High School Counselor Week

Welcome to the Admissions ‘Luckocracy’
Inside Higher Ed – December 11, 2023
The degree to which the college admission process is a meritocracy may be in question—but it’s most certainly a luckocracy, Jim Jump writes.

Poll: Americans Have Lost Faith in University Leaders
U.S. News & World Report – December 12, 2023
Americans are experiencing a crisis of faith in college and university leaders amid a volatile moment for the higher education sector, with more than half not trusting them to do the right thing for students. Nearly 80% of Americans surveyed in a new U.S. News-Harris Poll survey say that higher education institutions are more worried about their endowment than creating leaders of tomorrow, and more than 60% believe they are prioritizing donors, press and other external factors over students. The biggest problem, nearly 80% of them say, is that if colleges and universities don’t become more accessible to all people and emphasize diversity, then the leaders of tomorrow will all be the same.

A Candid Message for HS Seniors
Post – December 13, 2023
College Advice & Timely Tips with Lee Bierer

‘My Empathy Felt Drained’: Educators Struggle With Compassion Fatigue
NEA Today – December 8, 2023
Melissa Manganaro knew ‘something was off’ by her sixth year as a school counselor. Manganaro loved her job, her students and her colleagues, but she was beginning to feel more anxious, tense, and fatigued. It wasn’t until she attended a session at a professional conference that her problem came more into focus. The session focused on compassion fatigue, the most widely used term to describe how educators internalize or absorb their students’ trauma to the point of emotional and even physical exhaustion. Even though school counselors are not trained to be mental health professionals, they are often expected to perform as one, particularly when districts look to cut social workers and psychologists. As caseloads rise, counselors often find themselves pushed to the brink. We need to train and prepare our educators to be trauma-informed, but we also have to look at workload, lack of planning time, and lack of respect. We need to look at all the root causes why our profession is asking educators to go beyond their limits.

Counselors, psychologists and school officials speak out against ‘parent’s bill of rights’
Ohio Capital Journal – December 13, 2023
Dozens, including school counselors and psychiatrists, testified Tuesday against a bill that would force schools to notify parents on ‘sexuality’ content, and possibly on a student’s sexuality, calling it ‘censorship’ and potentially risky for students. Ohio House Bill 8 seeks to put the control of education more into parent’s hands, by allowing them to opt out of certain curricula…school districts would also be ‘prohibited from keeping changes in the health of the student from their parent, and the school district is also prohibited from encouraging the student to hide these issues from their parents.’ The Ohio School Psychologists Association and the Ohio School Counselor Association both submitted in opposition to the bill, saying the bill is ‘not workable,’ and ignores parents as an already ‘key tenet’ in a student’s education. One counselor noted the bill crosses a boundary ‘to the point of creating unworkable requirements for school counselors that could be detrimental to students,’ adding that exceptions needed to be inserted into the bill for potential child abuse and neglect.

Should schools use AI to detect student suicide risks?
K-12 Dive – December 8, 2023
Schools are facing mounting pressure to address severe student mental health concerns, just as the AI surveillance technology used by companies like Gaggle, Securly and GoGuardian, continues to grow increasingly popular among districts. While the risk of student suicide is a real issue schools must grapple with, evidence is still sparse that AI surveillance tools are the best answer to address student safety threats to themselves and others. A recent report by the ACLU flagged that school surveillance technologies, including online monitoring tools, foster a false sense of security without much evidence to demonstrate they actually improve school safety. The latest RAND report echoes some of that skepticism. Yet researchers also said there are some benefits for AI-based surveillance tools, finding in interviews with school staff and health care providers that there have been actual instances of these tools successfully identifying a student at imminent risk for suicide who would not have been detected through other prevention or mental health programs at the school.

5 Parent Tips For When College Admission Decisions Land
Forbes – December 13, 2023
‘Tis the season. For decking the halls, lighting candles, and other holiday traditions, and also for a steady stream of early admission decisions. While for some, there might be cause for celebration, for others who applied early, the news might not be as joyful. Parents often struggle with how to best respond to the range of emotions that this time elicits for their college-bound children. Like most aspects of parenting, there is no one-size-fits-all approach, however, the following tips can help increase the likelihood of harmonious holidays.

