Statement of Purpose and Professional Goals By Doug Hatch This portfolio contains proof of my great experience through the

Buena Vista University counseling program. I hope these documents can do some justice that will show my growth and experience I gained through the coursework. I have represented each standard through coursework and experiences that I attained throughout my 3 years in the program. In the end I walked away with a greater appreciation of the struggles that each student has each day, and the very valuable efforts of our counselors. My theory of counseling has been based on a few things the first is that there is always more to the story and the second is that as a counselor I am never tired. I am never too tired to help any student for any reason at any time. My journey started in June of 2012. I had been a teacher for twenty years but I always felt I should become a counselor. Throughout my years as a coach and teacher I felt I could always do more, and I thought as a counselor I could help the students in more effective way. Great counselors surrounded me, the middle school counselor at Cresco pointed me towards the Buena Vista program, as being strong and a great schedule for current teachers. He was a great mentor to me as he was this strong male figure in the middle school, a great coach, and seemed to really help the students, in way different from that of the most often seen mom figure counselors. I was actually ready to joining the Buena Vista program in the summer of 2011, but instead I took a mission trip and said I would wait a year, I did not realize at the time the effect this would have on me. The 2012 class I joined was full of great role models and voted me in as their class leader, a role I am so proud of. This group, after talking with other past members of

the program, is a little different than other groups, but in a good way. This is a very focused group with very, very high morals and a great sense of loyalty and friendship. The first month of the Buena Vista program was grueling and challenging. The professors pushed each of us and stretched what we thought was possible for us to achieve. Our cohort bonded immediately, sort of an alliance to survive the rigors of the course. I believe it was Professor Ogrens teaching methods that really bonded us also. She constantly took us out of our comfort zone and broke us off into groups with different people all the time, this is a method I use in teaching/counseling now after learning from her. Our next experience was our methods class. This class allowed us to begin to use the daily counseling methods that I use every day now as a full time counselor. There were tears and smiles as we went through this class, and my skills were being put in place to be a professional school counselor. We learned so much about counseling and ourselves in the first month, I went home exhausted but with a new zest for life, education, and of course counseling. The fall brought our first ICN class and a new kind of learning that I had not experienced before. I became very close with my ICN partner and learned so much through her during that semester. This class really opened my eyes and helped me to form a big part of my counseling philosophy, there is always more to the story. Learning and experiencing other peoples lives is such an important aspect to being a better person and counselor. This class was also key in developing my use of professional judgment. Our spring course allowed us to work closely with the school counselor, and become a sponge to her and soak up all the wonderful ideas she has, and the typical day of a counselor. We prepared our first portfolio and that helped me to see all the

experiences and information I already have at my disposal for being a counselor. I now had some counseling experience, documentation of my work, and an even bigger zeal for becoming a counselor. My second summer at Buna Vista was so much more relaxing, in that I had peers there to help, and I knew what was coming. Our next course was on developing curriculum, and as an experienced teacher I loved this class. I am always striving to put together the ideal lesson plan, and with all of the great minds in my cohort that is what we did. I obtained several great lesson plans and ideas form my cohorts. I now had a great curriculum and resources to go with my counseling resume. The second class we took also expanded on our curriculum by adding small group and large group examples. I again got so much out of this class I couldnt wait to rush back and out it into practice. My cohorts exhibited string teaching, counseling, and leadership skills as they all shared their lessons and ideas for groups. Heading into the fall semester, I think as a cohort we figured the most demanding parts of this coursework were behind us, and boy where we wrong. The action research class called for all of us to dig down deep and really stretch ourselves mentally. I learned how to decipher data and compile my own. I learned a lot about writing professional papers and conducting research. The spring coursework was also demanding as we added Human Development and learning to our counseling portfolio. In this course we learned to use our skills all together and we shared our experiences with our interesting child. We studied Albert Bandura, along with behaviorism and moral development. This course allowed me to fine tune my counseling skills and add to my counseling philosophy.

The summer of 13 would be our final summer in Storm Lake. Our first session was Career Development and assessment in schools. I had just completed my first year as a 7-12 counselor so many of the items covered were a big help to me. I learned how to look at and go over I have a plan, Plan tests as well as many other testing items used in 712. Our second class was on consultation, leadership, and advocacy in the school. This class was of extreme importance as we learned how to develop a crisis plan, and deal with issues such as abuse, behavioral, and mental health. We also learned about the legalities involved with being a counselor and how to handle those situations. All of these experiences have led me to where I am at now. I am a full-time 7-12 counselor and I have completed my practicum hors and have met as a cohort for the last time. I have learned so much as a counselor in my first two years, but it was made much easier through my great professors and coursework that Buena Vista provided. My first year as a counselor was challenging, and my second was also challenging as new hurdles pop up all the time. It has been a very rewarding two years and I love going to work every day, I have not missed a day yet.