From Silos to Synergy: Why Hatching Results is Evolving to Support All Student Services

For years, Hatching Results built its reputation by equipping school counselors with the tools, frameworks, and systems to do transformational work. And that work matters deeply.

But students don't experience school through a single role. They move through hallways, classrooms, offices, and conversations that involve school counselors, school social workers, college and career advisors, school psychologists, school-based therapists, administrators, and more. And when those professionals aren't aligned, students feel it.

That's why Hatching Results is evolving. We're intentionally expanding our focus to support all student services and post-secondary readiness professionals, not because the work of school counselors matters less, but because aligned systems produce better outcomes for every student.

The truth is, this work isn't new for us. For years, our partnerships have naturally extended beyond the school counseling office into student services teams, district leadership, and the spaces where multiple roles intersect to support the whole child. We're simply making explicit what has always been true of our most impactful work. Our approach is grounded in a simple but powerful belief: connectivity, collaboration, and coherence across systems create synergistic services.

One powerful illustration of what this looks like in practice is Jen Dodson (Lead School Counselor) and Crystal Haslett (Coordinator of Student Support Services) from Washington Township Schools in Indiana.

🎥 Watch their 10-minute story here:

"We Were Building the Plane While We Were Flying It"

Jen and Crystal didn't start with a clean strategic plan. They started with complexity.

Crystal was serving as a middle school counselor while simultaneously supporting multiple buildings with attendance, family concerns, and crisis response…essentially doing the work of school social work, which was her actual education and training. Meanwhile, Jen was stepping into a temporary leadership role with one directive: implement comprehensive school counseling in their secondary schools.

The social workers in their district had been hired years earlier when the district passed a referendum, but without a plan for oversight or a model to follow. Each building was able to decide how they would use its school social worker.The result? Hardworking professionals. Overlapping responsibilities. No shared system. Inequitable student outcomes.

"We had big job descriptions — but not systems to actually get the work done."As they worked through grant after grant to clarify and fund their work, a question started to surface:"Why do we need both a school counselor and a school social worker? Isn't there overlap? Is there really enough work for everyone?

"It's a question many districts are quietly asking. And the answer Jen and Crystal arrived at is important: the overlap wasn't new. They were finally just naming it.

As Jen and Crystal put it: "Across the country, school social workers speak about feeling minimized and misunderstood in their roles. School counselors speak about feeling territorial over their roles. And honestly, it all makes sense — because the overlap is often the work we love the most."

Naming that tension didn't make it disappear. But it made aligned action possible. And it created better outcomes for students. They could have protected their lanes.

They could have built parallel systems and avoided a messy middle. Instead, they made a conscious decision to align publicly, even when it would have been easier not to.

"If we were truly going to implement comprehensive school counseling and the school social work model with integrity, we could not do it alone. We needed each other."

What Alignment Actually Looked Like

This wasn't a retreat offsite and a shared vision statement. It was sustained, intentional work, built on trust that Jen and Crystal had developed over years of working alongside each other.

It meant having hard conversations when things got tense. Being honest and vulnerable. Leading side-by-side –  school counseling leadership and school social work leadership together – so their teams could see what that looked like in practice. And their teams were watching.

"They noticed who we invited into the room. They noticed whose voices were elevated. And they paid attention to how we spoke about each other when the other person wasn't present."

“They didn't collaborate at a high level because we told them to. They did it because we modeled it."

They engaged in joint professional learning. They included school social workers in their elementary school counseling pilot from the very beginning. They built a shared language. They attended each other's national conferences. They used data and storytelling – including Flashlight Results©  one-pagers – to make the impact of their work visible to district leadership.

That visibility mattered. Temporary positions were sustained and expanded as a result.

It's also worth noting: that journey included partnering with Hatching Results. As Crystal shared, "That learning meant so much and really drove us forward."

What's Possible When It Works

In the 2025–2026 school year, every elementary school in Washington Township is staffed with both a licensed school social worker and a licensed school counselor.

But as Jen and Crystal are quick to point out, it was never really about the staffing ratios.

"It's about kids not slipping through the cracks. It's about families only having to tell their story once. It's about school teams speaking the same language and professionals doing the work they were trained to do — but doing it together.”

Today, their school social workers will push back if they hear anyone use the term "guidance counselor." And their school counselors have become some of the strongest advocates for the role of school social work.

"Systems are flowing. Teams are collaborating. Student outcomes are visible. And in a competitive hiring market, that comprehensive approach sets us apart."

This Is Where Hatching Results Is Headed

Jen and Crystal's story is a blueprint, not just an inspiration.

It shows what becomes possible when student services professionals stop working in parallel and start building something shared. And it reflects exactly the kind of work Hatching Results wants to support across the country, aligned with the Multi-Tiered, Multi-Domain System of Supports (MTMDSS)TM framework.

Whether you're a school counselor, school social worker, psychologist, school-based mental health provider, college and career advisor, or a district leader trying to build something bigger than any one department, we are collectively building aligned and equitable services to best support students. We are building aligned, equitable services to best support students. 

Because every student deserves professionals who work together."

We work better. Our systems are stronger. Our impact is deeper. When we lead together."

Want to learn more about how Hatching Results supports aligned student services systems? Click here!!