Program Overview
This program was designed with the collaboration of Prince George’s County schools. Participants must hold a Masters degree in School Counseling and have approval from PGCPS.
This program currently operates exclusively through a school district partnership with Prince George’s County Public Schools. As such, this program is not open to admissions for individuals outside of this partnership.
Program activities will focus on (a) helping students and families manage family trauma, post-traumatic stress, culture shock, and poverty, as well as (b) promoting students’ health, well-being, English language acquisition, acculturation, academic achievement, and socioemotional growth and development. The courses will teach professional school counselors about U.S. immigration policy and the migration process. Courses will also inform participants of the unique trauma that can occur during migration and its lasting impacts on student learning.
Key Features
- Courses address the specialized and complex needs of preparation for Professional School Counselors as it pertains to immigrant and/or refugee students.
- Curriculum provides knowledge and skills to address helping students and families manage trauma, post-traumatic stress, culture shock, and poverty. Promoting students’ health, well-being, English language acquisition, academic achievements, and socioemotional growth and development.
Learning Goals
Learning Goals
Upon successful completion, graduates will have mastered the following competencies:
Enhance knowledge of English language acquisition and cross-cultural teaching approaches and grasp how differences between the US and other nations’ educational counseling systems require modification of evidenced-based counseling practices in the US to meet specific and unique immigrant student and family needs.
Accelerate immigrant student educational, career, social, emotional, and personal skills development through individual counselor-student meetings.
Gain insight into how county immigration policies have influenced immigrant student and family well-being, growth, and development subsequent post-high school career paths, as a basis for modifying policies to enhance current and future students’ equity of access to and benefit from county services.
Describe diverse immigrant family cultural and family dynamics, build trust and partnerships with families, and deliver culturally appropriate counseling interventions.
Increase sensitivity to how the diversity of immigrant students- especially intersecting identities of race, gender, religion, ethnicity, ability/disability, culture, sexual orientation, and immigration status – must be considered in crafting counseling strategies maximizing health, mental health, acculturation, and achievement.
How to Apply
How to Apply
Use code Z171 to apply. Applicants will need prior approval from PG County.
Refer to the step-by-step guide to applying below for more information.
Program Requirements
Program Requirements
Courses can be taken one semester/session at a time, consecutively. The four 3-credit courses are offered each round, consecutively, with two offered in Summer Session (one per 6-week session). There are no prerequisites and coursework does not build upon a specific course. Students enter into the program at any point and complete one 3-credit course at a time.
- TLPL 657: Cross-Cultural Communication and Multilingual Learners
- TLPL 440- Issues in the Education of English Language Learners
- EDCP 655- Family and Social Support Systems
- EDCP 789- Advanced Topics in Counseling and Personnel Services: Immigrant Child Counseling and Consultation
Contact
Contact
Contact: Dr. Jessica Diaz McKechnie, jmdiaz@umd.edu