Blog 1

Chapter 1


Reading chapter one allowed me to visualize the big picture of CSCP including the history. I also experienced some ah ha moments where I began to ponder and synthesize my love of holistic wellness, creativity, philosophy, and science and how they all inner connect through counseling.  Additionally chapter one has helped me to conceptualize how my research interests could potentially be included an effective CSCP program and the research paper.
 Dollarhide and Saginak reference a statement by Nystul, “Counseling is both an art and a science requiring intellect and intuition”(p.8). Reading this statement further solidified my decision to combine my love the arts and with my interests in psychology.  I used think it was nearly impossible someone like myself to combine her love art and psychology into one career but now I see how perfectly suited this combination is for a career in counseling.  I believe counselors need to be scientists and artists at the core.  I want to continue to be the type of person who can test systems and beliefs and make logical decisions based on evidence but at the same time be balanced and softened by an appreciation for intuition and design.
 Additionally the authors describe personal qualities of a school counselor that I took to heart.  For example, creativity and imagination are two important traits of being a school counselor that aren’t typically considered strengths in tightly structured systems.  My imagination has gotten me into plenty of trouble as a child but as a counselor I can use my imagination to connect with children and solve problems.  That’s so cool!
 Finally there are quite a few references in chapter one regarding the holistic approach to counseling.  The authors state, “ School counselors partner with parents, families, and communities to promote the holistic development of all students using leadership, advocacy, and consultation strategies to enhance the school climate and promote effective teamwork across all systems” (Dollarhide & Saginak, 2012 p.3).  I was wondering how group members could tie their research interests together and now I see.  For example I am interested in art being used in-group settings for the facilitation of post traumatic growth, this topic connects well with someone who is interested in say stress reduction techniques, crisis intervention, and school emergencies.
 I can now visualize how we as counselor can be both well-rounded while developing our special interests into a unique skill set we can then provide for a comprehensive school counseling program.  Through a variety of counseling techniques (each supported by empirical research) a client is receives developmental assistance from many angles all at once, thus providing a truly holistic counseling experience.  It will be interesting and exciting to see each team member develop their own research interests and see how the team can synthesize those interests into a holistic and developmentally appropriate program.
 
Dollarhide, C.T., & Saginak, K.A. (2012). Comprehensive school counseling programs (2nd Ed.). New York: Pearson, Inc.