House Democrats want to require counselors and media specialists

House Democrats trying to bring back a requirement that every school district to have a guidance counselor and a media specialist. The Iowa Legislature dropped the requirement nine years ago. Davenport representative Cindy Winckler says the positions have become easy targets for cuts without a requirement for them.Winckler is a curriculum facilitator for the Davenport Public Schools. She says studies link guidance counselors to better test scores, improved student self esteem and a decrease in classroom violence. Shenandoah High School guidance counselor John Davis says he and his colleagues also play crucial roles in helping students go on to college.Davis says counselors help students with a wide range of issues. He says employers will tell you that people who don’t make it on the job aren’t failing because they can’t add and subtract — they’re failing because they can’t get along with other people.Davis urges lawmakers to pass the requirement, even if it means sharing counselors among districts. Democrats have tried to pass such a measure in the House in the past without success.