You hold a master’s degree. You studied crisis intervention, psychopathology, and therapeutic technique. So why is your profession still fighting to be seen as essential? It doesn’t have to stay this way- but the window is closing. In this episode, I lay out two possible futures for school counseling: one that ends in irrelevance, and one where we finally become the campus influence we were meant to be. What’s pushing us toward the wrong path isn’t what most counselors think. And fixing it wi...

Most school counselors aren’t ineffective. They’re mis-measured. In this episode, Steph challenges one of the profession’s most sacred assumptions and names something about her own work that most counselors wouldn’t dare say out loud. This conversation explores what it means to do catalytic work in a system obsessed with finished products, and why that mismatch is costing counselors their confidence. ********************************* Join the next-level conversation in my Substack. ********...

Caring is what makes you good at this job. It’s also what puts you in the most danger. If you’re a school counselor who still cares deeply about students, but you’ve noticed yourself feeling flatter, heavier, or more guarded than you used to- this episode is for you. You’re still showing up. Still doing the work. But the caring itself has started to weigh on you, and you don’t know why. In this episode, I talk about a kind of exhaustion that doesn’t come from being busy or overwhe...

If you’re exhausted in a way that rest doesn’t fix, this episode is for you. School counselors are often told they’re burned out, so they’re handed self-care tips, boundary advice, and mindset shifts that never quite work. There’s a reason for that. In this episode, I unpack the research that shows what school counselors are actually dealing with- and why calling it burnout misses the point. When you name the real problem, the way you relate to your exhaustion, your work, and your expectation...

School counselors are told to: Be flexibleMake it workAdvocate harderAnd somehow still be accountable for everything. But what if the real problem isn’t your mindset- or your effort? In this episode, Steph Johnson revisits an early message from the podcast and names what was missing. She explains why reassurance has a shelf life, how guilt gets mistaken for professionalism, and why endurance keeps getting rewarded in roles that were never built to work. This isn’t about doing more. It’s about...

Why does everything at school seem to turn into a competition...
and why does it so often become a school counseling issue?

In this episode of the School for School Counselors Podcast, we explore what’s really happening when students compete over small moments and why school counselors are frequently asked to intervene even when there’s no clear behavior problem.

We look at the neurological and social drivers behind competitive behavior, how these moments get misread by adults, and how that mi...

Everyone was laughing... until suddenly someone wasn’t. Learn how "burns" work, why it’s usually mutual until it isn’t, and how to know when it’s time to shift from counseling to consequences. Burn culture shows up in those fast, sarcastic exchanges where students trade “jokes” for laughs, status, and social footing... until someone becomes the cost of the humor. In this episode, we unpack why these moments feel so hard to respond to in real time, how adolescent peer dynamics fuel them,...

Why do some students wait until school counselors are walking out the door before they finally open up?
It’s not randomness, and it’s definitely not manipulation. It’s nervous system timing, and understanding it will change the way you interpret those 3:24 p.m. confessions forever.

In this episode, Steph Johnson breaks down the neurobiology behind “drive-by disclosures” and explains why so many students can only share the hard stuff after the bell rings. You’ll learn:

• Why nervous system safe...

The hoodie isn’t the problem. It’s the messages we’re missing. In this episode, Steph Johnson takes you inside one of the most misunderstood behaviors on a school campus: the kids who cover up, layer up, or hide inside hoodies no matter the temperature. Using research from adolescent psychology, sensory science, trauma, school anxiety, and identity development, Steph explains what hoodie behavior really communicates… and why school counselors are uniquely positioned to decode it. ******...

Those hallway TikTok routines are saying something, school counselor- and it’s not what you think. In this episode, we decode what those repeated dance loops reveal about belonging, status, and the adolescent brain. You’ll learn how synchronized movement functions as a social signal and why these micro-performances can be early indicators of connection, pressure, or exclusion on your campus. If you’ve ever walked past a TikTok trend at school and wondered what you’re really seeing, this...

“Rizz.” “Bet.” “Six-Seven.” Sounds like noise... but it’s not. In this episode of the School for School Counselors Podcast, Steph Johnson breaks down what teen slang really means, and how it maps your campus culture in ways most adults never notice. You’ll hear the neuroscience behind why slang sticks, the social psychology that makes it powerful, and how school counselors can use it to spot who’s connecting… and who’s slipping through the cracks. If you’ve ever smiled and nodded through a ph...

