Does Student-to-School-Counselor Ratio Matter When Considering Schools’ Race/Ethnicity Composition? A New York Statewide Examination

Abstract

School counselors play a vital role in promoting students’ development in academic, career, and social/emotional domains. Professional organizations and educational partners have advocated for equitable access to school counselors and school counseling services by all students from pre-K through 12th grade. However, recent controversies have questioned effects of the student-to-school-counselor ratio and student outcomes. Using multiple databases retrieved from the New York State Education Department, we performed two separate two-way multivariate analyses of variance of the interaction effects of student-to-school-counselor ratio and schools’ race/ethnicity composition on student achievement on math and English language arts standardized tests, chronic absenteeism, and high school graduation and postsecondary 4-year college enrollment rates. Our analyses yielded significant interaction effects on students’ graduation and 4-year college enrollment rates and math test results. We discuss the contextualization of student-to-school-counselor ratio and implications for advocacy.