Examining the Influence of a Professional Development Program on High School Counselors' Practices Regarding Engineering

This Work-in-Progress paper details the innovative practice of providing high school counselors with a hands-on engineering professional development (PD). Prior research shows that counselors are often unprepared to advise students about engineering pathways. This is primarily due to the lack of information and training provided to counselors about engineering. A PD was designed to educate high school counselors about engineering education and the overall engineering profession. A total of 15 counselors completed the five-week PD online during the summer of 2020. A subset of participating counselors (
$\mathrm{n}=5$
) was interviewed six months after the PD to examine how their practices had changed following the PD experience. Initial findings suggest that counselors changed how they viewed engineering as a more inclusive field beyond just a discipline for those who excel in math and science. This led to adjustments in their counseling and recommendations regarding engineering to ensure that any student with an expressed interest would be aware of the opportunity.