This paper provides a historical review of vocational guidance and student personnel work in order to bring attention to the need for a historical foundation in the field and to suggest a unified way of analyzing student service work as a profession. Vocational guidance is discussed first because it provides important insights into the historical development of guidance and counseling. The movement of vocational guidance from the private sector to the public schools is described, and the influence of other disciplines (e.g., psychology, sociology, psychometrics) is briefly discussed. Differing modes of intervention used during the history of the vocational guidance and student personnel movements are examined in relation to the "in loco parentis" role of educators and counselors as a common aim of student services, and traced to what is posed as the maternalistic attitude of warmth and emotional support provided through student-centered counseling. The interrelationships of education, teaching, and guidance are examined as they contribute to the total process of individual development. The renewed interest of college faculty in student development is interpreted to mean that the time is right for greater integration of student personnel work (the extracurriculum) and academic interests. Achieving this partnership is discussed as a way to restore the lost community among faculty, administrators, and students. (JAC)