At age 16, Kim Johancen-Walt became a suicide survivor after her brother, Kevin, took his own life through carbon monoxide poisoning in 1988. Johancen-Walt, who grew up in a suburb of Denver, recalls being both deeply saddened and incredibly angry with her brother for ending his life. “I remember [a
Month: July 2010
A school counselor’s introduction to advising a student at risk for suicide can be a trial by fire. After all, a young person’s life is possibly hanging in the balance of carefully chosen questions, inflections and body language. A computer-simulation game developed at Purdue University offers virtual training for such
At the tender age of 9, Marcheta Evans was already a budding counselor. Evans, whose family was living in Washington, D.C., at the time, would occasionally accompany her mother, a psychiatric nurse, to her job at a local hospital. During those visits, she played cards and made friends with some
Each July, we welcome a new group of volunteers to the leadership ranks of ACA. The level of enthusiasm I have already witnessed among these volunteer leaders encourages me. Leading our organization at the national level is Marcheta Evans, who will serve as ACA president through June 2011. President Evans,
Excitement. Joy. Anticipation. Surprise. Humility. As my presidency approaches, I ask myself, “How did I end up with this great honor and privilege of service to my profession?” A number of emotions and questions are floating through my mind as I write this first presidential column. American Counseling Association president!