Counselor Educators' Gatekeeping Responsibilities and Students' First Amendment Rights

Abstract

In 2 recent legal cases, graduate counselor education students challenged the imposition of remediation plans as violating their First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and religion. With special emphasis on this recent litigation, the article examines the legal standards governing the authority of counselor educators at public colleges and universities, including professionalism and ethical rules as a part of curricular requirements to prohibit client discrimination based on sexual orientation.

A Decision‐Making Model for Addressing Problematic Behaviors in Counseling Students

“…In determining potential courses of action (Step 3) for gatekeeping and remediation, counselor educators have a growing collection of literature to help guide them (e.g., Foster & McAdams, ; Hutchens, Block, & Young, ; Kress & Protivnak, ; McAdams, Foster, & Ward, ; Rust et al, ). Generating specific courses of action is outside the scope of this article.…”

The Gatekeeping Imperative in Counselor Education Admission Protocols: The Criticality of Personal Qualities

“…It is imperative that, as part of their professional and ethical duty, counselor education faculty members and supervisors serve as gatekeepers to the counseling field (ACA 2014; Bernard and Goodyear 2013;Bradey and Post 1991;CACREP 2009;Hutchens et al 2013;Kress and Protivnak 2009;McAdams et al 2007). Failure to do so could result in negative outcomes should clients be harmed by an incompetent counselor or counselor trainee, and counselors serving as site supervisors will be directly faced with these outcomes should harm fall to clients during clinical placement.…”

“…If current admission processes fail to address personality issues, it would seem to be the duty of counselor training programs to determine more effective screening procedures, rather than punishing individuals who may gateslip through no fault of their own. Again, it is the ethical duty of the faculty and supervisors in the training program, not of the individual entering the training program, to gatekeep for the profession (ACA 2014; Bernard and Goodyear 2013;Bradey and Post 1991;CACREP 2009;Hutchens et al 2013;Kress and Protivnak 2009;McAdams et al 2007).…”

A Counselor Education Case Study: The Counselor Values‐Based Conflict Model in Action

“…Gatekeeping is part of the professional identity of counselor educators and is defined as the ethical responsibility of counselor educators “to monitor and evaluate an individual's knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions … and to remediate or prevent those that are lacking in professional competence” (CACREP, , p. 45). Counselor education programs may choose to create remediation plans and/or resort to dismissal of students who are unable or unwilling to provide services to the LGBT population to protect the public from harmful counseling practices (Hutchens et al, ).…”