SB10

Report Title:

Education; DOE; School Counselors; College Counselors

Description:

Appropriates funds to the DOE to hire educational assistants or retired teachers, or both, as paraprofessional test coordinators in order to assist middle school and high school counselors.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	10
TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2003
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to counseling.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The purpose of the school counseling program is to provide professional counseling services to all students in order to:

(1) Develop their educational skills so that they may become successful learners;

(2) Prepare them for vocational pursuits and post-high school education and training; and

(3) Develop their personal and social skills to enable them to make wise decisions and to communicate and deal effectively with their peers and others.

Counseling, consultation, and coordination are the major activities of the school counseling program and are primarily provided to students, staff, families, and community members. The delivery of the Hawaii Content and Performance Standards II is an integral part of the school counseling program.

The legislature finds that counselors in middle schools and high schools service large numbers of students. The ratio of students to counselors is usually so high (599 to 1 in middle schools and 399 to 1 in high schools) that not all students receive the help or attention they need in a timely or consistent manner. Paraprofessional assistance and workload relief, especially in the area of standardized and school testing, would give counselors the time they need to work effectively with students.

Secondary schools generally have high enrollments. Consequently, the ratio of students to counselors is high, and the amount of time available for actually counseling students is low. A large part of the problem is that counselors are responsible for standardized and school testing. The testing program is very time consuming, and counselors simply do not have the time or the energy to work effectively with students.

Since it would be too costly to provide additional certified counselor positions to all secondary schools, another option would be to hire educational assistants or retired teachers, or both, as paraprofessional test coordinators. Much of this work is clerical in nature and involves scheduling tasks that could be done by classified personnel. This assistance and relief would allow certified counselors to perform the tasks for which they were hired.

Consequently, the purpose of this Act is to appropriate funds to hire educational assistants or retired teachers, or both, as paraprofessional test coordinators for secondary schools.

SECTION 2. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $        , or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2003-2004, and the same sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2004-2005, to hire educational assistants or retired teachers, or both, as paraprofessional test coordinators in order to assist middle school and high school counselors.

SECTION 3. The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2003.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________