Too often we celebrate an incredible high school teacher or school counselor when what we really need to do is take a broader approach to helping students apply and go to college, especially during a pandemic.
As my school’s sole school counselor for nearly 600 students, I realize there’s never going to be enough time for me to reach each student. In fact, the American School Counselor Association recommends a ratio of one counselor for every 250 students, a ratio the country isn’t meeting right now.
That’s why our whole team approach focuses on setting expectations and communicating with students. Every conversation with a student begins or ends with a discussion about their grades and/or ACT score.
Our faculty is motivated because they can see themselves in their students’ shoes. Most of the staff are the first in their family to go to college, so we have a good sense of the questions and challenges they face.
Our college-going culture starts when students enter ninth grade and faculty members talk to them about their plans four years in the future. When senior year rolls around, the students know there’s an expectation that they’ll apply to college.
We also try to keep in mind that we’re in a pandemic and the anxiety is weighing on everyone. We talk to students about the health crisis, what’s going on in their lives and how this pandemic has affected them; we let them know we’re in this with them.
During the application season most of our students returned to school in alternating groups of small classes. This year, all seniors took a college and career readiness course, a new state requirement. It’s designed to assist students with the college application process and to help them become ready for their eventual careers.
