Alaska School Counselors

School counselors in Alaska are the unsung leaders operating in the shadow of the administration. By incorporating all variables in students’ lives from teachers to families to the community at large, Alaska’s school counselors are the leaders on the ground who are creating individualized plans for students to help them succeed academically, socially and emotionally, and for those in secondary school, on their path to career fulfillment.

Add in the additional $7,000 to $10,000 more in salary than teachers and school counseling in Alaska is both objectively rewarding as well as spiritually fulfilling.

What do Alaska’s school counselors do?

1. Apply academic achievement strategies

   Advancing in academics requires checking many boxes along the way. School counselors are there to organize each student’s requirements to take their next academic step and make sure they are on schedule to meet those requirements in a timely fashion.

   Understanding what might be hindering a student’s academic progress can also fall under the purview of Alaska’s school counselors. Whether there are issues at home or undiscovered difficulties with learning, school counselors may create individual academic achievement strategies that also address these issues.

   Alaska’s school counselors also frequently serve as advocates for students’ individual education plan meetings and other types of student-focused meetings in order to offer their specific knowledge of students and provide a more holistic to guide students toward success while also managing specific requirements for advancement under Alaska’s education system.

2. Manage student emotions and apply interpersonal skills

   Personal issues among students can run the entire spectrum of complications and levels of concern. Alaskan school counselors need to be equipped with a large bag of tools to successfully connect with and help students who are in need of help to manage their personal issues. Counseling expertise may be offered in the form of short-term counseling sessions or collaboration with family, teachers, administrators and even the community.

   At times, the personal needs of some students may be beyond the expertise of even the school counselor or the student’s needs may require more time than the school counselor has. In situations like this, school counselors will often refer students to professionals who can offer longer-term support.

3. Planning for postsecondary options

   Career planning is perhaps the most commonly thought of job duty for school counselors. Explaining and guiding students during career planning can be one of the more time consuming and also rewarding aspects of school counseling in Alaska. Options for the next step in a student’s life is often unique and requires a depth of knowledge by the school counselor to understand what might be possible and also incorporating the desires of each student in the planning process. School counselors may also need to develop relationships with local industry and school admissions employees for helping graduates with job prospects and for postsecondary education options.

Why become a school counselor in Alaska?

Apart from the joy of being a positive influence on many students’ lives, school counseling in Alaska can provide many objective benefits.

• Alaskan school counselors on average earn $7,000 to $10,000 more than teachers

• Great benefits such as health insurance and retirement funding

• Career stability

Even the staunchest of republicans are being forced by Alaskan constituents to support Alaska’s need for a better public education system:

“I dedicated a career as a public school teacher in Alaska. I view education as the cornerstone to any society and to individual futures.” – Governor Michael Dunleavy, Nov. 8th 2019

Support for education is something that continues to be a universal desire among Alaskans in spite of Republican efforts to move funding away from the public education system. However, this is something to be aware of as a master plan coming from the Republican National Committee come voting time.

Contact schools offering school counseling or mental health counseling programs and learn how you can begin a career as an Alaska School Counselor.

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