A Collaborative Training Model for School Dr.

Mariama Sandifer
Assistant Professor
Counselors as Culturally Affirming Leaders: Austin Peay State University

Implications for Counselor Educators

Dr. Eva Gibson

Associate Professor
Austin Peay State University

Dr. Sarah Brant-Rajahn

Assistant Professor
Messiah University
In collaboration with…

Dr. James Thompson

Associate Dean
College of Education
Austin Peay State University

MS
Learning Objectives

After attending this session you will be able to:

1. Discuss the school counselor educator’s role in

leadership preparation
2. Integrate a culturally affirming shared
leadership framework in training programs
3. Access leadership and collaboration resources

EG
 move beyond
acknowledgment

expand
awareness

Change
implement
action-based
efforts
MS
 Professional Standards
ASCA CACREP ASCA SPA (CAEP) (Admin)
School Counselor Counselor Education Program School Counselor Preparation Professional Standards for
Professional Standards & Standards Program Standards Educational Leaders
Competencies

M 5. Effective school counseling
is a collaborative process
M 6. School counselors are
leaders
B-SS 6. Collaborate with
families, teachers,
administrators…
B-PA 7. Establish agreement
with the principal and other
administrators about the school
counseling program
G.1.d- models of school-based
collaboration & consultation
G.2.a- school counselor roles as
leaders
G.2.b- school counselor roles in
consultation
G.2.d- school counselor roles in
school leadership teams
G.2.j- effective leadership
G.3.l- techniques to foster
collaboration
4.2 Collaborate with
stakeholders
6.2 Demonstrate leadership,
advocacy, and collaboration
3.e- Confront and alter institutional
biases of student marginalization,
deficit-based schooling, and low
expectations associated with race,
class, culture and language,
gender and sexual orientation, and
disability or special status.
3.h- Address matters of equity and
cultural responsiveness in all
aspects of leadership.
10.h- Adopt a systems perspective
and promote coherence among
improvement efforts and all aspects
of school organization, programs,
and services.
MS
How are we currently preparing
our school counselor trainees to
engage in leadership?

MS
MS
 Background of Research
School counseling and administration fields independently address culturally
affirming praxis, as well as leadership

School Counseling Administration Fields

• Bolman and Deal’s (2017) Leadership
Framework
• Leadership Specialist Training
• Transformative School Counseling
Leadership
• Transformational Leadership,
Transactional Leadership, & Instructional
Leadership
• The Culturally Responsive School
Leadership Framework (Khalifa et al., 2016)

There is a need for a shared framework to develop this work collaboratively and to address the noticeable gaps in
resources and skill development. EG
 relies on combined social
SC social capital rather than
individual responsibilities;
capital foundational for equitable
actions to dismantle
school environment
barriers

Admin
social
capital

EG
Effective functioning Social networks may The combined social
contribute to the School-based social capital between school
of networks of counselors &
relationships within greater good through capital can impact administrators can
a community
collaboration & shared student outcomes positively impact school
support culture

EG
EG
Culturally Affirming Practices
Culturally affirming interventions and the establishment of genuine student
connections is associated with improved student success.

Culturally affirming practices…

• Center around racial identity development
• Promote positive self-concept
• Emphasize racial consciousness
• Affirm the lived experiences of marginalized groups

SB
 Self-reflection
● How might exploring my implicit bias help my
professional lens and decision making?
● What do I believe about systems of oppression
and privilege?
● What assumptions do I make about students
and their families based on their identities?
● What action steps can I take to educate myself
about diverse cultures?
Team reflection
● How is our leadership model impacting faculty
development and student outcomes?
● How are we measuring our effectiveness as a
team?
● How are we demonstrating commitment to
cultural humility and knowledge acquisition?
● How are we fostering culturally inclusive and
affirming climates?
● How are we utilizing our combined social capital
to support student success?
Reflection
SB
Culturally Relevant Data Collection, Assessment, &
Evaluation
• Disaggregation of school data by racial and ethnic identity, gender, and home language.

• Use of quantitative data (e.g., standardized test scores, student grades, attendance,
discipline) and referrals for specialized services (e.g., Response to Intervention, special
education, gifted education, advanced placement courses)

• Collection of quantitative and qualitative data from students and parents (e.g., school
climate assessments, surveys, focus groups, parent/stakeholder meetings)

• Examine data to determine school needs, and recognize existing disparities and
multicultural-social justice issues.

• Ongoing collaborative meetings to disaggregate and discuss data and develop measurable
goals specific to addressing inequities

What are your current practices teaching students how to collect, analyze, and discuss data
with attention to disparities between cultures? AND What are some thoughts about the next
steps you/your program can intentionally engage in? SB
 Antiracist Professional Development

• Implement ongoing professional development

“Positive relationships enhance
the relevance of instructional
practices and student outcomes,
especially for students of color,
thus attention to culture and
antiracist practices in
professional development is
imperative.”
(Gibson, et al., 2022)
• Engage in courageous conversations
• Define racism & antiracism
• Challenge faculty to address personal values &
bias
• Share data reports that discuss educational
inequities
• Brainstorm solutions

What processes are in place for faculty to assess curriculum

and program practices related to anti-racist and culturally
affirming pedagogy and leadership?
SB
Vignette video

SB
 Admin Perspective

• Visionary principals are able to think beyond the day-to-day

operation of a routine school day.

