• Special education counselors serve a critical role in the lives of their students ensuring their students and their students' families can access the appropriate interventions and supports they need to be successful  in school.                               
• Special education counseling requires counselors who are well versed in all the same areas as a school counselor, but also have knowledge of special education law and experience working with students with special needs.  

• Students with special needs require counseling services at a greater rate than their peers with no special needs.  

• Special education counselors are critical advocates for their students and knowledgeable resources in our schools.                                         

• The student is your first priority. She shared that the job can become overwhelming, so it is important to frequently remind yourself that the student is always your priority.  

•  Refrain from passing judgement. As a special education counselor, you will deal with many difficult and heartbreaking situations and people. We have not walked in their shoes, and we must refrain from passing any judgement.   

•  When you know better, do better. It is important not to beat yourself up if you feel you were not able to make the difference you had hoped for or be as effective as you had hoped in a situation. Learn from it, and move on.

• In October 2020, the American School Counselor Association distributed a state-of-the profession survey to nearly 75,000 members and nonmembers. 
• The survey hoped to attain details on school counselor demographic data, roles and responsibilities, the challenges of virtual learning necessitated by COVID-19, efforts to combat systemic racism, their most significant day-to-day challenges, professional development needs and other areas. 
• Data reveals that meeting student needs in a virtual environment is their biggest challenge, followed by managing a large number of students and addressing achievement and opportunity gaps. 

• Education Secretary Miguel Cardona is concerned about certain groups of students who may be allowed to attend school virtually again next fall.

• Cardona cautions that students with disabilities are absent at an exceptionally high rate virtually and may not receive the special services they need.

• This impacts special education counseling and the delivery of this related special education service (Belsha, 2021).

• This article discusses special education services. The U. S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights dropped an investigation into whether Indiana  provided the appropriate services to its students with disabilities remotely during the pandemic.

• This article addresses a particular investigation involving special education services during the pandemic. There will likely be more investigations and possible litigation in this area. 

• This affects special education counseling and could impact how students are served in the coming years (TerBush, 2021).

• This law provides a definition of  special education; it is specialized instruction designed to meet the needs of a specific child with a disabilty (Partners, n.d.). 

• The law goes on to point out that the education is free of cost to the parent.

• The law delineates what related services are under the law and lists special education counseling as a related service.

• This special education law is relevant to special education counseling because it defines special education and specifies special education counseling as a related service as defined in this law. 

Special Education | Key Definitions in IDEA. https://prntexas.org/special-education-key-definitions-in-idea/ 

• The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment assures that states provide equal protection of the laws, and it applies to all public schools.

•  This part of the 14th amendment was interpreted in the 1954 Brown v. Board decision and laid the constitutional foundation for equal educational opportunities for students with disabilities under the Equal Protection Clause  (U.S. Const. amend. XIV; Johnson, 2017).

• This case is a landmark civil rights decision that determined separate education for African American students was not equal. 

• This court case provided the constitutional foundation for parents of students with disabilities to push for equal educational opportunities for all, including students with disabilities (Brown v. Board, 1954; Johnson, 2017).

• This law describes the comprehensive school counseling program. 

• The law goes into great detail about every aspect of the comprehensive school counseling program describing each component of the counseling program thoroughly.

• This law shapes counselor training and education in Texas, as it is a state law.

• While reviewing current events, laws, and regulations, I felt as strongly as ever that students with disabilities require more in the area of counseling than their peers without disabilities and that many educators are not equipped with knowledge of special education law regarding identification and related services.
• Educators may not understand the special factors involved when trying to serve these students, remotely or in person.
• Educators may not be aware of the heavy legal precedent where special education is concerned, and they may not understand the many areas for potential litigation.
• Understanding the current controversies surrounding this issue has motivated me to try and plan more training and awareness activities to ensure that all faculty members are aware of the important pieces in special education law and how special education counseling is one facet to the related services many of these students require. 
• Evaluating this issue has helped me focus and define a goal to relentlessly serve my students while tirelessly advocating for them and their needs through educating other educators.

• Always treat the student as my first priority.
• Treat all students with respect and refrain from passing judgement.
• Stay abreast of all federal, state, and local law. 
• Follow all legal and ethical guidelines.
• Commit to learning more about current issues in the field and have a willingness to share my knowledge.
• Advocate for my students and their needs tirelessly. 
• Encourage other educators to educate themselves in this area and come to me for help if necessary.
• Strive to do better when I know better.
• Join and stay involved in a professional organization in my field.