Counseling FAQs

List of 7 frequently asked questions.

• How is a school counselor different from a therapist?

  School counselors provide short-term, solution focused interventions to help students with roadblocks that might be impacting their learning. Therapists treat mental health conditions on an on-going basis. For any issues beyond the scope of a school counselor, we will happily connect the student and family with outside resources. 

• How does a school counselor manage confidentiality?

  An important part of the counselor and student relationship is trust. One of the ways counselors build a trusting relationship with students is through confidentiality. However, there are certain exceptions that may require a school counselor to break confidentiality when working with a student. Confidentiality will be broken if a student shares that they are going to hurt themselves, hurt someone else, or someone is hurting them. All students are informed of confidentiality exceptions when meeting with their school counselor.

• Why would a student see a school counselor?

  Students may see a School Counselor for a variety of reasons, including school adjustment issues, self-esteem challenges, stress, grief, friendship struggles, academic performance, or if in crisis. Immediate support for these challenges can be essential for a student's success at school. 

• How can my child see the counselor?

  School counselors in all divisions are available on a drop-in or pre scheduled basis. We aim to make ourselves available and accessible to students. At times, a counselor may invite a student in for a support conversation, or a teacher may refer the student to see the counselor. We encourage parents to connect with us if they believe a meeting with the counselor would be helpful.

• Will parents be notified if their child sees the school counselor?

  Depending on the nature of the conversation with the school counselor, the parents may or may not be notified. In cases of safety concerns, parents will be notified immediately. For general conversations, the parents are not automatically notified. In the Upper School, students need to give explicit permission for parent notification aside from safety concerns, based on confidentiality laws in Colorado. 

• What is mandated reporting? 

  In the state of Colorado, a mandatory reporter is defined as “a professional who is obligated by law to report known or suspected incidents of child abuse and/or neglect.  Mandatory reporters are part of the safety net that protects children and youth and have the ability to provide lifesaving help to child victims in our community. Any person specified in C.R.S. 19-3-304 is by law a mandatory reporter in Colorado. If a mandatory reporter has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been subjected to abuse or neglect, or observed the child being subjected to circumstances or conditions that would reasonably result in abuse or neglect, the mandatory reporter shall immediately upon receiving such information report or cause a report to be made of such fact to the county department, the local law enforcement agency, or through the child abuse reporting hotline system.”

• Do you provide mental health diagnoses to students? 

  No, School Counselors do not make mental health diagnoses. However, they can connect families and students with outside service providers who can make appropriate diagnoses. School counselors are available to all students regardless of diagnoses.