The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to examine the relationships of preK-8 professional school counselors' (PSCs') work motivation with their perceptions of importance and levels of implementation of Maryland's state standards based on the national standards created by the American School Counselor Association (ASCA). The theoretical framework for this study was provided by Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory. The researcher collected data via online survey from a convenience sample of 81 PSCs from southern Maryland using Guay, Vallerand, and Blanchard's Situational Motivation Scale and ASCA-based state counseling standards. The research questions addressed the bivariate relationships of PSCs' work motivation, perceived importance, and level of implementation of the standards. The nonparametric correlation analysis showed that PSCs' work motivation was not significantly related to their perceptions of importance of the ASCA-based state standards (taub = --.129, p = .111 to taub = .101, p = .215) or to their levels of implementation of those standards (taub = --.036, p = .646 to taub = .141, p = .075). The perceived importance of academic standards correlated significantly with the perceived importance of personal/social standards (tau b = .572, p < .001), and the level of implementation of academic standards correlated with the level of implementation of personal/social standards (taub = .606, p < .001). The significant but weaker correlations between the perceived importance and the levels of implementation for the academic standards (tau b = .392, p < .001) and for the personal/social standards (taub = .399, p < .001) signaled the existence of other important factors of implementation.