Some counselors never have to fight for their role- or explain their worth.

That’s not luck. It’s skill.

In this episode, you’ll learn how the most respected school counselors earn trust, keep influence, and make their programs untouchable, no “advocacy” required.

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Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us!
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Students refusing school isn’t new... but what’s happening now is different. Across the country, nearly one in three students is missing ten percent or more of the school year. And while everyone’s blaming “attendance apathy” or “bad parenting,” the truth is a lot more complicated. In this episode, I talk about what school refusal really is- and what it’s not. You’ll learn the four hidden drivers behind school avoidance, how to spot them, and exactly what school counselors can do (without be...

October hits different, doesn’t it? One week you’re flying high after a student breakthrough, and the next- you’re wondering if you can even make it to Friday.

In this episode, I’m talking about the rollercoaster of school counseling: why it feels impossible to stay grounded this time of year, what’s really fueling the highs and lows, and three sanity-saving ways to keep your footing when everything around you feels like too much.

We’ll get real about the myths we’ve bought into (like thinking...

The radio call comes in. A student’s refusing to move, and suddenly, everyone’s looking at you to fix it. Here’s what nobody ever told us in grad school: defiance and dysregulation can look the same from the outside, but they require completely different responses. This episode gives you a clear, evidence-based way to figure out the difference, match the right tool to the right circumstance, and keep your cool when the pressure’s on. Join for the masterclass Oct 19: schoolforschoolcounselors...

⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us! ⭐️
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PBIS is implemented in over 25,000 schools. Your district swears by it. But does it actually help kids- or just make the data look better?

In this candid episode of my Graded series, I'm giving PBIS the report card it deserves... and it may not be what you expect.

What you'll learn:

The gap...

Are calm corners helping students regulate... or just giving them a softer way to opt out?

In this episode of Graded, I take a hard look at one of the most popular SEL approaches in schools today: calm corners. You’ll hear what the research says, what most campuses are getting wrong, and what grade calm corners really deserve.

Plus, I respond to a one-star podcast review that called me condescending and gave me a D-minus.
(I could NOT be more grateful! Listen to find out why.)

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Ever walked out of an “advocacy meeting” with your admin and thought, Is anything ever going to change? You brought the data. You showed the charts. You quoted the position statements. And still, you walked away with the same ridiculous caseload, or worse- another responsibility placed on your shoulders. All that effort doesn’t move the needle. It just keeps you running in circles. In this episode of the School for School Counselors Podcast, I’m grading advocacy as it stands in our profession...

What if the tools you’ve been told to use as a school counselor are actually working against you? In this highlights reel, I’m recapping eight of the field’s most popular practices and giving you the real verdict on each. You’ll hear the truths nobody disputes, the traps that keep counselors spinning their wheels, and the takeaways you can actually use on a real campus. I’ll even hand you the one-liners and micro-actions you can take straight into your next meeting. But this isn’t just ...

"What you say in here, stays in here…” We’ve all said it, but it’s a promise that never came from schools, and it’s costing us trust with students, parents, and administrators. In this Graded episode, I examine how near-absolute confidentiality has been implemented in school counseling, the fallout it’s created, and why the grade I’m giving it might surprise you. We’ll trace how confidentiality migrated from clinical counseling into schools without informed consent, why the line w...

Minute meetings look great on a spreadsheet. But do they actually help kids? In this episode of Graded, I dig into where this practice really came from, the myths we’ve built around it, and the risks nobody’s talking about, and I’ll share what to do instead.

Minute meetings have taken on near-folklore status in school counseling. They’re all over Pinterest, pushed in Facebook groups, and praised as the “must-do” way to reach every student. But here’s the problem: they didn’t come from research....

What if the behavior approach everyone swears by is actually making some kids worse? Check-In/Check-Out (CICO) is one of the most common Tier 2 interventions in school counseling, but most trainings leave out the detail that decides whether it works or fails. In this episode, I share the research, the hidden limitation no one’s talking about, and the story of a student who proved that “research-based” doesn’t always mean “right for every kid.” This episode is highly researched: Fairba...

Small group counseling gets pushed as the fix for everything. But what if we’re getting it wrong? In this episode: Why “ASCA-aligned” doesn’t mean effectiveThe real reason group work is overusedHow to spot a pretty curriculum with zero impactPlus, a student story that stopped me in my tracks. If you’ve ever run a group just to prove you’re doing Tier 2… this one’s for you. ********************************* ⭐️ Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re...