Welcome to MHS 6700 Legal and Ethical Issues for Counselors. The focus of the course is on the legal premises, law, and ethics to which counselors are held. It is also about the development of professional judgment which incorporates client needs and professional behavior. In other words, this course is about how counselors, regardless of their work site, promote client welfare -- do good and right -- while making judgments in an increasingly complex profession. 

To make good judgments in our complex profession of laws, regulations, and ethics, counselors must learn to examine their behavior and maintain professional currency. These are aspirational goals at best. At the least, counselors have practical concerns for their everyday practice and client welfare. They have concerns for making the myriad of roles in their lives work harmoniously and for keeping up with the explosion of knowledge which confronts every profession. School and mental health counselors have a special role as models of ethical behavior and effective living. They need to have information about what choices to make as well as a process by which to routinely make decisions.

 Learning Objectives

  To identify the roles, functions and professional identity of school and mental health counselors, and the issues that affect the practice of counseling, specifically to identify those personal values and experiences which may affect individual practice.

  To provide students with the opportunity to explore and demonstrate knowledge of the legal and ethical responsibilities counselors bear to their clients, families, community, and employing institutions.

  To provide students with codes of ethics and/or standards of practice governing the profession and to provide students with experiences identifying ethical dilemmas and the methods for resolving them using these codes as in everyday practice.

  To provide students with experiences and resources to help them identify issues of equity for special populations and to ensure that such populations have equal access to services and expertise.

To provide students with the understanding of the ethical and legal issues relevant to group work, appraisal, research, and consultation. 

  To provide students with information about obtaining, demonstrating and maintaining professional competence in the constantly changing field of counseling.

To provide students with professional preparation standards, their evolution, and current applications as well as the relationship of preparation to certification, licensure, and accreditation practices and standards. 

To provide students with an understanding of public policy processes including the role of the professional counselor in advocating on behalf of the profession and its clientele.

To provide students with skills in using technology to identify statutory and case law relevant to counselors and counseling ethics, as a means of remaining current in the field, and with an understanding of the impact of technology on counseling and its ethical, legal, and efficacy implications.   

This course is designed to address aspects of the following CACREP curriculum objectives:

1.PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY - studies that provide an understanding of all of the following aspects of professional functioning:

h. ethical standards of ACA and related entities, and applications of ethical and legal considerations in professional counseling.

2.SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY - studies that provide an understanding of the cultural context of relationships, issues and trends in a multicultural and diverse society related to such factors as culture, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, sexual orientation, mental and physical characteristics, education, family values, religious and spiritual values, socioeconomic status and unique characteristics of individuals, couples, families, ethnic groups, and communities including all of the following:

f. ethical and legal considerations.

3.HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT - studies that provide an understanding of the nature and needs of individuals at all developmental levels, including all of the following:

e. ethical and legal considerations.

4.CAREER DEVELOPMENT - studies that provide an understanding of career development and related life factors, including all of the following:

i. ethical and legal considerations.

5.HELPING RELATIONSHIPS - studies that provide an understanding of counseling and consultation processes, including all of the following:

g. ethical and legal considerations.

6.GROUP WORK - studies that provide both theoretical and experiential understandings of group purpose, development, dynamics, counseling theories, group counseling methods and skills, and other group approaches, including all of the following:

g. ethical and legal considerations.

7.ASSESSMENT - studies that provide an understanding of individual and group approaches to assessment and evaluation, including all of the following:

i. ethical and legal considerations.

8.RESEARCH AND PROGRAM EVALUATION - studies that provide an understanding of research methods, statistical analysis, needs assessment, and program evaluation, including all of the following:

f. ethical and legal considerations.

CACREPSchool Counseling Standards:

A.FOUNDATIONS OF SCHOOL COUNSELING

11.ethical and legal considerations related specifically to the practice of school counseling (e.g., the ACA Code of Ethics and the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors). 

CACREP Mental Health Counseling Standards

A.FOUNDATIONS OF MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING

5.ethical and legal considerations related related to the practice of mental health counseling (e.g., the ACA and AMHCA Code of Ethics)

As well, it addressed content and objectives set out in the Florida Educator Accomplished Practices:

 ETHICS: Adheres to Code of Ethics and Principles of Professional Conduct of the Education Profession in Florida.

 ROLE OF THE TEACHER: Works with various education professionals, parents, and other stakeholders in the continuous improvement of the educational experiences of students.

Course Overview

The information contained on this page is offered as a course overview to help prepare you for the coming semester. 

The course is organized in ten modules that are to be completed in sequence. The modules involve face-to-face and on-line interaction and participation using a variety of technology-based tools and are designed to be similar in format, so that you will know what to expect from every module once you have completed the first. Each module will contain a list of objectives provided as advance organizers. When the module is complete, review the objectives. If you have not met one of the objectives, review the related material. Each module contains notes, reading assignments, questions for pause and reflection and self-assessment, and exercises. All modules conclude with a case for analysis. The activities will be checked and contribute to your overall grade. Activities are to be completed individually and in groups. The final project and take home final will be completed individually. 

Some of the activities are to be posted e-mailed directly to me, and at least one must be faxed or hand delivered. Credit will only be awarded to those who submit the activity as directed. Activities and due dates can be found on the syllabus. I expect all activities submitted by 5:00 pm of the day due. Each day that you are late will result in a loss of 20% of the point(s) available for that assignment.

Guidelines for the project and other assignments can be found as links on the syllabus.

Much of our communication will be done via e-mail. I will use a University-based distribution list frequently to send out notices. Therefore, you will need to take responsibility to check your University e-mail regularly or to request that the postmaster forward your mail to another site. 

Three face-to-face sessions are scheduled. The first session will meet on May 11th from 5:30 to 9:30 and will allow for community building between and among students and the instructor as well as initial assessment of the students' level of technology skills. 

NOTE: Students are required to complete the on-line technology module by the end of the first week so that a proactive position can be taken to provide support to those who need it.

Other face to face sessions are on Wednesday June 15. 

Required Texts

  Corey, G., Corey, M.S. & Callanan, P.  (2011). Issues and ethics in the helping professions (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. 

Required of all counseling degree seeking students:

On-line purchase of Livetext, if you have not already purchased it.

Recommended Texts:

  Stone, C. B. (2005).School counseling principles: Ethics and law. American School Counselor Association: Alexandria, VA.

  Remley, T. P., Hermann, M. A., & Huey, W. C. (Eds.) (2003).  Ethical and Legal Issues in School Counseling (2^nd ed.).  Alexandria, VA:  American School Counselor Association.

  Fischer, L. & Sorenson, G. P. (1996). School law for counselors, psychologists, and social workers (3rd ed.). New York: Longman.

Case Studies Sources (not required texts)

  Herlihy, B., & Corey, G. (2006). ACA ethical standards casebook (6th ed.). Alexandria, VA; American Counseling Association. 

  Herlihy, B., & Corey, G. (1996). ACA ethical standards casebook (5th ed.). Alexandria, VA; American Counseling Association.