time spent on testing and monitoring, and time constraints. Logistic regression indicated three of the six barriers were significant predictors of RAMP status. We discuss implications for the school counseling profession.
This study examined the self-efficacy of school counselors’ college knowledge in the college process. Exploratory factor analysis revealed five characteristic factors: school counselors’ knowledge ...related to the college application process, systems advocacy, direct services with disadvantaged populations, direct service with special populations, and coordination of college access events. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that both school counselors’ individual characteristics (e.g., years of experience, race/ethnicity, time engaged in advising, conducting lessons, and using technology and data) and ecological factors (e.g., school level, rate of college-going culture) were significant predictors of school counselors’ self-efficacy for promoting college knowledge. We discuss implications for equity and school counselors’ training.
