ABSTRACT
This chapter explores legal and ethical standards outlined by The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Programs (CACREP); the American Counseling Association (ACA), which is the broader flagship professional helping society; and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA), which particularly espouses how school counselors can function within school settings. The ASCA and ACA Code of Ethics will also be compared and contrasted (Table 1) along with limitations to the language presented within these documents. The authors will solicit input from the reader to weigh in on their perspectives.
Next, this chapter discusses how the ASCA ethical standards must work to provide the language and direction necessary for the nuances that minoritized families face when desiring partnerships that may not align with White middle-class cultural norms consistently presented within school settings. Finally, the authors will discuss how school counselors must navigate current political and societal climates to foster ethical relationships with students and families, as well as school administrators, to gain the trust and confidence of the communities they serve. Overall, readers will deepen their understanding of a) racial competence, cultural competence, ethical decision-making, and collaborative strategies; b) legal and ethical considerations based on CACREP, ACA, and ASCA; c) standards within the context of school environments aiming to foster equity and inclusion; and d) limitations of school counseling professional and ethical standards that desire to fuel cultural competency. We hope that, ultimately, preservice school counselors and practitioners will actively reflect on the influence of race and culture when applying legal and ethical standards.
