Group Counseling for African American Males: When All You Have Are European American Counselors

To Be or Not to Be Gifted: The Choice for a New Generation

“…• School counselors should appropriately inject aspects of students' culture into their therapeutic approach. On several occasions, counselors have used dimensions of hip-hop culture to broach issues associated with students' academic functioning (Lee, 1987;McFadden, Lee, & Lindsey, 1985;Muller, 2002;Utsey, Howard, & Williams, 2003). For example, McFadden et al (1985) introduced hip-hop lyrics to a group of Black males in order to examine their beliefs about the role confrontations play in the professional mobility of Black people.…”

Strong Teens: A School-Based Small Group Experience for African American Males

“…Ideally, because this group was designed for African American adolescent males, it was recommended that the school counselor=leader also be an African American male. While studies such as Muller (2002) illustrated that school counselors who were not male or African American could effectively lead African American male groups, an African American male school counselor remains an added advantage. Lee (1987) stressed this in his group-counseling model for empowering Black male adolescents and emphasized that African American male counselors may serve as important role models for participants.…”

“…However, when adapting the STC for purposes of a small group counseling experience for African American males, school counselors' knowledge of psychoeducational group composition and dynamics, ethical issues, racially=culturally responsive counseling techniques for African American adolescents, and school-based group counseling approaches are crucial (Lee, 1987(Lee, , 2001Muller 2002;Yalom, 2005).…”

“…Other academic-related concerns include: behavioral patterns that interfere with learning such as withdrawing and disengaging from school work; being disruptive in class; physical aggression; and negative stigmas associated with academic excellence (Lee, 1989(Lee, , 1996Muller;Roderick;Tatum, 1997). Compounding these concerns is the fact that numerous African American adolescent males are in school environments with longstanding institutional barriers in which the schools do not provide adequate resources and culturally competent support needed to properly facilitate pursuit of their academic achievement, career development, or personal=social goals (Arredondo et al, 1996;Lee, 2001;Roderick).…”

“…Past studies of school-based small groups have shown great promise for empowering African American male students' personal behavior, interpersonal relationships, and academic achievement (Bradley, 2001;Muller, 2002). The advantages of small group counseling with African American male adolescents have been recognized based upon the important role group interactions play in African American culture (Lee, 1989(Lee, , 2001.…”