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Capitol View®
Catharine Richert

PoliGraph: Bakk’s school counselor claim is true

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There’s going to be a big push at the Legislature this spring to better prepare Minnesota students for jobs.

Some lawmakers want to remedy the problem by making tuition free at the state’s two-year colleges. Others want loan forgiveness for some professionals who work in underserved areas.

And in the Senate, DFL Majority Leader Tom Bakk of Cook is arguing that Minnesota needs more school counselors to help high school students do a better job picking a career.

“One of the places we have to make some improvements if we are going to deliver the skill set our business community needs is in the area of career counseling for kids in high school, in 11

th

and 12

th

grade. We are 49th in the country in our ratio of high school counselors to pupils. Mississippi is better than we are.”

Bakk is correct: Minnesota’s counselor-to-student ratio ranks low compared to other states.

The Evidence

Bakk points to a press release from the Minnesota School Counselors Association to back-up his statement, which says Minnesota’s counselor-to-student ratio ranks 48

th

in the nation.

Department of Education data compiled by the American School Counselor Association is more detailed. The group advocates for school counselors and funding to support their positions, and recommends there be at least one counselor to every 250 students.

According to that group, Minnesota has one counselor to every 782 students. That’s well above the national average of 471 students to every counselor.  And Minnesota does rank 49

th

among states and the District of Columbia – and well below Mississippi (not that there is anything wrong with Mississippi).

The issue isn’t a new one, and the reasons behind Minnesota’s ranking go beyond school funding, says Minnesota School Counselors Association president Jim Bierma.

He points out that many states – including those surrounding Minnesota – passed strict student-to-counselor ratio rules in the 1980s, but Minnesota did not.

Bierma also said that some school districts are using money to hire deans and assistant principals who may also take on some counseling responsibilities over counselors as a way to save money.

The Verdict

Bakk’s claim is correct.