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School counselors are being called to move towards promoting social justice through advocacy strategies and interventions. Social justice advocacy helps to effectively address the systems of oppression that have negatively affect student development. This can be done by utilizing the American Counseling Association Advocacy Competencies as a framework for introducing social justice advocacy strategies. The Advocacy Competencies are made up of three levels: client/student, school/community, and public arena. Each of these levels are made up of two parts that highlight advocacy with and on behalf of an individual. The client/student level requires direct counseling that can empower students through advocacy at the individual level. The school/community level promotes collaboration among the community and systems advocacy. Within the public arena there is a focus on information the public of the systemic barriers that are affecting human development, and how public policy can be driven by professionals. As a counselor, when focusing on one level of advocacy, you must be able to engage with all of the other levels.

Using the ACA’s Advocacy Competencies is to bring about the prevalence of oppression in society and the negative impact it has on human development. (Ratts & Hutchins, 2009) Factors, such as poverty, lead to an increase in depression, low self-esteem, and a decrease in educational and career opportunities. Oppression has been linked to low academic achievement among minority students and those from low-income families, which results in the continuing increase in the achievement gap.Examples like these show just why school counselors must take time to address the outside factors that become barriers for students in regard to their academic, career, and personal/social development.

Ratts, M. J., & Hutchins, A. M. (2009). ACA advocacy competencies: Social justice advocacy at the client/student level. Journal of Counseling & Development, 87(3), 269–275.

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(Peer Reviewed Journal)   Promoting A Safe School Environment Through A Schoolwide Wellness Program

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(Peer Reviewed Journal)   Promoting A Safe School Environment Through A Schoolwide Wellness Program

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A high school located in Kansas City, Missouri has taken steps to strengthen their school safety while also strengthening their relationships with students, faculty, and the community through a program known as IMPACT. This program focuses on creating ways to improve the full school environment in order to improve the safety and wellness of students. Nourishing inviting relationships among student, faculty, and community members is how caring communities are developed. Strategies like metal detectors, student ID badges, and locker inspections that are often used in schools to ensure safety, but actually cause problematic situations. In order to combat this, schools can begin to focus more on conflict resolution, cooperation, service to others, empathy, and trust to really begin to create a safe school environment for all.

In regards to school counseling, this is a program that can be adopted by more high schools across the United States in order to better promote the systematic change that we want to see, especially within low income communities. Some of the factors mentioned above, contribute the the achievement gap that continues to exist amongst minority students. School is supposed to not only a physically safe environment, but also mentally, emotionally, and socially safe for all students.

Gallagher, P. A., & Satter, L. S. (1998). Promoting A Safe School Environment Through A Schoolwide Wellness Program. Focus on Exceptional Children, 31(2), 1. Retrieved from https://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=trh&AN=1812586&site=eds-live&scope=site

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(Peer Reviewed Journal) Promoting Self-Advocacy Among Minority Students in School Counseling 

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(Peer Reviewed Journal) Promoting Self-Advocacy Among Minority Students in School Counseling 

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School counselors use advocacy to help close the achievement gap that exist between minority and Caucasian students. In order to promote this counselors must find ways to create opportunities for self-advocacy among minority students. Studies have shown that racism and oppression within the school systems, in addition to large scale political and economic factors, have contributed to the achievement gap that exist for minority students The ASCA’s National Model for School Counseling Programs has made advocacy a major component of comprehensive school counseling programs (Astramovich & Harris, 2007). Because of this, the ACA’s Task Force on Advocacy Competencies have created guiding principles to assist counselors in gaining a clear perspective for advocacy. The Advocacy Competencies were created with a social justice philosophy that acknowledge the impact of social, political, economic, and cultural factors on human development. The three domains of counseling advocacy are client advocacy, community advocacy, and public advocacy. School counselors are able to help students through empowerment strategies that identify and respond to the barriers that are causing students not to reach success, with one being self-advocacy. Self advocacy is when the student is able to communicate and/or negotiate their own interests, desire, needs, and rights in an assertive manner. Using self advocacy to empower minority students has created a catalyst for change within the educational system and is moving towards transforming society.

