ABSTRACT
The daily routines of school counselors reflect the complexities of an ever evolving and multifaceted society. The stereotypical perception of a school counselor sitting passively behind a desk, providing career advice or counseling students one-on-one, is a mirage of the past. It is no secret that our society is experiencing drastic changes and is facing a severe crisis in most sectors; this is supported by both anecdotal and empirical evidence (Lockhart & Keys, 1998; Luongo, 2000). Our students cannot be isolated from the severe stress found in our society and cannot function in a vacuum. National data on poverty, joblessness, divorce rates, substance abuse, violence, sexual abuse and homelessness are all evidence of a convoluted society in search of answers. As an illustration, there are more than 5 million children with special educational needs receiving some type of services in our schools (Albert, Brown, & Flanigan, 2003) approximately one third of the student population is taking some type of psychotropic medication for attention deficit disorders, anxiety, depression, or other types of mental health conditions (Nastasi, Bernstein-Moore, & Varjas, 2004), the suicide rate among school-aged children has risen substantially, and the unintended pregnancy rate among adolescents remains a challenge although some steady progress has been achieved in this area.