• Principals can empower counselors to lead school-wide professional

development centered on culturally relevant pedagogy (Green-
Gibson & Collett, 2014).

• To maximize the principal and counselor relationship on student

achievement, it is critical to ensure effective communication and
interaction.
MS
 Admin Prep Program

Providing future school leaders with the following:

● Prescriptive standards for interacting with school counselors
(Boyland et al., 2019; McConnell & Geesa, 2020)
● A clear understanding of the role and function of a school counselor
(Lewis et al., 2022; Mau et al., 2016)
● The knowledge and skills of conducting a critical analysis of a
school through a multicultural leadership lens (Allen et al., 2013;
Lawrence, 2005)

MS
How can we collaborate?
How do we teach this within our programs?

EG
 Articulating
Purpose, Vision,
Resources Collaborating
and Sharing
and Mission Decision
Making

Effective Advancing
Communication Student
Achievement

Ensuring Supporting a
New Principal
Equity or New School
Counselor

Cultivating Continuing
Trust and Improvement
and Advanced
Respect Practices
EG
 addressing
pedagogical gaps

navigating
political, social,
community
constructs

eliminating
barriers

Resources
Cont. EG
Resources Cont.
Reminder
In order to receive the NBCC credit associated with this
conference, all attendees must do the following:

1. Complete the session evaluation for each session attended.

(Please complete as soon as possible after each session.
Available in the conference app)
2. Complete the overall Conference Evaluation (available in the
Conference app)
 References
American School Counselor Association. (2021). ASCA research report: State of the profession 2020.
https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/bb23299b-678d-4bce-8863-cfcb55f7df87/2020-state-of-the-profession.pdf

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership. Jossey-Bass.

Boyland, L., Geesa, R. L., Lowry, K. P., Quick, M. M., Mayes, R. D., Kim, J., Elam, N. P., & McDonald, K. M. (2019).
Collaborative principal-school counselor preparation: National standards alignment to improve training between principals and
school counselors. International Journal of Educational Leadership Preparation, 14(1), 188–205.
https://www.icpel.org/uploads/1/5/6/2/15622000/ijelp_volume_14_number_1__spring_2019_.pdf

Brant-Rajahn, S. N., Gibson, E. M., & Sandifer, M. C. (Eds.). (2022). Developing, delivering, and sustaining school counseling
practices through a culturally affirming lens. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-9514-5

Dahir, C. A., Burnham, J. J., Stone, C. B., & Cobb, N. (2010). Principals as partners: Counselors as collaborators. NASSP
Bulletin, 94(4), 286–305. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192636511399899

Dennis, T., Schuschke, J., & Holcomb-McCoy, C. (2022). An antiracist professional development curriculum for school
counselors. In C. Holcomb-McCoy (Ed.), Antiracist counseling in schools and communities (pp. 103–127). American Counseling
Association.

DeSimone, J., & Roberts, L. (2016). Fostering collaboration between preservice educational leadership and school counseling
graduate candidates. Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision, 8(2), 1–18.
https://digitalcommons.sacredheart.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1081&context=jcps
 References, cont.
Grothaus, T., Johnson, K., & Edirmanasinghe, N. (2020). Culturally sustaining school counseling: Implementing diverse,
equitable, inclusive programs. American School Counselor Association.

Holcomb-McCoy, C. (Ed.). (2022). Antiracist counseling. American Counseling Association.

Khalifa, M. (2018). Culturally responsive school leadership. Harvard Education Press.

Khalifa, M. A., Gooden, M. A., & Davis, J. E. (2016). Culturally responsive school leadership: A synthesis of the literature.
Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 1272–1311. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654316630383

Ladson-Billings, G. (2021). I’m here for the hard re-set: Post pandemic pedagogy to preserve our culture. Equity & Excellence in
Education, 54(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2020.1863883

Larson, K. E., Bradshaw, C. P., Rosenberg, M. S., & Day-Vines, N. L. (2018). Examining how proactive management and
culturally responsive teaching relate to student behavior: Implications for measurement and practice. School Psychology Review,
47(2), 153–166. https://doi.org/10.17105/SPR-2017-0070.V47-2

Moore-Thomas, C., & Day-Vines, N. L. (2010). Culturally competent collaboration: School counselor collaboration with African
American families and communities. Professional School Counseling, 14(1), 53–63.
https://doi.org/10.1177/2156759X1001400106
 References, cont.
Sandifer, M. C., Gibson, E. M., & Brant-Rajahn, S. N. (2021). WOKE: Advocacy for African American students. In M. A. Rausch
& L. L. Gallo (Eds.), Strengthening School Counselor Advocacy and Practice for Important Populations and Difficult Topics (pp.
19–40). IGI Global. http://doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-7319-8.ch002

Santamaría, L. J., & Santamaría, A. P. (2015). Counteracting educational injustice with applied critical leadership: Culturally
responsive practices promoting sustainable change. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 17(1), 22–42.
https://doi.org/10.18251/ijme.v17i1.1013

Shell, E. M. (2021). School counselors as leaders for social justice and equity. Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education, 20(2),
58–71. https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/taboo/vol20/iss2/4/

Singleton, G. E. (2015). Courageous conversations about race: A field guide for achieving equity in schools. Corwin.
Feel free to
reach out!