The ACES Womanist Colloquium
Dr. Desa Karye Daniel (Co-chair)
Dr. Lisa Forbes
Dr. Chaya Abrams
Deana Bianco
Scotlyn Mason
Hennessy Mendoza
Diandra Walker
October 11th 2023 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Opening Keynote: Radical Community and Redemptive Self-Love in Counselor Education (Dr. Haskins and Dr. Daniel)
A brave space for women to support one another in our individual and collective journeys. Our aim is to deepen our sense of community among women, increase our personal peace and well-being, and empower ourselves to be authentic in our everyday practices. We welcome a richly diverse population of women who vary in identity, size, age, sexual orientation, career, and socioeconomic status. This year’s women’s retreat theme is Radical Community and Redemptive Self-Love in Counselor Education which focuses on creating networks and relationships that can enhance one’s ability to successfully navigate counselor education spaces. Attendees should expect a mix of panels, networking opportunities, and discussion groups. Please join us for a gathering of women who are committed to growing as a community and creating lifelong relationships.
Interrogating Whiteness in Counselor Education
Dr. Ed Cannon
Lexi Banbury
October 12th 2023 4:00 pm – 4:50 pm
In the United States, the majority of master’s level counseling students continue to be White European American. Research findings suggest that members of this majority group are both less knowledgeable about multicultural issues and less multiculturally aware than minority group members (Gonzalez and Cokley, 2021; Lee and Bhuyan, 2013). The emergence of multiculturalism as the fourth force mandates counselor education programs to move beyond a monocultural view to a multicultural one. A single class in multicultural issues, taught by one professor, is simply not adequate. This workshop will ask participants to examine their own counselor training and examine where it falls short. This active learning session will demonstrate an example of what a training experience geared towards white counselors would look like.
Relationships and Reciprocity: Authentic Research Partnerships with Marginalized Communities
Dr. Carlos Hipolito-Delgado
Dr. Jyotsana Sharma
Daun Kwag
October 13th 2023 8:30 am – 9:20 am
Current research practices prioritize the needs of the researcher, which can stifle the voices of marginalized communities. Despite the techniques stemming from decolonizing methods and critical race theory gaining popularity within the field of counseling, there are few tangible practices that aid researchers in the field of counselor education in understanding how to craft authentic research relationships with marginalized communities. In this session we draw on decolonizing methods, Relational Cultural Theory (RCT), and humanistic theory to argue for the importance of relationship building and reciprocity in counseling research. Additionally, the presenters will share how they have used relationships and reciprocity in their partnerships with youth of color, refugees, and survivors of interpersonal violence. Participants will leave this session with specific strategies for developing authentic and reciprocal relationships with research participants.
Navigating Accommodations Requests at the Intersection of Social Justice & Clinical Training Standard
Dr. Troyann Gentile
Dr. Scott Schaefle
October 13th 9:30 am – 10:20 am
Training programs have a legal and ethical responsibility to provide accommodations for students, in accordance with federal laws, such as the American Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The ACA code of ethics (ACA, 2014) mandates non-discrimination in all areas, including ability and religion. The ADA requires “reasonable” accommodations for counseling students. However, accommodations requests can be challenging for instructors and supervisors who must navigate competing demands for academic rigor and training standards. Furthermore, there is a lack of research and guidance available on how to effectively support students with diverse needs in clinical training programs in an inclusive and socially just manner. This program will provide guidance on how to navigate demands of legal and ethical imperatives. Relevant statutes, codes and areas of conflict will be provided. Ideas for designing accommodations for fieldwork classes will be discussed.
Building an Anti-racist Counseling Program: Personal and Programmatic Barriers, Challenges, and Strategies
Dr. Scott Schaefle
Dr. Kok-Mun Ng
Dr. Joseph Williams
Dr. Thomas Field
Dr. Casey Barrio Minton
October 13th 12:00 pm – 1:20 pm
Implementing antiracism pedagogy and fostering an anti-racist counselor preparation environment is critical for equipping counselors to address racism and provide racially just services. Such endeavors are fraught with barriers and challenges with little guidance available from the profession. Panelists will share their experiences, observations, and perspectives on personal and programmatic barriers and challenges related to building anti-racist counselor education programs. Panelists will also share their take on solutions to overcome these challenges and strategies counselor educators may use in their efforts to build anti-racist counseling programs. Panelists come from diverse personal and professional backgrounds who wish to encourage counseling education to further its effort to prepare counselors for racially just practices.
Playful Pedagogy: Igniting Belonging, Engagement, and Learning
Dr. Lisa Forbes
October 13th 2023 2:30 pm – 3:20 pm
Do you wish your students were more engaged and enthusiastic in their learning? Are you approaching burnout or needing a spark of inspiration and energy? Do you want more connection and belonging in your classrooms? If you answered yes to any of these questions, this session is for you! Play is often excluded from adult learning due to cultural narratives that devalue play and tell us play is trivial, childish, and a waste of time. However, play is not only silly activities reserved for when the real work is done. Play can be activities for fun but it can also be a mindset and philosophy that equips counselor educators with creativity, flexibility, and innovative teaching approaches. If invited in, play can serve as a powerful tool in the learning process that more effectively establishes the right environment for brain-based learning and a more engaged learning experience.
Understanding the Leadership Experiences of Black Womxn in National Professional Organizations
Dr. Dèsa Karye Daniel
October 14th 2023 11:45 am – 12:35 pm
Black womxn often experience a double minoritization within academic spaces and the national organizations they serve (Dade et al., 2015). Using Constructive Grounded Theory, this presentation provides the lived experiences of twenty-two Black womxn who served in professional national organizations (ACA, ACES, NBCC, AMCD). Using Critical Race Theory, Black Feminist Thought, and Leadership Identity Development Model major themes from this study will be discussed. The presentation themes center the experiences of Black womxn as leaders, how they balance their academic positions while serving in a national role, and the stereotypes they manage. Moreover, this presentation will touch on how Black womxn process the national discourse on race and ethnicity while serving the needs of the organization membership.
Integrating Grief and Loss in the Counselor Education Curriculum
Dr. Michael Kocet
Dr. Jillian Blueford
Dr. Elizabeth Horn
October 15th 2023 11:00 am – 11:50 am
With the prevalence and impact of grief more present than ever, counselors-in-training must be equipped and prepared to recognize and competently support grieving individuals from diverse backgrounds and intersectionalities across the lifespan. This presentation will address the importance of intentional inclusion of grief and loss, including death and non-death related issues throughout the counseling curriculum. The presentation will also discuss ways Counselor Educators can integrate the new 2024 CACREP standards on grief and loss into their existing curriculum. The presenters will provide suggestions for integrating grief and loss into counseling curriculum, as well as provide grief resources for students and clients alike, across the lifespan.