Astramovich, R. L., & Harris, K. R. (2007). Promoting Self-Advocacy Among Minority Students in School Counseling. Journal of Counseling & Development, 85(3), 269–276. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1002/j.1556-6678.2007.tb00474.x

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As is mentioned in the school competencies portion of the American School Counselor’s Association, it is the job of the school counselor to ensure that “every student can succeed”.  While this is an extremely broad statement, it encompasses the fact that every member of the student body must be provided and equipped with the skills necessary to move forward successfully in their education.  While this does not suggest how to accomplish this important task, the guidelines clearly and concisely express the fact that this is a key element of the school counselor’s role.  It goes on to mention that “every student must have the access to and opportunity for a high-quality education”.  This does not discriminate against marginalized students in any way.  Regardless of the socioeconomic status of the children at-hand, it is the job of the counselor and other staff members to be sure that all needs are being met to the best of the educator’s ability.  It can be assumed that there should be no gap between any portion of the population’s students; all students are privy to top-quality education, with all the skills necessary to attend post-graduate formal education at the same rate as any other student within the public education system.

https://www.schoolcounselor.org/asca/media/asca/home/SCCompetencies.pdf

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Reference #2 Cultural and Achievement Gap 

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Reference #2 Cultural and Achievement Gap 

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As school counselors we will see achievement gaps across our students. In my opinion cultural and economic differences will be the most common achievement gaps among high school students. As school counselors, we must try to eliminate any achievement gaps in our schools.

I will always remember the documentary, A Class Divided. In the documentary a teacher by the name of Ms. Elliott used a real life experiment in order to teach her students a lesson about cultural differences. In the documentary the students in Ms. Elliott’s class viewed Indians and Blacks in a negative way. So, Ms. Elliott used the color of the student's eyes (blues vs. brown) to create a cultural gap. By the end of the experiment the students were able to put their selves in the shoes of the minority group, they were able to relate and understand some of the feelings that minorities deal with daily.

When there are teachers, counselors, staff and administrator with the same mind set of Ms. Elliott (treating every student the same regardless of his cultural background) the school's overall achievement gap will decline because the students will being to imitate the same attitude and behaviors of their superiors.

A Class Divided [Television series episode]. (n.d.). PBS. American School Counselor Association. (2013). ASCA position statements. Retrieved from

https://www.schoolcounselor.org/asca/media/asca/PositionStatements/PS_CulturalDiversity.pdf

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The website, EdSurge.com, offers many insightful and personalized stories which describe innovative and evidence-based ways to minimize the achievement gap within today’s educational system.   They suggest that after identification of a student in need, additional beneficial time and tools be utilized to supplement the standard education.  The curriculum should be rigorous and geared toward the personal areas of needed growth for each individual identified.  It is important to utilize a wide variety of tools and materials in order to engage the student and maintain motivation.  Ideally, each student’s progress should be monitored and recorded monthly and this support must extend to the home as that will best fit the needs of the student at hand.

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-10-27-8-proven-ways-to-help-close-the-achievement-gap

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1.) An example of System Changes could be when the school counselor hold an informational meeting with students' caregivers to explain new polices and procedures that will be implemented school wide.
2.) Another, example of System Change is when the school counselor is making sure to stay up to date on new and innovative ways to keep students safe during a crisis and learning ways to encourage students to speak with a school counselor if something is wrong with the student.

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1.) An example of collaboration is when a team composed of teachers, therapist, the principal, parents, and the school counselors meet to discuss the needs of a specific child.
2) Another example of collaboration is when the school counselor meets with groups of students to discuss a topic. The students and the counselor will be able to collaborate inorder to identify/ resolve and issue or simply communicate about various ideas.

