As a writer, educator and counselor certified in two countries, I find myself consulting with folks all over the globe. I belong to various counseling-related groups and find much inspiration therein. I’ve also found many a post or question that made me cringe. Not because these professionals were less bright,
Category: Counseling Today
For many years, white men were presented as the face of the counseling profession and largely dictated its focus and direction. The American Counseling Association (originally known as the American Personnel and Guidance Association) was founded in 1952. Nineteen of its first 20 presidents — many of whom went on
On average, there is one school counselor for every 482 K-12 public school students in the U.S. This number has decreased slightly from the previous year’s average of 491-to-1. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA), a division of the American Counseling Association, compiles a report each year on student-to-school counselor
Jeffrey Kottler has spent more than four decades as a counselor, educator and supervisor, and he has collected a lot of stories along the way. He passes some of these stories on in his latest book, The Secrets of Exceptional Counselors, which is published by the American Counseling Association. With
As a counselor in a group supported by a church, I regularly encounter clients who want to discuss spirituality, or who even want spiritual guidance, assuming that because the counseling department is located within the church building, all the counselors are equipped to be spiritual leaders. The situation can cause
Millions of human trafficking victims exist across the globe. In the United States, hundreds of thousands of victims experience trafficking. As society expands and evolves, human trafficking perpetrators find new ways to recruit and victimize others. The evolution of perpetration ensues because of increases in accessing technology, shifting state and
With more than 2.2 million Americans behind bars, there are more citizens incarcerated in the United States than in any other country in the world, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. The United States can also lay claim to the highest rate of recidivism. According to a Department
Next month will mark the first anniversary of one of the most impactful, discussed and upending national elections in U.S. history. More importantly, that election was the beginning of a whole string of events that brought some groups together, drove a wedge between others and began a roller coaster of
As I am writing this, American Counseling Association members from across the country are preparing to deploy to Texas and other Gulf states in response to the historic flooding that accompanied Hurricane Harvey. Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by this storm — a storm that has a
As a professor of counseling, I am invested in helping students develop the necessary and sufficient skills to become effective psychotherapists. There is a plethora of evidence to support mindfulness as a tool for fostering these skills. Integrating mindfulness training can: Improve how counselors-in-training relate to self and others with