A fiendish trio: Three ways well-meaning parents heap unhealthy pressure on their kids
Boston Globe – December 8, 2023
Young people feel pressure from sources other than the college admissions process, yet this season provides an opportune target for intervention. First, we must broaden our definition of success without lowering our standards. What students do during their college career matters far more than where they do it. Second, we must stop describing college admissions as an ultra-high-stakes endeavor. The more our kids believe this process has a do-or-die outcome, the bigger blow their performance and mental health will suffer. Suggesting to adolescents that a life of consequence and happiness is much likelier if they are admitted to one of the ‘right’ schools is irresponsible, because it’s not true. Third, we must prevent our vicarious enjoyment of young people’s achievements from becoming obsessive.

3 Reasons to Skip Applying to College Early
U.S. News & World Report – December 7, 2023
While college applicants may feel tempted to apply for a school via early decision and finish the application process sooner than later, it’s important to consider several factors before committing. Since early decision is a binding commitment to a school, it’s important to be certain that you want to attend that school if you get accepted. Here are three reasons experts say you might want to skip the early applications and wait for the regular deadline:

Writing a College Essay That Stands Out
EdSurge – December 8, 2023
As the college essay program manager for Write the World, a nonprofit writing organization for teens, I oversee a group of advisers who guide students through the essay writing process. I have seen firsthand the anxiety that students experience when it comes to writing their college essays. With heightened pressure around the college essay, students need more experience and confidence in narrative writing.

579 colleges consider legacy status, new Education Department data finds
Higher Ed Dive – December 12, 2023
For the 2022-23 academic year, the Education Department started asking about colleges’ use of legacy status for the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. IPEDS is a publicly available database that details information like colleges’ enrollment numbers and tuition costs. At least 579 federally funded colleges consider whether applicants are related to alumni in their admissions process, according to data released Tuesday.

New FAFSA may launch with outdated inflation figures. ‘Millions of students could receive less aid,’ expert says
CNBC – December 6, 2023
As it stands, the new FAFSA is set to launch with outdated consumer price index figures from 2020, which don’t account for the recent runup in inflation. Because of this oversight, experts say, millions of students could get less financial aid than they deserve. This is just the latest complication in a rollout that has already proven problematic.

Less than a third of Gen Z youth want to pursue STEM careers
K-12 Dive – December 6, 2023
Despite the ongoing push for young people to consider STEM jobs, the Gallup and Walton Family Foundation poll indicates interest among Gen Z youth isn’t fully there. Exposure to STEM content in schools can drive this generation to seriously consider a job in the field.

Nearly half of companies say they plan to eliminate some bachelor’s degree requirements in 2024
Higher Ed Dive – December 13, 2023
Forty-five percent of companies plan to eliminate bachelor’s degree requirements for some positions in 2024. In 2023, 55% of companies removed degree requirements, particularly for entry-level and mid-level roles. Employers said they dropped these requirements to create a more diverse workforce, increase the number of applicants for open positions and because there are other ways to gain skills. At the same time, 95% of respondents said their companies require bachelor’s degrees for at least some roles. About 24% require a degree for three-quarters of their jobs, and 27% require a degree for half of their positions. ‘While a young person may be able to get an entry-level job without a bachelor’s degree, the lack of the degree along with the other ‘soft skills’ that one gains in college can make it difficult to climb the corporate ladder…’

Colorado poll finds voters skeptical of college, more supportive of career education
Chalkbeat – December 5, 2023
Respondents cited the high cost of college and questioned how useful college is to helping graduates get jobs, even though the majority of the respondents had a bachelor’s degree or higher themselves. Across the political spectrum, respondents wondered about the value of higher education, sometimes citing their own experiences of high student debt and low-paying jobs. Others worried about increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence systems doing away with jobs. The survey company said colleges should take note of the findings, especially as they brace for declining enrollment. They need to get costs under control and show families and policy makers that an education is worth the investment of time and money