Centering Students in School-Based Support Processes: Critical Inquiries and Shifting Perspectives

Abstract

Although student support systems exist in most U.S. schools today, these systems frequently operate without input from young people. Here, I draw on data from two studies that explore youth perspectives of support processes, arguing that both school organizations and individual students will benefit from centering youth voices in student support systems. To make this argument, I describe three central practices of school-based support processes and explore how young people's voices might (re)shape these practices. I begin by investigating the practice of “referring in,” the ways in which students are invited into and included in school-based support processes. I highlight the need for making students’ voices central in the referral process. Next, I investigate the practice of “referring out” students to school- and community-based providers—the professionalization of help. Here, I highlight the importance of trust and fit in facilitating effective support relationships. Finally, I explore the practice of “referring up” by examining the hierarchies of mandated reporting that exist in schools. I conclude with the argument that adults and youth must collaborate to improve information-sharing systems.