Developing a High School Counselor Web Service Center: Providing Guidance Counselors Electronic Access to Applicant Records and Other Vital Services
Joe F. Head, Thomas M. Hughes · College and university · 2006
College and university admissions officers strive to cultivate their relationships with high school guidance personnel. Strategically, guidance offices are the official point of contact for collegiate admissions and serve as the portal for recruitment literature distributions, counseling appointments, and as the primary credential collections source to support the application process. The relationship between admissions officers and guidance counselors is extremely valuable for both colleges and high schools. As it is often seasonal in its nature, trust and communication are necessary to maintain a professional rapport and provide a successful, seamless transition from high school to college. One of the realities of counseling today's college-bound applicant is real-time status reports and follow-up interpretations to decisions and conditions of entry. Students have become accustomed to instant reply and 24x7 service, and colleges have begun to embrace many of these expectations by offering students robust online services. The Office of Admissions at Kennesaw State University (KSU) has taken this concept in a new direction and developed a secure Web tool to empower high school guidance counselors with realtime information on all applicants from their respective high school. This feature greatly improves the counselor's ability to more accurately advise students and parents of the student's admission standing. High School Guidance Counselor Service Center For several years, Kennesaw State has been developing an operational philosophy designed to deliver 24x7 Web technologies/services to prospects, applicants, and enrolled students. This strategy permits applicants and enrolled students password-protected access to their records. This self-help service provides up-to-date student record information such as SAT and ACT scores, transcripts, placement testing requirements, and the status of the admission decision. Now in its 4th year of operation at Kennesaw State University, the High School Guidance Counselor Service Center (HSGCSC) operates on the same operational philosophy for guidance counselors as it does for applicants and admitted students. High school guidance counselors not only have authorized access that is 24x7, but also have access from anywhere an Internet connection is maintained. Initially, the HSCGSC provided admissions status check access, with few other links to additional Web resources. This admissions status check log-in enables high school counselors to provide a high quality counseling service for their students at a level not previously possible through traditional advising methods. This initial purpose, however, quickly gave way to a broader objective. As the KSU Admissions Office reached to enhance its professional relationship with guidance counselors, the HSCGSC expanded by offering other vital sources of information through the mediums of transactional Web technology and professional development options. The purpose of this article is to share the development of the HSCGSC from the initial, basic concept to the present model of expanded services. Premium Membership Services The Premium Membership Services Web page of the HSGCSC provides informational Web links that can be found on other Web pages without the password-protected login. General informational hotlinks are for various Web pages-online applications, undergraduate and graduate admissions standards, financial aid, campus maps, Virtual Advisor, Freshman Admissions Predictor, the KSU honors program, and the Georgia High School Directory Three Web links mentioned deserve special attention: the Georgia High School Directory, Virtual Advisor, and Freshman Admissions Predictor (FAP). For 20 years, KSU has published a highly popular hard copy of the Georgia High School Guidance Counselor Directory. A Web link to an electronic copy initiated four years ago has made it available to all counselors. …