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1.) School clubs are a great way to allow students to voice their opinions about issues and topics that they are willing to stand up for.
2.) Encouraging students to register and vote once they turn 18 is an example of how students can advocate their rights-by voting.

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1.) A career fair will be a good example for leadership because it will give students the opportunity to network with leaders of different professions in which the student may be interested in.
2.) School clubs such as a debate team will give students the opportunity to become leaders among their peers as they debate their issues with one another.

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This article was an article that was a required reading during our first week in this course. In this article, Amatea and West-Olantunji discuss how the number of children who live in poverty has increased in the United States (2007). These children that are living in poverty present a challenge to educators and counselors. Typically, poverty students have "increased levels of anxiety and depression" (2007). They are the ones that also typically have "low levels of positive engagement in school" (2007). Although teachers have to work hard to reach these students and close the achievement gap, counselors too are expected to build a relationship and help these students and their families receive extra needed services.

As counselors, we must help close the achievement gap. We should collaborate with teachers and find out ways they are working to help close the gap. We must show these students that they can do anything they put their mind too. We must help them feel welcomed and encouraged. We must be the link between school and home. We must teach and love with equity versus equality.

Amatea, E. S., & West-Olatunji, C. A. (2007). Joining the
conversation about educating our poorest children:
emerging leadership  roles for school
counselors in high-poverty schools. Professional School
Counseling, (2),
81. Retrieved from https://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?
url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=edsgea&AN=edsgcl.172831284&site=eds-
live&scope=site

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According to the American School Counselor Association (ASCA), the role of a counselor should be to work in collaboration with staff, community, parents, and students to ensure the most appropriate and positive learning environment possible for all members of the school.  While an equal education for all students is not mentioned in the mission statement, it is certainly implied.  This particular model utilizes measurability in outcomes and evidence-based practices to ensure the needs of all students are being met.  In theory, this should necessitate effort and resources be used to increase achievability in the educational areas in those students who fall into the marginalized categories.  The focus statements reads, “[We must] establish program focus, school counselors identify personal beliefs that address how all students benefit from the school counseling program.”  Without focus on the underserved population at a school, this focus will remain unmet.

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As stated by Mitcham-Smith in the article, Advocacy- Professional School Counselors Closing the Achievement Gap through Empowerment, “the professional school counselor’s role of advocate, champion of social justice, social change agent, and urban school counselor” the role of school counselor is a far-reaching, thinly spread job.  According to research, the school counselor must act as the advocate and agent of change in order to empower the students of minority.  Children must be taught from an early age to advocate for themselves in order to feel empowered and make a change for the better.  It is the responsibility of the counselor to provide a basis of empowerment, confidence, and the self-esteem with which to utilize throughout the years of their education.Mitcham-Smith, M. (2007). Advocacy–Professional School Caounselors Closing the Achievement Gap through Empowerment: A Response to Hipolito-Delgado and Lee. Professional School Counseling.

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[Harvard University]. (2016, February 16). Education gap: the root of inequality

[Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lsDJnlJqoY

This video discussed how the achievement gap molds the mindsets of students. Knowing someone’s races and ethnicity should tell you nothing about the student. There are disparities in education based on gender, race,and socioeconomic status. We must make changes that are necessary to produce the excellence to which we aspire in these contexts. The students all have different needs, but we as counselors have to meet the students where they are. It is scary that Ferguson, mentioned, “Achievement gaps start by the age of two” (2016). Boston has start an initiative called “Boston Basics”. It is based off of five basic ideas about early childhood parenting. It will build social support. It will help children in Boston prosper and not fall behind by the age of two. I love how he mentioned that counselors and teachers can build student leaders to make a difference in schools. After watching this video, all I could think was wow. This will hopefully make a difference and help at least minimize the achievement gap in Boston, at least.

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Safe School Environment Through System Changes

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Safe School Environment Through System Changes

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Through system changes, counselors will be able to encourage strategic thinking. The counselor will be able to create a social climate supportive of safety and success for all students. Students will furthermore be able to interact with a "group" or support (ACA, 2019).

