Mission Statement

Our mission is to educate students for professional counseling practice and leadership in local, national, and international domains. Mindful that education extends beyond coursework, faculty and students collaborate with schools, communities, agencies and other professionals, to conduct research, and provide services in accord with the highest ethical and professional standards and values in response to the personal, educational, and vocational needs of individuals and families living in diverse and multicultural environments including persons with disabilities. Faculty aspire to produce new knowledge and relevant research, create dynamic atmospheres for learning, and inspire students to actualize their potential, all with the goal of achieving just solutions to human concerns.

Goals

In order to accomplish this mission, the faculty, in collaboration with students enrolled in departmental programs, endeavor to achieve the following three goals:

1. An ethically-informed professional identity;
2. A disciplined scholarly inquiry and research agenda; and
3. A commitment to efficacious professional service

Objectives

1. To achieve an ethically-informed professional identity, faculty and student are expected to:
   • Understand and articulate their unique professional identity including the history, values and scope of practice of the counseling profession
   • Recognize and respect the possibilities and limits of their personal and professional perspectives, knowledge, skill, and authority, and to behave in accord with the highest ethical and professional standards
   • Consult with their advisor(s), supervisor(s), and professional colleagues regarding ethical, programmatic, counseling practice and other professional choices
   • Participate in and contribute to local, state, regional, national, and international activities promoting the counseling profession
   • Work cooperatively and collaboratively with other professionals in the university, schools, agencies and other institutions
   • Demonstrate knowledge of, commitment to and advocacy for our clients including persons with disabilities, communities, and the counseling profession
2. To achieve a disciplined scholarly inquiry and research agenda, faculty and student are expected to:
   • Collaboratively develop and maintain an orientation toward scholarly inquiry respecting diversity of methods, approaches and findings
   • Master research methods and strategies that promote analytic-based studies, while being mindful of the ongoing nature of research
   • Promote the connection between research and practice
   • Promote the production and dissemination of science-based research
   • Involve themselves in life-long personal and professional development
   • Advocate the value and reliance on scholarly knowledge in framing a professional identity
3. To achieve a commitment to efficacious professional service, faculty and student are expected to:
   • Provide compassionate and competent ethically-and-culturally sensitive professional counseling service including persons with disabilities
   • Critically analyze, synthesize and differentially apply counseling knowledge and skills in multiple contexts
   • Demonstrate competency in the use of supervision and consultation
   • Practice effectively in organizations and service delivery systems, and understand the process of advocacy for organizational change
   • Promote equal and just educational, employment and self-development opportunities for all individuals including persons with disabilities
   • Provide leadership that enhances professional efficacy