Student Advocacy
The Starfish Story
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the boy, he asked, “What are you doing?” The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them back, they’ll die.” “Son,” the man said, “don’t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can’t make a difference!” After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said…..“I made a difference for that one.”
“Each individual student”
One role school counselors have is the role of advocacy for each of their students. Core to our belief system as school counselors is that we always see each student as an individual, with unique needs, challenges, experiences, and abilities. Early in our school counseling careers, we adopted a starfish as a symbol to remind us of this, as our personal focus as school counselors.
Advocating for our students may look different in different situations and settings. For some students, it may mean that we sit on their IEP team to contribute support regarding their future career plans, behavioral goals, or social/emotional needs. For others, it may mean that we are the people they can come to when they are being bullied. We want all students to feel like we have their back and that our school is a safe place for every student.
"Each individual student"
One role school counselors have is the role of advocacy for each of their students. Core to our belief system as school counselors is that we always see each student as an individual, with unique needs, challenges, experiences, and abilities. Early in our school counseling careers, we adopted a starfish as a symbol to remind us of this, as our personal focus as school counselors.
Advocating for our students may look different in different situations and settings. For some students, it may mean that we sit on their IEP team to contribute support regarding their future career plans, behavioral goals, or social/emotional needs. For others, it may mean that we are the people they can come to when they are being bullied. For all students, it means that we believe strongly that all students should feel welcomed. We want all students to feel like we have their back and that our school is a safe place for every student.
