Background: College attendance has become a crucial determinant of life chances in U.S. society. Besides college costs and academic preparation, college-related cultural and social capital may help explain socioeconomic differences in whether and where students attend college. While high school counselors are seen as potential agents of social…

Senior year is the perfect time to offer students challenges that will help prepare them for life after school. The term "senior seminar" has been commonly used to describe a course that is specifically designed to help 12th graders develop knowledge, skills, and habits of mind that will prepare them for their college or work experiences. Senior…

For many English language learners, the endgame isn't passing state exams--it's attending and graduating from college. Yet schools often focus on a lower target: proficiency. To support the transition of English language learners to postsecondary success, schools should create formal transition plans, provide differentiated guidance, focus on…

This qualitative study explores career counseling and guidance services as provided to students engaged in career and technical education programs at three sites in the United States. The sites, consisting of high schools and community colleges, were part of the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education's 5-year studies of…

Although education has been a part of all cultures since the beginning of existence, it is constantly evolving. As educators seek to instill in their students the significance of lifelong learning, they also seek opportunities to learn and improve. Greater pressures and demands than ever before are being placed on educators. When Handley High…

This article illustrates standards blending, the integration of core academic and school counseling standards, as a culturally alert responsive services strategy to assist in closing the achievement gap while also enhancing employability skills and culturally salient career competencies. The responsive services intervention described in this…

High schools and middle grades schools are making special efforts to keep students in school and to help them look forward with confidence to the next stage of life. They are connecting students to adult mentors or counselors who assist them in setting goals and completing a program of study for college and career readiness. They are assisting…

Recent publications raise three concerns about the traditional senior year: it lacks rigor, it fails to provide students with clear pathways to work and postsecondary education, and it does not prepare students for a successful transition from high school to post-secondary experiences. These documents suggest that high schools should transform the…

Despite decades of school improvement initiatives, many young people still do not cross the finish line of secondary education with the credential that signifies success--a high school diploma. Thousands of young people give up on school and on themselves, or schools give up on them. Without effective support from schools, communities, and…

More and more high schools are implementing Advisory programs for a variety of reasons: personalization, academics & study skills, life success skills, self-knowledge, addressing the concern about students feeling "lost" in the high school setting, first line of contact for the parents, and portfolios. But finding a way to schedule advisory can…

How can a high school advisory and mentoring program be established? Schools report that more and more students seem to slip through the cracks or are lost in the shuffle. More students fail ninth grade than any other grade level. William Glasser (1986) estimates that schools fail to engage more than half the students because they fail to fulfill…

The "2001-02 Budget Act" included approximately $127 million to fund 19 different outreach programs designed to encourage and support high school students to attend college. Since some programs also receive additional funds from federal, private, and local school districts the combined outreach program revenue is even greater. Over the…