94 Chapter 4

A Comprehensive Program

A comprehensive school counseling program consists of counseling. consulting. coordi-

nating, and assessment services offered in response to thc identified needs. goals. and
objectives of the school and community. In a cmnprehensive progrtun. goals and objec-
tives are identified and given priority as the result of adequate assessment and analysis of
students'. parents'. and teachers' needs. A school counselor's decision. therefore, to focus
on particular issues and to select specific activities in the program is not madc randomly or
accidentally. Rather. it occurs as a scries of proccsscs that include planning. organizing.
implementing. and evaluating procedures. Thc first two of thcsc. planning and organizing.
go hand-in-hand to define and dcscribc a school counseling program.
Planning consists of leadership procedures and decisions that help counselors cvalu-
ate school-wide goals: assess students'. parents'. and teachers' needs: and select goals and
objectives for their counseling programs. Planning processes are most noticeable at the
beginning of the school year. when an accurate assessment of school populations is likely
to occur.
Typically. at the start of a school year. decisions about district lines. school reorga-
nizations. and other major events have been made by local boards of education. and schools
in these districts are certain about the students who will enroll and the communities that will
be served for the year. Knowing this. school counselors assess the general needs of the
school and community and make appropriate decisions about preventive. developmental, and
remedial services. Although most planning occurs at the beginning of each school year, it
remains a continuous process as counselors. teachers. and administrators evaluate ongoing
services.
Organizing is a continuation of the planning process and includes the selection of major
goals and objectives. and a detennination of which services can best address and meet these
goals. Program organization also entails assignments and timelines for carrying out specific
activities. These assignments and schedules help the school identify who is responsible for
what services and when they will be implemented. Leadership skills of the counselor are
important to this process. With üquate leadership and organizational skill of a counselor,
school counseling programs identify annual goals and objectives clearly; make specific
assignments for counselors, teachers, administrators, and other personnel', and develop a
schedule of major functions and events for the year. In this way, program organization
includes all professionals and establishes eæh of their roles in a school counseling program.
Implementing is the action phase of a comprehensive school counseling program, when
the counselors. teachers, and others deliver the services that constitute the program. Included
in these services are individual and small-group counseling, teacher and parent consultation.
classroom and small-group guidance, testing, crisis intervention, and refer-rals. In school
counseling programs where counselors fail to plan and organize adequately, implementation
may be the only phase readily observable. These counselors are busy per-forming activities,
but they fail to orchestrate and align services to address the major needs of students, parents,
and teachers in the school. In such cases, counsek)rs are busy getting the job done. but the
job they have identified is not one that is necessarily essential to help students reach their
educational goals.
Implementing a program that is devoid of clear goals and objectives is like piloting a
plane without a flight plan. The plane is airborne, all instruments are working. but the pilot

Comprehensive School Counseling Programs

has no idea where the plane is heading or why it is going in a given direction. School
coun-selors who take off without clear direction tend to implement services that
haphazardly hit and miss the real issues and needs of students. pa.rents. and teachers.
Without adequate planning and organizing. the "hits" of these counselors are mostly
fortuitous and not likely repeated. Conversely, repetition of successful services is more
likely to occur when coun-selors complement their plans and activities with accurate
evaluations and use of existing data to support programmatic decisions.
Evaluating consists of procedures that enable counselors to determine the
success of a program's services, identify apparent weaknesses, and recommend
changes for the future. This phase of a comprehensive school counseling program is
important to estab-lishing a counselor's identity and credibility.
Excellent school counseling programs consist of planned involvement of all
school personnel, adequate organization, appropriate assignment of responsibilities,
competent delivery of services. and accurate measurement of outcomes. A truly
effective school counseling program is one that makes a difference in the lives of
students, parents, and teachers. By making a difference, school counselors create a
clear identity and enhance their value in elementary, middle, and high school settings.
Adequate and accurate program evaluation also enables counselors to retum to the
initial goals and objectives of the program and assess what changes, if any, to make. In
this way, a comprehensive school counseling program is cyclical in nature. Figure 4.1
illus-trates this cycle of planning, organizing, implementing. and evaluating a counseling
pro-gram. We examine each of these phases of a comprehensive program and their
specific elements more fully in Chapter 6. At this point. we examine four approaches or
delivery models for comprehensive school counseling programs. What follows are brief
descrip-tions that cannot do justice to these models. I encourage you to research and
review works of the original authors and other references to become more familiar with
the details of these delivery models.

Planning

Evaluating Organizing

Implementing

FIGURE 4.1 Phases ofa Comprehensive Program