Let’s Be Real
You can’t measure a person and call it a program.
Every year, school districts evaluate “how well” their school counselors are doing—based on things like student events, crisis response, or staff feedback. But here’s the truth:
You’re not measuring the success of a comprehensive school counseling program.
You’re measuring the strengths of person.
That’s exactly why so many outcomes aren’t consistent.
School Counselors Support Students. Programs Support Systems. Know the Difference.
The confusion runs deep. Many schools still treat school counseling like a personality-driven, use a staff member to be a jack of all trades, instead of a data-driven system.
A school counselor is one professional.
A school counseling program is a coordinated, measurable system that supports every student’s academic, career, and social-emotional development.
When you mix the two, you’re basically grading the mechanic instead of inspecting the car. That’s not to say you shouldn’t evaluate the mechanics work, but you won’t be able to give an accurate review unless you check under the hood first.
Evidence Speaks: Systems Create Impact
Back in 2003, researchers Sink & Stroh dropped the receipts. Their study showed that comprehensive school counseling programs—not individual counselor heroics—correlate with:
- Higher student achievement
- Better attendance
- Stronger school climates
But when counselors are left to “wing it” or constantly justify their jobs, everyone loses—especially students who don’t have access to consistent, data-driven support.
Stop Measuring Intentions. Start Measuring Systems.
Too many districts evaluate school counselors like this:
“Are they nice to kids?”
“Do teachers like them?”
“Did they hold a career fair?” or worse “write your evaluation and I’ll sign it.”
That’s not program evaluation—that’s popularity scoring.
Instead, ask:
- Does the program have clear program goals aligned to district priorities?
- Is there a written annual plan with outcomes tied to data, not anecdotes?
- Are services delivered to all students, or just those who seek help?
- Does your system allow school counselors to spend 80% of their time on direct and indirect services– or are the school counselors acting like a building subs, lunch and bus duty coverage everyday, or working as the MTSS administrative assistant?
If not, you don’t have a “bad counselor.”
You have a broken system.
What District Leaders Should Do Right Now
If you’re serious about results, stop evaluating individuals in isolation. Instead:
- Audit the Program, Not the Person.
Compare your school counseling systems to the evidence based research. Identify where structures or leadership support are missing. - Align to Outcomes, Not Opinions.
Use data from attendance, discipline, graduation, and postsecondary tracking—not just “feel-good” feedback—to measure success. - Protect Program Time.
Free school counselors from non-counseling duties. When they’re covering lunch or testing coordination, your system is bleeding expertise and wasting district funds. Do you need a Master’s trained staff member to manage these things or can you save money by having classified or hourly staff positions take up the slack. - Train District, Principal and School Counselor Leaders.
Most administrators were never taught how to evaluate school counseling programs, or any staff other than teachers. Fix that. Clarity creates alignment. Take your leadership team to a national school counseling leadership conference. If you don’t know what they are trained to do, how can you cultivate growth and impact for students.
Here’s the Real Talk
When you measure systems, you build capacity.
When you evaluate programs, not personalities, you get results that scale.