About Us

Our Department Mission

The primary mission of the Department of Counseling and School Psychology (CSP) is preparing culturally competent and compassionate professionals at the graduate level to provide leadership in school counseling, school psychology, marriage and family therapy, and community counseling. In addition, the department engages undergraduates in the social sciences in theoretical and professional knowledge and skills in counseling, social change and social justice with the option of an undergraduate minor. CSP is an interdisciplinary department committed to work towards equity, economic, and social justice within the College and University, our professions, and throughout the broader society.

Our Department Vision

CSP’s programs create professional preparation communities committed to: diversity, equity, social and economic justice, academic excellence; research, scholarship, and inquiry; creating systems change; global citizenship; culturally affirming ways of living, learning, knowing, and healing. Our programs and faculty distinguish themselves through their leadership in developing: educational excellence, multicultural competence, professional integrity and expertise, innovative models and theories, diverse methodology for research and practice, evidence-based practice, local and international collaborations, and impacting our professions.

The department’s faculty, students, and alumni are actively engaged in developing, implementing, and evaluating systemic change in multicultural school and community environments; establishing bridges of understanding across families, schools, and community contexts; serving the community’s needs through our work in schools, organizations, and centers located within the community; and designing and delivering specialized education and training available to professionals and families in the surrounding communities. 

Our Department Values

The Department is a dynamic learning environment committed to high levels of competence and skill in counseling, psychological, and psychoeducational service delivery in schools, agencies, and communities. The Department derives from and reflects the following values:

• Commitment to equity in professional preparation and practice
• Commitment to the professional development of faculty and promotion of balance between our professional and personal lives
• Multicultural awareness, interpersonal and cross-cultural competence
• Self awareness in faculty and students
• Critical thinking, intellectual curiosity and inquiry
• Valuing and respect for the unique input and experiences of our students
• Valuing and respect for the unique input and experiences of our faculty and colleagues
• Recognition of teaching and learning as informed by multiple and interrelated contributions of faculty, students, and the community
• Appreciation of the complexity of systems and the facilitation of practice in those systems consistent with humane values
• Learning as a dynamic and lifelong process
• Openness to exploring diverse worldviews and their relationship to the learning and therapeutic processes
• Professional accountability to each other as a department, recognizing our impact on one another
• Responsiveness to the human and educational issues of our communities