ABSTRACT
As future school psychologists are trained to meet the needs of our nation’s children, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) children merit particularly close attention. Propelled by demographic changes and important research findings, the National Association of School Psychologists’ (NASP) Strategic Plan (NASP, 2012a) articulated a commitment to culturally competent service delivery as a core value that is integrated among several strategic priorities. Recent statistics show that CLD students now represent the majority of students attending the public schools (Hussar & Bailey, 2013a). In addition, the demographic projections for 2011 to 2022 suggest a 44% increase in students who identify as two or more races, a 33% increase in Latino students, a 20% increase in Asian/Pacific Islander students, a 2% increase in African American students, and a 6% decrease in White students (Hussar & Bailey, 2013b). These changes are expected to continue into the coming decades, with 57% of the overall United States (U.S.) population projected to represent CLD groups by 2060, and the greatest concentrations expected to be seen first among our nation’s youth (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012).
