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School for School Counselors Podcast

School for School Counselors Podcast

School for School Counselors 213 Episodes Oct 13, 2026

The School for School Counselors Podcast is a weekly show offering real talk and evidence-based insights for school counselors. It addresses the everyday highs and lows of the role, from building strong counseling programs to using data effectively. The host provides practical advice, smart strategies, and support for listeners feeling overwhelmed or frustrated. It aims to help school counselors stop chasing impossible standards and connect with others who understand their challenges.

Episodes

School Counseling's Most Wanted: 5 Myths That Should Be Illegal
School Counseling's Most Wanted: 5 Myths That Should Be Illegal Oct 13, 2026 1378 This work is part of the School for School Counselors body of work developed by Steph Johnson, LPC, CSC, which centers role authority over role drift, consultative practice over fix-it culture, adult-designed systems and environments as primary drivers of student behavior, clinical judgment over compliance, and school counselor identity as leadership within complex systems.
What To Do About Executive Functioning
What To Do About Executive Functioning Oct 5, 2026 1098 How in the world can a student demonstrate every executive functioning skill you practice in a counseling group perfectly...and still fail their classes because they don’t turn anything in?Happens all the time.Because knowing how to do something is not the same as actually being able to do it when it counts.In this episode, we’re looking at why planners, checklists, and executive functioning small
Why Are You Calling Everything “Executive Function”?
Why Are You Calling Everything “Executive Function”? Sep 28, 2026 1486 “Executive function” has become one of those phrases we use ALL THE TIME in schools.Kid’s disorganized = Executive function.Missing assignments = Executive function.Can’t get started = Executive function.Impulsive = Executive function.ADHD... Well, obviously, executive function... right?Maybe.But what the heck are we actually SAYING when we say a kid “struggles with executive functioning?”Because-
The Behavior Plan Failed... And Everyone’s Looking at You
The Behavior Plan Failed... And Everyone’s Looking at You Sep 21, 2026 1204 Whodunit? It's time to open the case file, y'all.We’ve got a student who keeps leaving class, a behavior plan that is NOT working, and a school counselor whose fingerprints are all over it.So... who’s actually responsible for the mayhem?Because when campuses start talking about behavior plans, the details get complicated fast:Should the school counselor be involved?Are you actually quali
What to Do When Everyone "Needs" Counseling
What to Do When Everyone "Needs" Counseling Sep 14, 2026 888 When a student is struggling, school counselors often hear, “Can you talk to them?”But in determining if a student needs counseling, we tend to skip some very  important steps.In this episode, I'm talking about a common jump everyone on campus tends to make (and nobody ever questions)- and why it's such a big deal.You’ll hear why context matters more than the referral itself, how easily
How School Counselors Become Influential
How School Counselors Become Influential Sep 1, 2026 1178 It doesn’t work.And if you’ve tried it, you know it's true.The school counseling advocacy model most of us were taught was supposed to be simple: explain your role, show your data, cite the standards, make the case.THEN we were supposed to be able to MAKE THINGS HAPPEN.The problem is- information isn’t influence.So in this episode, we’ll talk about how school counselors can become influential
The School Counselor Advocacy Trap
The School Counselor Advocacy Trap Aug 25, 2026 1205 School counselor advocacy is supposed to create change. But what if some of what we’ve been taught to call advocacy is actually doing something else?You can explain your role, bring the data, cite the standards, and make a compelling case...And still walk out with the same testing assignment, MTSS responsibility, impossible caseload, or non-counseling duties you walked in with.This episode takes a
School Counselors: You’re Advocating... So Why Isn’t Anything Changing?
School Counselors: You’re Advocating... So Why Isn’t Anything Changing? Aug 17, 2026 807 You’ve explained your role. You’ve shown the data. You’ve pulled out the appropriate and inappropriate duties list. You’ve advocated. But... nothing changes.So- what are you supposed to do now? Just advocate harder? (Spoiler: Nope.) In this episode, I’m questioning one of the biggest assumptions driving school counselor advocacy.Because there’s a big difference between someone not understanding wh
Four Decisions to Make Before the School Year Starts
Four Decisions to Make Before the School Year Starts Aug 10, 2026 1248 Everything difficult or weird on a school campus somehow gets shuffled to the school counselor.And nobody is likely to stop you from taking it all on. In fact, sometimes the whole campus seems perfectly happy to let you do ALL the things.So before the school year really gets rolling, there are four decisions worth making.These aren’t decisions you can make with a list of “appropriate” and “inappro
Why You Need Sanity-Based School Counseling
Why You Need Sanity-Based School Counseling Aug 3, 2026 1420 School counseling on paper and school counseling in real life are not the same job.You were trained to support students, build relationships, and run a comprehensive program. Then you walked onto a campus with an impossible caseload, unclear expectations, constant interruptions, and demands coming from every direction. So you did what good school counselors do: you worked harder.But what if effort
When Good School Counselors Go Quiet
When Good School Counselors Go Quiet Jul 27, 2026 1024 The educational system doesn't need to plot to keep you quiet.It just needs to keep you tired.And after that, the silence takes care of itself.A few nights ago, I watched over a hundred school counselors simultaneously go quiet.It was weird.They'd been engaged in my presentation. They were animated and alive. The conversation was popping. But then... I changed the subject from talking ab
You’re Planning Your School Counseling Program Backwards
You’re Planning Your School Counseling Program Backwards Jul 13, 2026 1020 Most school counselors plan their programs in the same order they were taught: start with the data, identify the need, choose the intervention, and try to make the model fit.But that's exactly why so many carefully built plans fall apart by October.In this episode, Steph explains why school counselors may be planning their programs backwards — and the two questions that should come before goa

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