Each week, “Answer Key” aims to help families by responding to an important question about education and schools in Greater Houston. If you have a question for us to answer, please email us at education@houstonlanding.org or fill out the form at the end of this article.

This week’s question:

What can counselors, psychologists and social workers do for my child in Texas public schools?

School counselors, psychologists and social workers serve students in many important ways — and contrary to popular belief, little of that work involves therapy.

These roles largely tie back to supporting students’ academic, behavioral and mental wellbeing, often in coordination with school staff and community organizations. Each position involves multiple responsibilities, which can make it confusing for families to know who can help their child and where to turn.

Plus, Texas school districts employ relatively few counselors, psychologists and social workers, resulting in large caseloads.

Here are the ins and outs of how these key support staffers can help students.

What does a school counselor do?

Although “counsel” is in the name, school counselors primarily help students with academics, not their mental health struggles. 

School counselors often help students pick their class schedule, get involved in extracurricular activities or apply for opportunities after high school. 

In some cases, a school counselor might offer short-term counseling or help students build interpersonal skills to set them on a path of academic success. For students with disabilities, school counselors can also advocate for students to receive legally required accommodations under their individualized education program, or IEP. 

Texas public schools employ roughly 14,000 “full-time employee,” or FTE, counselors to serve 5.5 million students, according to state data. (A part-time counselor might count as 0.5 FTEs, while a full-time counselor counts as 1 FTE).

In Texas, that means there’s roughly one counselor for every 400 students. The American School Counselor Association says that the ideal caseload for a school counselor should be 250 students for each counselor.

What does a school psychologist do?

Although school psychologists can offer therapy services to students in need of mental health or behavioral support, school districts primarily keep psychologists on staff to evaluate students for learning disabilities like dyslexia or ADHD. 

School psychologists also play a role in creating IEPs and assessing whether the outlined accommodations help students succeed. 

They can also work with families to help give students support outside of the classroom. In some cases, a school psychologist might work with community organizations to connect students with resources the school cannot provide. 

Not every campus has a designated full-time psychologist, however. Often, the district will employ one psychologist to serve multiple schools or contract out the position entirely. The Texas Education Agency counts just over 2,150 FTE school psychologists working in Texas public schools, or about 1 for every 4 campuses.

What do social workers do in schools, and how common are they?

Social workers can help students and families cope with a broad range of challenges, from grief to economic insecurity to bullying. For that reason, it can be difficult to quantify the full spectrum of what they do.

Few school districts employ social workers across their schools, and those that do don’t employ many as full-time staff. There are 1,125 FTE social workers employed in Texas’ 8,000-plus public schools, although many districts contract with outside organizations to provide similar services. 

The nonprofit Communities In Schools, for example, places social workers in traditional public and charter schools across Texas. CIS’ student support managers set up office on campus, providing support ranging from mental health counseling to snacks to a fresh change of clothes. CIS operates in districts across Greater Houston, including Alief, Spring, and Pasadena ISDs. Earlier this year, Aldine ISD officials confirmed that the district had to end its contract with CIS last summer due to financial constraints.

Houston ISD is unique in that the district employs a quasi-social worker called a wraparound specialist to perform a similar role. Wraparound specialists serve to connect students and families with whatever non-academic resources they need to help them succeed in the classroom. HISD also consolidates resources like case management, mental health care and food supplies at service hubs called Sunrise Centers.

Some districts also have departments that serve homeless students or provide rapid intervention to students with the greatest immediate needs.

Brooke Kushwaha covers Aldine, Alief, Pasadena and Spring ISDs for the Landing’s education team. Find her @BrookeKushwaha on X and Bluesky, or reach her directly at brooke@houstonlanding.org.

Correction, March 25: An earlier version of this article incorrectly described Communities In Schools’ approach to placing social workers in schools. The organization places one student support manager in each campus.

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