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Safe School Environment through  Collaboration

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Safe School Environment through  Collaboration

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Staff members will work with one another to identify strengths and areas in need of growth, in the social and emotional areas of learning. Counselors will work directly with the students to engage in appropriate planning in order to best fit the needs of those involved.

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Safe School Environment Through Advocacy

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Safe School Environment Through Advocacy

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Counselors will assess the need for direct intervention, collaborate with students and come up with a plan of  action. Students will therefore develop self-advocacy skills and  be more in control of their actions

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Safe School Environment Through Leadership

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Safe School Environment Through Leadership

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The new role of the school counselor is moving toward that of a leader within the school community.  The purpose in this is to promote educational reform, meet statewide educational goals, create a healthy and safe school environment and to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration (Beemak, 2000).

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[TedX Talks]. (2017, December 5). Solving the achievement gap through equity, not equality [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOQbu_3M0_Q

Watching Dr. Lindsey Ott was very opening. She first explained how she assumed teaching would be. She mentioned how she thought everything would be based on equality. She learned that reality never matched textbooks, and grades never matched students. She explained exactly how an achievement gap occurs. Ott stated,

“An achievement gap occurs when one group of students scores higher than another when they are grouped by gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status. Equality reinforces the achievement gap by imposing the same standards and norms on really different groups of people. Equity on the other hand would close the achievement gap by giving the needed support and support structures to those very different groups” (2017).

We must close these gaps. We must create curriculum and instruction for each student -individually.  We must give students positive reinforcement and make them proud of their work, and help them reach a positive self concept. We have to embrace equity and move away from equality.

After watching this video, several questions came to my mind: How can we as counselors, be an advocate for all students? How can we show these students that they all can be leaders? How has system has changed over time? How can we collaborate with other professionals to close these gaps?

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Solving the Achievement Gap Through Equity, Not Equality | Lindsey Ott | TEDxYouth@Columbia

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How Will A Counselor Address the Four Themes

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How Will A Counselor Address the Four Themes

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According to the American School Counselor Association (2017), the school counselor from a high school perspective has several roles and obligations. Within these roles and obligations is to collaborate with other school professionals, parents, and the community. It is also vital that the counselor remains consistent and shows leadership, advocates for the students, collaborates with other personel, and assist with system changes.

Leadership: A school counselor will collaborate with other school professionals, parents, or the larger community when he or she is the guidance counselor. ASCA states, "The development and
implementation of these programs requires leadership from well trained, highly competent high school counselors" (2017). In order to successfully be a guidance counselor, one must show their leadership ability.

Self-Advocacy: A school counselor will collaborate with other professionals, parents, or the larger community and push for equity versus equality. The counselor will  advocate for all students, for the guidance program, and school community. Doing so will help keep the school safe as everyone achieves their goals.

Community: A school counselor will collaborate with the community in various ways. The counselor can contact people from the community for career days, or to represent an unrepresented group to inform others. When working with high schoolers' the guidance counselor can even help students work on their resume and get community based jobs.

System Change: It is so important that the counselor supports students and who they are as individuals and groups. The counselor must help all students feel socially accepted. Doing so will help each student emotionally, and socially. There must be a positive climate and relationship with others. Students must feel safe, and welcomed as they enter your office.

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System change is wide spread across all parts of a system, taking into account the relationships and interdependence among those parts.

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According to the American School Counsel Association National Model (2012), collaboration is building “effective teams by encouraging . . .  students, teachers, administrators and school staff to work toward the common goals of equity, access and academic success for every student.”

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Advocacy is defined as the act of pleading the cause of another, or defending the change of a cause.

Field, J., & Baker, S. (2004). Defining and Examining School Counselor Advocacy. Professional School Counseling, 8(1), 56-63. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/42732415

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According to the American School Counsel Association National Model (2012), leadership is the "foundation of other essential skills needed". "Through leadership, an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal."