My Dream Office
Everything we do as professional school counselors should be intentional. That includes how we design and structure our individual offices, as well as the school counseling center as a whole. First, the naming of this center is intentional. Rather than "Guidance Office", we should use the name School Counseling Center to solidify our role as professional school counselors. Simple "advice-giving" or "guidance" is not a part of our comprehensive school counseling program, rather we are focused on providing students with the empowerment to succeed in their academics, prepare for their future careers, and experience the utmost personal and social growth that will allow each and every student to reach his or her full potential. I have been very fortunate to have my own office throughout my internship, and there are many aspects of our department at Noblesville High School (NHS) that I would like to replicate in my ideal school counseling center. Below you will find a sample design (using Floor Planner) and description of this "dream" office.
![Picture](/uploads/5/6/3/1/56318547/7155740.jpg?1445196433)
One key aspect of my ideal school counseling center would be a welcoming and open concept. Especially in a very large school like NHS, it is important for the secretary to be able to see all of the school counselors' individual offices so that he or she knows whether or not a certain school counselor is available at any given time. This open concept design can prevent students from being sent back to a school counselor's office when he or she is not available, as well as preventing students from sitting and waiting for an excessively long time - and missing class time - thinking their school counselor is busy when in fact he or she is ready to see them. We are already tight on time with our students in the school setting; students come to school to learn, so we want to keep them in the classroom as much as possible. That is why we need to be intentional with our time with them, and make sure they are not waiting aimlessly when they could be seeing us or in their class. Having many windows throughout the exterior of the school counseling center will also promote a welcoming, transparent environment.
First impressions are everything, especially in a school counseling center (Pearson & Wilson, 2012). Students - and even parents - often come into our office feeling emotional or stressed. Making these individuals feel safe and valued as soon as they walk into my office is important in helping them feel supported by their school counselor. I would create this sense of safety through the inclusion of posters and quotes that embrace all cultures and gender identities. Students who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and/or Questioning (LGBTQ) are especially in need of support in all of the turmoil brought about in today's school setting, so it is vital for them to know that their school counselor is accepting of them and that the school counseling office is a safe place for them to be themselves (Byrd & Hays, 2013). The first way for LGBTQ students to decide whether I, as the school counselor, am a safe person or not is by the first impression I present to them through what I display in my office and on my walls. In addition to showing multicultural competence in my office, I would also want to include pieces that promote a college-going culture in my school, such as my diplomas and other college pennants. Finally, I think it is important to be authentic with my students, which is why I would want to include some of the most important things in my life that make me who I am. I have many of these things in my current office: pictures of my family, favorite vacations, and inspirational posters. I have already used these things a number of times to build rapport with some resistant students. Another feature of my current office that I believe is important as a professional school counselor is the white board on my door. I often use this for an inspirational quote, but also to tell my students and fellow counselors if I am in a meeting or if I will be out of the office for an extended period of time. They can also use this board to leave me a note if needed. As a mentioned before, I believe being open and welcoming is a key component of any school counselor's office and school counseling center, so it is important that everyone knows when and where they can reach you if you are not in your office.
As far as the structure of my individual office, I would want it to be spacious enough to have room for parents to be comfortable with their students, while also not being so big as to be intimidating when meeting with an individual student. Professional school counselors need parents on our side, so I want parents to feel like they are being accommodated appropriately whenever they wish to come visit. Although it can be appropriate to have larger offices for holding groups and at the elementary level, I believe conference rooms are more appropriate for these activities at the high school level. That is why I have included two conference rooms within my dream school counseling center. At NHS we share a hallway of conference rooms with the administration staff, but I think it would be more beneficial to have our own conference rooms specifically identified for the school counseling department. In addition, the school counseling center should have its own storage facilities for student files and copying. School counselors are responsible for protecting students' records and information. Some key information related to students' social/emotional well-being should not be kept with all other academic documents in the student's main file. Thus, a specific school counseling file room with information kept behind a locked door as well as locked file cabinets is appropriate.
Another key piece I would like to have in my ideal school counseling center would be a restroom. This would allow parents to feel more comfortable when visiting, as they would not have to trek all over the school to find a restroom. Having a restroom in the school counseling center could also provide some relief to transgender students struggling with which restroom to use. In some schools, these students only have the option of using the nurse's one-person restroom. Following the goal of being intentional in our actions as school counselors, I believe it would be more appropriate to have this restroom in the school counseling center rather than the nurse's office because gender identity is not a medical issue and thus not within the nurse's role. Another intentional action would be simply using the title "Restroom" rather than potentially offensive terms such as "unisex" or "gender-neutral".
