H.R. 380·Elementary Intermediate
A Bill to Require a School Counselor for Every 250 Elementary Students
Rep. Brooks (D-MD)
Sets a maximum 250-to-1 student-to-counselor ratio in public elementary schools.
Sec. 1 — Mandate
Every public elementary school shall maintain at least one licensed counselor per 250 students.
Sec. 2 — Exception
Schools under 100 students may share a counselor with another school in the same district.
Sec. 3 — Funding
$1.1 billion per year for counselor salaries.
Sec. 4 — Enforcement
State ed agency audits.
Tournament Prep
Mechanical parts, sourced & timed
Use this as your pre-round checklist. Memorize the source citation. Time yourself to the delivery target.
- Bill / Number
- H.R. 380 — A Bill to Require a School Counselor for Every 250 Elementary Students
- Funding source
- $1.1B/yr from ED Title IV-A and SAMHSA.
- Timeline
- Compliance phased over 3 years.
- Realistic — but counselor pipeline is limited.
- Enforcing agency
- State ed agencies; ED audit.
- Yes — ESSA already monitors student-support staffing.
- Penalty for non-compliance
- Title I funding adjustment.
- Source citation
- ASCA (2023), 'Student-to-School-Counselor Ratio Report' — schoolcounselor.org.
- Delivery time (read aloud)
- 1:00 (60s)
Strongest counter-argument
$1.1B/yr is a lot for a ratio change parents will never see.
Your pre-emptive answer
ASCA's recommended ratio is 250:1; current U.S. average is 408:1. Schools above 400:1 show 30% higher chronic absenteeism per NCES (2022) — parents see the absence, even if they don't see the counselor.