The School Counselor is at the heart of our program. The SchoolCounseling@Denver program has a singular focus – what it means to be a school counselor. Students will experience a curriculum where readings, assignments, discussions, and assessments are relevant to the work of a school counselor and classes are filled with other aspiring school counselors. Our mission is to develop the next generation of school counselors to become agents of change, embracing a holistic approach to meeting the academic, career, and social/ emotional needs of students from diverse backgrounds within the P-12 school system(s) and across the communities in which they serve.
Our Masters of Arts in School Psychology is offered 100% online.
Core faculty, all graduates of CACREP accredited programs, grounded the SchoolCounseling@Denver curriculum in the following learning objectives, adopted from the 2016 Counsel for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) standards:
Professional Orientation and Ethical Practice – Students will be able to articulate the elements related to professional identity including; the history and philosophy of the counseling profession, the value of professional organizations, the need for legal and ethical practice and advocating for the profession and clients that are served.
Social and Cultural Diversity– Students will demonstrate multicultural awareness, knowledge and skills necessary for competency in working with a diverse population.
Human Growth and Development– Students are able to demonstrate an understanding of development across the lifespan and the impact on normal and abnormal functioning.
Career Development– Students are able to utilize career development theory in the development of individualized and developmentally appropriate career development activities and interventions.
Counseling and Helping Relationships– Students are able to demonstrate the skills necessary to engage in an effective and therapeutic helping relationship.
Group Counseling and Group Work– Students demonstrate competency in preparing and facilitation of group counseling.
Assessment and Treatment Planning– Students demonstrate the ability to identify effective assessment strategies in order to facilitate treatment planning.
Research and Program Evaluation– Students will demonstrate an understanding of research methods to inform evidence-based practice.
School Counseling Focus– Students will demonstrate an understanding of and ability to apply the foundations, contextual dimensions and practice of school counseling as a specialty area.
Certification
The SchoolCounseling@Denver program can lead to licensure as a School Counselor. Please click here for more information on the process of obtaining licensure in the state of Colorado and to see whether this program meets (or does not meet) licensure requirements in states other than Colorado.
