During the formative period, who implemented regular guidance focusing on vocational/career instruction?

• A. Jessie B. Davis
• B. Frank Parsons
• C. Carl Rogers
• D. Abraham Maslow

Answer: (A)

In the formative period of school counseling, the move from scattered, informal advice to a structured, regular guidance program within schools was a key development. Jessie B. Davis is the figure who implemented the first regular, school-based guidance program that explicitly focused on vocational and career instruction. She established systematic counseling activities in the public schools, bringing career exploration and planning into the daily school routine rather than leaving students to seek guidance on an ad hoc basis. This set the template for ongoing, in-school guidance services that centers on helping students connect their interests and strengths with possible futures.

Frank Parsons is often credited with laying the groundwork for vocational guidance as a concept—pioneering the idea of helping people choose careers through assessment and counseling—but Davis operationalized that approach in schools, turning it into a regular program. The other two names are associated with later counseling theories and practices rather than early, school-based career guidance.