In this edition readers will find:
- April is Counseling Awareness Month: Help Make Counseling a Household Word!
- New Regulations Forthcoming on Privacy Laws and Mentally Ill Students
- Relevant Research: Girls Aspire to a Different Kind of Leadership
- Worth Reading: Report Addresses Alignment of Schools with College and Workplace
- Want to Build Your Private Practice? ACA's Private Practice Pointers Can Help
- ACA 2008 Conference in Hawaii: A Photographic Retrospective
- ACAF Grad Student Essay Contest Deadline: April 25
- Fast Fact: Student Borrowing Rises Dramatically
- Conference Clipping: Charlotte 2009 Call for Programs
- Reliable Resource: Parent Guide to the Threat or Reality of Drug Use
- Newsworthy Events and Important Dates: Mark Your Calendar
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APRIL IS COUNSELING AWARENESS MONTH: HELP MAKE COUNSELING A HOUSEHOLD WORD!
Each year the American Counseling Association sets aside the month of April as Counseling Awareness Month, a time to celebrate the practice of professional counseling, advance the needs of the individuals served by counselors, and promote the helping roles of counselors in all settings. It is a time to promote the professional and ethical standards that lead to competence and take pride in the good work that counselors accomplish each day. Check out the Counseling Awareness Celebration Guide for dozens of ideas you can use to raise awareness of the profession.
Use Your Website Effectively
How is your counseling program being presented to clients and the public? Today, most institutions, agencies, organizations, and private practices that have a counseling dimension use their website to provide general information for clients and other stakeholders. These valuable electronic communication tools, however, must be revised regularly and maintained in order to achieve their full impact.
Use the following checklist to determine if your website is being used effectively. Does your website:
- Present general information about the counseling center mission, location, hours of operation?
- Identify and offer photographs of the counseling staff and support team?
- Offer FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) designed to provide basic information?
- Present a calendar of important events and programs offered through the counseling center?
- Provide a virtual tour of the counseling center using words and photographs to promote your institution, agency, or program?
With these features, your website will keep visitors well informed!
Free "Got Issues?" Posters
To celebrate Counseling Awareness month, ACA is offering 3 posters and 1 bumper sticker free to ACA members. You pay only a shipping/handling fee of $6.75. Items will be shipped in a mailing tube. This special offer not available online. Please order by phone 800-347-6647 (M-F, 8am - 7pm ET), by email: GotIssues@counseling.org (include credit card information), or fax your order with credit card payment information to 703-461-9260. While supplies last!
NEW REGULATIONS FORTHCOMING ON PRIVACY LAWS AND MENTALLY ILL STUDENTS
According to the New York Times, the US Department of Education will be issuing new regulations dealing with the release of confidential information by colleges and universities. The changes in the implementation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act grow out of the Virginia Tech tragedy and deal with the release of information about mentally ill students. Institutions, as reported by the Times, have been reluctant to use existing health and safety exceptions.
Details... (Note: Free New York Times registration may be required to view.)
RELEVANT RESEARCH: GIRLS ASPIRE TO A DIFFERENT KIND OF LEADERSHIP
Despite the emergence of women in greater numbers in business, government, and other organizations, girls in the US seem to have lower leadership aspirations or want a different kind of future leadership role. A national survey, conducted by the Girl Scout Research Council found that 39 percent of girls want to be leaders, a desire that was greater for African American (53 percent), Hispanic (50 percent) ,and Asian American (59 percent) girls, as compared to Caucasian girls (34 percent).
The findings also compared the leadership views of girls in comparison to the views of their male counterparts; they are reported in Change It Up! What Girls Say About Redefining Leadership. Most notable about the new leadership style espoused by girls would be a greater focus on personal principles, ethical behavior, and the ability to affect social change.
WORTH READING: REPORT ADDRESSES ALIGNMENT OF SCHOOLS WITH COLLEGE AND WORKPLACE
Achieve, Inc. has just released, Closing the Expectations Gap, 2008, a state by state report card on how high schools are doing in preparing graduates for the demands of college and careers. Nineteen states now report that their academic standards are aligned with the expectations of employers and higher education institutions, and another 26 report active engagement in the alignment process.
WANT TO BUILD YOUR PRIVATE PRACTICE? ACA'S PRIVATE PRACTICE POINTERS CAN HELP
Veteran counselors Robert J. Walsh and Norman C. Dasenbrook offer private practice counselors (and those contemplating private practice as a career setting) invaluable strategies for the development and maintenance of their entrepreneurial venture. This area of the website is available only to ACA members.
