Running head: SOCIAL JUSTICE IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE 1

Social Justice in Professional Practice Sara F. McManus Seattle University Education 501: Social Justice March 5, 2011

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE Abstract The profession of school counseling is in the midst of evolution. As a contemporary school

counselor I must begin to consider my role as an effective advocate for social justice through my professional practice. Working on several levels of advocacy to identify barriers, I can become an advocate for marginalized populations within the school. By educating my students, my colleagues, and my community, I can create alliances and foster change within society as a whole.

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE This I Believe

The school counselor plays a pivotal role as the catalyst for change both inside the public school system and in society as a whole. Equitable access to resources and rigor are at the foundation of an effective learning environment. Therefore, as a school counselor, it will be my professional practice to advocate for change that acknowledges the systemic oppression of certain populations (Ratts, p. 160). As an advocate for change, I will work to empower marginalized students so that they can identify social and political factors that affect them, and help them develop the voice to advocate for themselves (Lewis, Arnold, House, and Toporek). Within my school community, I will work to identify environmental barriers and broker resources that promote equitable access. In the public arena, I will need to take the lead in educating people and shaping policy around issues of social justice. In these ways, I will become an agent for social justice through my professional practice. The 21st century student faces a myriad of challenges when they arrive at school. As a school counselor I will have a big impact on how prepared my students will be to meet these challenges. Dufour notes that, historically, students have been guaranteed the right to go to school, but not necessarily to learn (Dufour, et. al., p. 13). This is arguably the greatest challenge facing schools today. The contemporary school counselor finds herself in the multi-faceted role of working to help students develop identity and achieve academic success. This is no easy task given the achievement gap that exists in education and the dwindling budgets of public school districts. The state of Washington is ranked 46th in the nation for spending per student (U.S. Census Bureau). This becomes an equity issue when you consider that districts with high poverty cannot make up this spending gap when they cannot pass levies and bonds. As a school counselor, I will be charged with the task of advocating for marginalized populations and I will do that by using data to educate and create alliances.

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

It is imperative that the school counselor use achievement data to assess how well schools are meeting the needs of struggling populations. The role of the school counselor is to address the needs of all students, particularly the needs of culturally diverse students, students of low socioeconomic status, and other underserved, underrepresented populations (ASCA, 2009). As a counselor, I will use disaggregated data to help my school identify and examine the fundamental assumptions that they have about certain populations of students. As a member of a leadership team, I will be in the perfect position to identify struggling populations and set a course for effective intervention to remove the barriers that stand in the way of academic progress. As an agent for social justice, I will work on behalf of my students to affect change by using data to create alliances within the school community. Using goals that are based on achievement data, I can work to promote equitable access for all my students. As a school counselor I will be educational leader who uses data to challenge the system in ways that are advantageous for all students. As a liaison to the community, I will affect as much change as I can in education. I expect that this will be difficult, as we continue to rebuild our economy. However, people have a huge capacity for empathy when they can understand the story of another. I believe that my most important work will be helping students tell their story in order to become this change I am becoming a school counselor because I believe that I can play a pivotal role for change within 21st century schools. I believe that I can do this through education. Beliefs about student achievement are central to shaping what a school can do for students. Therefore, as a school counselor I will work to analyze data, educate students and colleagues, and use community resources and political advocacy to change the way that people think about student achievement. In this way, I hope to help re-form schools into a model that guarantees all students the right to learn.

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE References American School Counselor Association (2009). Position statement: the professional school counselor and diversity. Retrieved from http://www.schoolcounselor.org. Dufour, R., Dufour, R., Eaker, R., and Karhanek, G. (2004). Whatever it takes: How professional learning communities respond when kids dont learn. Bloomington: Solution Tree. U.S. Census Bureau (2006). Website. The problem: A decade of decline in public school funding. Retrieved from: http://fairschoolfundingcoalition.org/.

Lewis, Arnold, House, and Toporek (2003). Advocacy competencies. ACA Governing Council: March 2003. Ratts, V. (2009). Social justice counseling: Toward the development of a fifth force among counseling paradigms. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 48, 160-172.