A small College and Career Readiness (CCR) center would be the final component of my ideal school counseling center. The focus of the CCR center would be to provide students with an opportunity to complete career exploration inventories and assessments, sign up to take the SAT or ACT, and work on college exploration and applications. This space would include two desktop computers or laptops and two additional spaces for students who are working on paper or have their own technology - such as at NHS where every student is provided with an iPad. Offering a CCR center within the school counseling center would promote a college-going culture and would help school counselors utilize their time more efficiently. Instead of having one student in their office for 15-20 minutes completing one of these tasks, school counselors could set them up in the CCR center and get them started, spend those 15-20 minutes with another student or getting something else done, then return to that first student when he or she is finished with their task. Overall, the main focus of my dream school counseling office is being intentional in every piece I include and everything I do as a professional school counselor.
First impressions are everything, especially in a school counseling center (Pearson & Wilson, 2012). Students - and even parents - often come into our office feeling emotional or stressed. Making these individuals feel safe and valued as soon as they walk into my office is important in helping them feel supported by their school counselor. I would create this sense of safety through the inclusion of posters and quotes that embrace all cultures and gender identities. Students who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and/or Questioning (LGBTQ) are especially in need of support in all of the turmoil brought about in today's school setting, so it is vital for them to know that their school counselor is accepting of them and that the school counseling office is a safe place for them to be themselves (Byrd & Hays, 2013). The first way for LGBTQ students to decide whether I, as the school counselor, am a safe person or not is by the first impression I present to them through what I display in my office and on my walls. In addition to showing multicultural competence in my office, I would also want to include pieces that promote a college-going culture in my school, such as my diplomas and other college pennants. Finally, I think it is important to be authentic with my students, which is why I would want to include some of the most important things in my life that make me who I am. I have many of these things in my current office: pictures of my family, favorite vacations, and inspirational posters. I have already used these things a number of times to build rapport with some resistant students. Another feature of my current office that I believe is important as a professional school counselor is the white board on my door. I often use this for an inspirational quote, but also to tell my students and fellow counselors if I am in a meeting or if I will be out of the office for an extended period of time. They can also use this board to leave me a note if needed. As a mentioned before, I believe being open and welcoming is a key component of any school counselor's office and school counseling center, so it is important that everyone knows when and where they can reach you if you are not in your office.
As far as the structure of my individual office, I would want it to be spacious enough to have room for parents to be comfortable with their students, while also not being so big as to be intimidating when meeting with an individual student. Professional school counselors need parents on our side, so I want parents to feel like they are being accommodated appropriately whenever they wish to come visit. Although it can be appropriate to have larger offices for holding groups and at the elementary level, I believe conference rooms are more appropriate for these activities at the high school level. That is why I have included two conference rooms within my dream school counseling center. At NHS we share a hallway of conference rooms with the administration staff, but I think it would be more beneficial to have our own conference rooms specifically identified for the school counseling department. In addition, the school counseling center should have its own storage facilities for student files and copying. School counselors are responsible for protecting students' records and information. Some key information related to students' social/emotional well-being should not be kept with all other academic documents in the student's main file. Thus, a specific school counseling file room with information kept behind a locked door as well as locked file cabinets is appropriate.
Another key piece I would like to have in my ideal school counseling center would be a restroom. This would allow parents to feel more comfortable when visiting, as they would not have to trek all over the school to find a restroom. Having a restroom in the school counseling center could also provide some relief to transgender students struggling with which restroom to use. In some schools, these students only have the option of using the nurse's one-person restroom. Following the goal of being intentional in our actions as school counselors, I believe it would be more appropriate to have this restroom in the school counseling center rather than the nurse's office because gender identity is not a medical issue and thus not within the nurse's role. Another intentional action would be simply using the title "Restroom" rather than potentially offensive terms such as "unisex" or "gender-neutral".
A small College and Career Readiness (CCR) center would be the final component of my ideal school counseling center. The focus of the CCR center would be to provide students with an opportunity to complete career exploration inventories and assessments, sign up to take the SAT or ACT, and work on college exploration and applications. This space would include two desktop computers or laptops and two additional spaces for students who are working on paper or have their own technology - such as at NHS where every student is provided with an iPad. Offering a CCR center within the school counseling center would promote a college-going culture and would help school counselors utilize their time more efficiently. Instead of having one student in their office for 15-20 minutes completing one of these tasks, school counselors could set them up in the CCR center and get them started, spend those 15-20 minutes with another student or getting something else done, then return to that first student when he or she is finished with their task. Overall, the main focus of my dream school counseling office is being intentional in every piece I include and everything I do as a professional school counselor.
References:
Byrd, R., & Hays, D. G. (2013). Evaluating a safe space training for school counselors and trainees using a randomized control design. Professional School Counseling, 17(1), 20-31.
Pearson, M., & Wilson, H. (2012). Soothing spaces and healing places: Is there an ideal counselling room design? Psychotherapy in Australia, 18(3), 46 – 53.
Byrd, R., & Hays, D. G. (2013). Evaluating a safe space training for school counselors and trainees using a randomized control design. Professional School Counseling, 17(1), 20-31.
Pearson, M., & Wilson, H. (2012). Soothing spaces and healing places: Is there an ideal counselling room design? Psychotherapy in Australia, 18(3), 46 – 53.