Professional Counseling Excellence
through Leadership and Advocacy

Book Being Reviewed:
Barrio Minton, C., Chang, C., Dixon, A., Myers, J., Sweeney, T. (2011). Professional counseling excellence through leadership and advocacy. New York, NY: Routledge.

Reviewer:
Edward Wahesh

Curricular Areas:
Counselor Education, Professional Identity

Subject Headings:
Social justice

Review:
There are few resources available for professional counselors and counselor educators to access on leadership and advocacy within the counseling profession. Several sources, including the American Counseling Association (ACA), Chi Sigma Iota, and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Programs (CACREP), have presented competencies and principles pertaining to leadership and advocacy, but each comes up short in describing how these concepts can be incorporated into the training and practice of professional counseling. Professional Counseling Excellence through Leadership and Advocacy (2011) edited by Chang, Barrio Minton, Dixon, Myers, and Sweeney, fills this gap by providing a clear vision for the training and practice of leadership and advocacy for the profession.

Professional Counseling Excellence through Leadership and Advocacy is organized into four sections that present the foundations, roles, and future directions of leadership and advocacy in counseling. A central theme in the book is the importance of practicing leadership and advocacy in an intentional manner, by thoughtfully reflecting on relevant theory and context before engaging in action. This theme comes across in the structure and content areas of the book. Before proposing action steps, the historical and present context of leadership and advocacy within the professional are presented. Roles for counselor educators and counselors to engage in are examined within the framework of available guiding documents, research and relevant theory. The final section of the book concludes by providing concrete steps that can be taken to advance leadership and advocacy within all facets of the profession.

Endorsed by Chi Sigma Iota, the vision and framework outlined in this text make it an excellent addition to any counselor or counselor educator’s bookshelf. However, the engaging nature of the book makes it unlikely that it will spend much time on the shelf. Counselor educators will benefit from the insights given on how leadership and advocacy preparation can be infused across the curriculum and enriched by faculty mentoring. Professional counselors will increase their awareness of how critical these concepts are to their everyday practice. They will learn how to become effective advocates and leaders for their clients, supervisees, and communities. This text can be assigned reading for doctoral students, as it provides an insightful look at how the diverse roles of the counselor educator (i.e., supervisor, researcher, and counselor) all are related to leadership and advocacy. Counselor trainees will greatly profit from the exploration of the history and current context of the profession, which underline how leadership and advocacy are essential and interconnected roles for counselors. More importantly, beginning counselors will be exposed to a model of leadership and advocacy designed specifically for them in mind. Finally, the exercises and reflection questions at the conclusion of each chapter make this text a no brainer for Chi Sigma Iota members to use during chapter leadership trainings, professional development workshops, or as part of general membership meetings. CSI members can utilize the competencies described in the book as a foundation to establish their own professional leadership and advocacy goals.

Professional Counseling Excellence through Leadership and Advocacy (2011, October) is available from Routledge – 429 pages; Hardback: 978-0-415-89072-4: $44.95. Order through Routledge online to save 10% and receive free shipping on orders over $30.