ACA 2008 CONFERENCE IN HAWAII: A PHOTOGRAPHIC RETROSPECTIVE
Thank you to all who attended the 2008 ACA Conference & Exposition! Your presence was an indication of your personal commitment to professional development--both your own and that of others with whom you shared your experiences, knowledge and insights while you were with us. Check out the "virtual postcard" of photographs from the conference (see link below). You may see yourself! ACA also wishes to thank the dozens of volunteers and presenters for aiding in making the 2008 experience one of the most remarkable on record.
ACAF GRAD STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST DEADLINE: APRIL 25
There are just a few weeks left to speak out about a topic relevant to the future of counseling through the 11th Annual ACA Foundation Graduate Student Essay Contest. The competition is open to graduate students in counseling or a counseling-related field who wish to use their writing skills to express an opinion on the issues of the day and possibly get published in the process. Contest topics, prize information and submission instructions can be found at www.acafoundation.org. Deadline: April 25, 2008. Questions? Call ACA Member Services at 800-347-6647, ext. 222.
FAST FACT: STUDENT BORROWING RISES DRAMATICALLY
Are more of your clients expressing concern over money, debt and economic issues? Are you a grad student borrowing even more than you did to get your first degree? A new report, Trends in Undergraduate Borrowing, by the National Center for Educational Statistics found one-third (33 percent) of all undergraduate students borrowed through one or both the federal Stafford loan programs in 2003-04. That figure is up from one fourth (25 percent) in 1995-96.
CONFERENCE CLIPPING: CHARLOTTE 2009 CALL FOR PROGRAMS
Want to present at the ACA 2009 Conference & Exposition in Charlotte, NC, March 19-23? Online submission opens April 9 and the deadline for submitting is June 2, 2008.
Questions? Contact Debbie Beales (Learning Institutes) at dbeales@counseling.org or 800-347-6647, ext. 306 and Crystal Turner (Education Sessions) at cturner@counseling.org or 800-347-6647, ext. 229.
RELIABLE RESOURCE: PARENT GUIDE TO THE THREAT OR REALITY OF DRUG USE
Keeping Youth Drug Free has been prepared by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for distribution to parents dealing with either the threat or reality of drug use. Designed for parents and caregivers of children ages 7 to 13, the guide focuses on six key steps that parents or caregivers can take to help their children grow up drug-free: establish and maintain good communication with their child; get involved in their child's life; make clear rules and enforce them with consistency and appropriate consequences; be a positive role model; teach their child to choose friends wisely; and monitor their child's activities.
NEWSWORTHY EVENTS AND IMPORTANT DATES: MARK YOUR CALENDAR
April 10-12, 2008
Event: ACA of Missouri Annual Conference
Location: Capitol Plaza Hotel, Jefferson City, MO
Details...
Direct questions to: mail@counseling.missouri.org
April 25, 2008
ACAF 2008 Graduate Student Essay Contest Deadline
View Flyer...
April 27-29, 2008
Event: New Jersey Counseling Association Annual Conference
Location: Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, Somerset, NJ
Details...
ACA divisions, branches, and regions are valuable sources of learning and professional development. Information on events will be posted approximately eight weeks prior. This information is made available to ACAeNews via the ACA master calendar and the various organization web sites. Send calendar items to jmacdonald@counseling.org. Please provide the sponsor, dates, site and contact person information. Information posted here is restricted to that sponsored by ACA divisions, branches, regions and related organizations.
TELL A PROFESSIONAL COLLEAGUE OR COUNSELING STUDENTS ABOUT ACAeNews
ACAeNews is disseminated by subscription only. If you believe a colleague would like to receive this electronic newsletter, they can send an email to listserv@listserv.counseling.org and leave the subject blank. In the body of the email, type the following: Subscribe aca-enews First Name Last Name. Counseling students can also keep abreast of important professional information by reading ACAeNews regularly and grow more knowledgeable about the important worked being performed by ACA.
ABOUT ACAeNews
ACAeNews is published biweekly by the American Counseling Association for the benefit of members and the counseling profession. Any reference to a product, service, activity or listing of a web site in ACAeNews does not imply endorsement by ACA. Any views and opinions are those of the sponsoring organization and may or may not be shared by ACA.
Direct comments, questions and submissions to fburtnett@counseling.org. All submissions will be subject to review by ACA for accuracy, timeliness and relevance to the readership and may be edited to meet space parameters.
Brian Canfield, President
canfield@sandiego.edu
Richard Yep, CAE, Executive Director
ryep@counseling.org
Debra Bass, Interim Director of Marketing
dbass@counseling.org
Frank Burtnett, ACAeNews Editor
fburtnett@counseling.org
Don Kenneally, Internet Development / Production
dkenneally@counseling.org
ACA Web site: www.counseling.org
Copyright 2008, American Counseling Association, 5999 Stevenson Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22304. Telephone: 703/823-9800. Email: fburtnett@counseling.org. Permission is hereby granted to reproduce anything contained in this newsletter as long as the American Counseling Association is identified as the original source of the information.
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