School Counselor Educator and High School Athletics Partnership

• In Event: Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Training Preservice School Counselors in Collaboration and Social Justice

Abstract

School counselor educators have the unique capacity to consult with and support schools in helping their student athletes tie a solid educational agenda to their athletic pursuits. In particular, school counselor educators can support school counselors and athletics administrators in facilitating a strong sense of identity in Black male student athletes, who are often more at risk for exploitation via sports participation (Harper, Williams, & Blackman, 2013; Harris, 2014).

There is a need for the empowerment of multiple identities within Black male student athletes. Such a multidimensional sense of self has been found to protect one’s self-concept in the event of failure in one dimension (Heird & Steinfeldt, 2013). Empowerment refers to the process of increasing the personal, interpersonal, and political power of individuals such that they can significantly influence their situations (Holcomb-McCoy, 2007; Gutierrez, 1995). It has its roots in early feminist theory, and is often used when counseling minorities or other populations who have experienced oppression within society (Hipolito-Delgado & Lee, 2007).

Author

• Paul C. Harris, The Pennsylvania State University