Changes Since Last Review:
The interim review of the Counselor Education Program area finds
significant changes since the most recent NCAT review. These changes
have been the result of both external regulatory action as well as internal
curricular development. For example, a new program begun in Fall
of 1993, the college counseling concentration in the department Ph.D. degree
in Higher Education was eliminated on December 1996 by action of the Louisiana
Board of Regents. The most pervasive change, however, has involved
curriculum fine tuning which has occurred in conjunction with the Counselor
Education self-study in preparation for accreditation by the Council for
the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).
The major changes to the School Counseling Program include:
1) integrating the elementary and secondary tracks into a single school
counseling (K-12) program; 2) requiring a multicultural counseling course;
3) adding a 600 hour internship; and 4) increasing program hours from 39
to 48 semester hours. The Community Counseling program (formerly
Agency Counseling) reflects a title change required by CACREP. Two
other changes to this program include increasing internship hours from
300 to 600 and requiring a multicultural counseling course.
PROGRAM MODEL DESCRIPTION:
The course of study is based upon standards set by CACREP. Within this framework, a reflective analysis model is used in preparing school counselors. This model emphasizes the development of critical thinking skills which are used for problem solving related to the practical tasks of school counselors. Reflective analysis is viewed as an important means of developing critical inquiry, a sense of self-worth in the profession, and a capacity to develop the power and perceptiveness to make changes in schools.
Three major activities highlight our efforts in this regard. First there is commitment to research. This entails not only creating and disseminating new knowledge but also preparing students to function as scientific problem solvers. A second focus is preparing high quality professionals to operate as direct change agents and to use their consultation skills to enable other professional (e.g., teachers, administrators) to help learners overcome obstacles. Students are taught to link assessment methodologies to the development of empirically based interventions. They learn to view problems from a systems/ecological perspective, focusing on the child, family, school, and community. A third focus is on service to the college, university, and community at large. We provide opportunities and assist students to become involved in service activities that enhance professional development as well as collaborative efforts in program development and evaluations.
Some of the sources which provide information about the knowledge
base for school counselor and community programs are included at the end.
GENERAL GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Programs of study offered by counselor education include the Master of Education with a Concentration in School Counseling, a Masters of Arts with a Concentration in Community Counseling, and the Educational Specialist Certificate. The Master of Education, which requires a minimum of 48 semester hours, prepares students for school counseling positions. The content of these specializations meet Louisiana State Department of Education (SDE) preparation requirements for certification in those respective areas. After completion of the Master’s degree, students can enter the Specialist program, which requires a minimum of 60 semester hours including master’s degree credits for graduation. Specialist graduates meet Louisiana SDE Professional Counselor requirements. The purpose of the programs is to prepare individuals to help students in educational settings to master developmental and remedial tasks involving educational, vocational, and personal social needs. Graduates are expected to apply a diverse repertoire of helping strategies and techniques, conceptualize and implement a comprehensive system of services, and engage in evaluation of their efforts.
The M.A. with a Concentration in Community Counseling requires
48 semester hours with relevant field experience. This program prepares
students for work in community counseling settings such as mental health
centers, hospitals, university counseling centers and state agencies.
Graduates meet the academic requirements to become Licensed Professional
Counselors (LPC’s) in the State of Louisiana.
COURSE OF STUDY:
Consistent with CACREP requirements both the school and community
counseling programs have course work in eight core areas: 1) human growth
and development, 2) social cultural issues, 3) the helping relationship,
4) group work, 5) career and lifestyle development, 6) appraisal ; 7) research
and program development, and 8) professional orientation. In addition
to this core each program has specialized course work and field experiences.
The school program has specialized curriculum in foundations of school
counseling (e.g., history, roles, ethics, policies), coordination
of the counseling program as it relates to the school, and knowledge and
skills for the practice of school counseling.
The Specialist Certificate program builds from the Master’s level as a base and gives school counselors the opportunity to pursue special interests and enhance expertise.
The specialized course work in Community Counseling includes curricular
experiences in foundations of community counseling (e.g., history, roles,
ethics, professional issues), contexts in which community counselors practice
(e.g., settings, techniques of community assessment, program evaluation),
and counseling skills (e.g., diagnosis, treatment planning, interviewing
skills). The Specialist Certificate program builds on the master’s
training to allow further specializations in areas such as marriage and
family counseling, career counseling or mental health counseling.
CLINICAL AND PRACTICUM EXPERIENCES
Students in the school and community counseling programs are required to complete 120 on-site practicum hours and 600 on-site internship hours.
School Counseling Program. The practicum requires a minimum of 40 client contact hours during one semester. Students complete their practicum in elementary, middle, or secondary school settings, averaging 8 to 10 on-site hours each week. They receive weekly on-site supervision from qualified school counselors, and they participate in group supervision in an on-campus, weekly practicum seminar.
Practicum students use individual, small group, and large group counseling modalities in the schools. They provide direct counseling services to students, consultation to teachers and administrators, and act as a liaison with parents and other area professionals.
The internship provides advanced counseling experiences for school counselors. The goal is to broaden the student’s knowledge and experience in the various roles in which school counselors function, such as administration of counseling services, program development, and program evaluation. It can also provide an opportunity to obtain specialized counseling experience with special populations, such as disabled, at-risk, and culturally diverse students. Requirements include 240 hours of direct contact during the semester at a designated site. Students spend 20 to 40 hours per week in a school setting. Students meet weekly with an on-site supervisor who has at least two years of post master’s degree school counseling experience. In addition, students are given group supervision as part of a weekly on-campus seminar.
