An act relating to school counselors

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Kate McCann

Each Vermont school counselor must devote at least 80% of their time to direct or indirect student services, limiting non-counseling duties to 20% of duties.

Read first time and referred to the Committee on Education

Summary of Bill H.618 (2025-2026) — Vermont

Purpose and intent

The bill aims to ensure school counselors devote the majority of their time to direct or indirect services for students.

It aligns with the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) model, which recommends at least 80% of counselors’ time be spent on direct/indirect student services and no more than 20% on program planning and school support activities.

It addresses concerns that counselors are being pulled into inappropriate duties (e.g., 504 coordination, testing coordination, substitute teaching) that reduce time for student-focused counseling.

Key provisions and changes

Adds a new Vermont statute, 16 V.S.A. § 16, titled “SCHOOL COUNSELORS; DIRECT AND INDIRECT SERVICES.”

Definitions:

Direct services: face-to-face or virtual interactions with students focused on academic, career, and social-emotional development per the Vermont Comprehensive School Counselor Framework.
Indirect services: services provided on behalf of students resulting from interactions with students and others, per the same framework.
School counselor: an individual employed in a school setting, either licensed as a school counselor (by the Standards Board for Professional Educations) or possessing a master’s degree in an approved guidance/counseling program.
School support services: activities not categorized as direct or indirect services and outside the scope of the Vermont Comprehensive School Counselor Framework.

Requirement:

Each school counselor must deliver a comprehensive school counseling program.
Each counselor must spend at least 80% of their time delivering direct or indirect services to students.
Counselors may spend up to 20% of their time on school support services.

These time allocations apply to the counselor’s overall duties within the school counseling program.

Affected parties

School counselors in Vermont schools (public and any other settings covered by the framework).

School administrators and district leaders responsible for staffing and role allocation of counselors.

Students who receive school counseling services (academic, career, social-emotional development).

The Vermont Standards Board for Professional Educators and related credentialing bodies (due to licensing/qualification references).

Effective date and timeline

The act would take effect on July 1, 2026.

The bill’s progress and status: introduced and referred to the House Committee on Education (as of January 8, 2026); sponsor listed as Rep. Kate McCann.

Practical considerations and potential impact

Staffing and workload: Districts may need to reallocate duties to ensure counselors meet the 80/20 split, potentially reducing non-counseling duties (e.g., 504 coordination, testing coordination, substitute teaching) that were previously assigned to counselors.

Compliance and measurement: Schools will need systems to track time spent on direct/indirect student services versus school support services to demonstrate adherence.

Professional standards: Emphasizes alignment with the Vermont Comprehensive School Counselor Framework and ASCA principles, reinforcing the professional role of counselors.

Transitional period: With a July 2026 effective date, districts will have a lead time to assess current duties and implement changes to achieve the required time allocations.

If you’d like, I can tailor this summary for a policy brief, legislative analysis memo, or a public-facing explainer with a simple checklist for school districts.