Community Counseling Program. The practicum is completed at a community agency site, averaging 8 -10 hours on-site hours each week. Students must complete a minimum of 40 client contact hours over the course of the semester. They receive weekly on site supervision from a counselor with at least two years of post masters experience and weekly group supervision in an on-campus practicum seminar.
The Internship requires 240 client contact hours. Students spend 20 to 40 hours per week at a community site. They are required to receive weekly supervision by an on-site Licensed Professional Counselor and weekly group supervision as part of an on-campus internship seminar.
Both programs are evaluated on a regular basis including follow-ups of graduates and employers. Objectives, content, and methods of courses taught are evaluated by students each semester. Students evaluate their clinical supervisors and sites. Faculty meet regularly to evaluate, change, and, when relevant, develop new programs and courses. In addition to using student input and professional association positions and perspectives, faculty are in contact with employers and perspective employers to determine program quality and applicability. All these sources are used to plan and achieve up-to-date or innovative curriculum development..
GENERAL KNOWLEDGE BASE BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Baker, Stanley B. (1992). School counseling for the twenty-first century, New York: Macmillian. Baker stresses the school counseling profession’s need to define and enunciate roles and functions more clearly and elaborates on information that school counselors address currently and will need into the twenty-first century.
Benjamin, A. (1974). The helping interview, Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co. This book illustrates basic counseling techniques used in conducting counseling interviews.
Betz, N.E. & Fitzgerald, L.F. (1987). The career psychology of women. Orlando, FL: Academic Press. This book addresses the theory and research related to the career development of women, including therapeutic approaches to addressing the unique challenges faced by women. Betz & Fitzgerald use the evolution of women’s issues in a primary role to define relevant career development constructs, including their use in career development interventions.
Brown, D., & Brooks L. (Editors). (1990). Career choice and development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. The authors have done an excellent job of working with the leaders in career development to present contemporary career development theory. Almost all of the major theorists and their theories are described in depth in this work.
Brown, D., & Srebalus, D.J. (1998 ). An introduction to the counseling profession. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. This book gives an overview of the counseling profession, highlighting specific work settings, counseling approaches, professional and ethical issues, and assessment issues.
Capuzzi, David & Gross, Douglas R. (1999): Counseling & Psychotherapy: Theories and Interventions (2nd Edition). New Jersey: Merrill/Prentice-Hall. This book presents an overview of theories and techniques of interpersonal therapies.
Gladding, S.T. (1996 ). Counseling: A comprehensive profession (3nd Ed.). New York: Macmillan. The history and development, characteristics of counselors, major counseling theories, counseling processes, and ethical and legal issues are presented. Also, counseling with specific populations, assessment procedures, and use of specific tests are included.
Gysbers, N. C. & Henderson, P. (1998). Developing and managing
your school guidance program Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.
Gives an overview of planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating
comprehensive school counselor programs.
Hansen, J.C., Rossberg, R.H., & Cramer, S.H. (1994). Counseling
theory and process. (5th Ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Numerous prominent theories and procedures are presented. These
are followed by presentation of a general counseling process with allows
counselors to add techniques and procedure consistent with their own individual
approach.
Heppner, P P, Kivlighan, D. M. & Wampold, B. E. (1999). Research design in counseling (2nd Edition). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Wadsworth. This book is a primer for students interested in doing research in the counseling field.
Herr, E.L. & Cramer, S.H. (1992). Career guidance and counseling through the life span: Systematic approaches (4th Edition). New York: Harper Collins Publishers. Herr & Cramer chronicle the evolution of career guidance and counseling from the 1800's to the present. They examine the concepts and language systems on which current approaches to interventions in career behavior rest. They discuss the applications of systematic approaches to career guidance and counseling for children, youth and adults in various settings.
Isaacson, I.E., & Brown D. (1993) Career information, career counseling & career development. (5th Edition). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. This book incorporates theory and practical application to teach the foundations of career information, its organization, and how it can be utilized so that the student can understand how people relate to work, how the world of work is structured, and how to apply career materials with individuals and groups in ways that enhance career development.
Lea, D., & Liebowitz, Z. (1991). Adult career development. (2nd Edition). Alexandria, VA: National Career Development Association. This book addresses the theory and research related to adult career development. In addition to presenting the most recent research and theory related to adult career development, Lea & Liebowitz do an excellent job of providing a foundation for selecting and utilizing career intervention strategies during the various adult career phases.
Lee, C.C. & Richardson, B.L. (1991). Multicultural issues in counseling. Alexandria, VA: American Association For Counseling and Development. Although Lee and Richardson’s primary focus is on Multicultural issues in counseling, and they do not focus solely on career related issues, this book provides an excellent foundation for addressing Multi cultural issues when planning pschotherapeutic approaches for clients with diverse cultural backgrounds.
Myrick, R.D. (1993). Developmental guidance and counseling: A practical approach (2nd Ed.). Minneapolis, MN: Educational Media Corporation. This book outlines the developmental guidance model, illustrates school counselor role and function, and presents the facilitative counseling model.
Rye, D.R., & Sparks, R. (1998). Strengthening K-12 school counseling programs: A support system approach.(2nd Edition). Muncie, IN: Accelerated Development. Provides a method of critical inquiry in evaluating and implementing comprehensive school counseling programs. Gives an action model for involving the community, and provides standards for excellence with which to measure program effectiveness.
Wittmer, J. (Ed.). (1993). Managing your school counseling program: K-12 Developmental Strategies. Minneapolis, MN: Educational Media Corporation. Explores issues and concepts related to K-132 school counseling programs, including history, management, working with special populations, strategies for involving others in counseling programs, and accountability.