American Counseling Association (ACA) 2017 Conference (Day 1 Recap)

Seen in the image above: Counseling@Northwestern students, staff and faculty attendees at the 2017 ACA Conference in San Francisco, CA. 

The American Counseling Association (ACA), the professional and educational organization representing professional counselors across diverse practice settings, held its 65th annual conference from March 16-18 in San Francisco, CA. The event provides counselors with an opportunity to network and learn from practitioners conducting critical research within the field. In her welcome note, ACA President Catherine B. Roland, EdD, LPC, NCC, stated that “through collaboration, compassion, and inclusivity, we stand strong, and all voices are heard as we participate in important conversations for the greater good.” Below, we highlight a sampling of the workshops our team attended, including that of Counseling@Northwestern Professor, Dr. Eric Beeson and student presenter Babatunde (Tunde) Aideyan. 

The Influence of Athletic Participation

Dr. Courtland C. Lee, Dr. Verna Olivia and masters candidate Michael Borenstein

School Counselor Dr. Verna Olivia discusses her experience promoting self-efficacy in her troubled students by investing them in training for a 5K. Olivia suggested that athletic training helped her build trust with her students, as well as build a sense of community around a common goal. She then promoted self-efficacy outside of sports by encouraging her students to apply this newfound self-confidence to their academic and personal lives.

Identifying Signs of Burnout and Compassion Fatigue in Education

Dr. Alison L. DuBois and Dr. Molly A. Mistretta

Dr. Alison L. DuBois reflects on her work with counselors and teachers who work with clients or students who have experienced trauma. To prevent compassion fatigue, DuBois suggests setting boundaries between the professional and the personal self, as well as matching less experienced counselors with more experienced counselors or teachers who can serve as mentors.

Advancing Clinical Mental Health Counseling in a Brain-Based Era

Dr. Eric T. Beeson and masters candidate Babatunde (Tunde) Aideyan (volunteer).

Dr. Eric Beeson wows the #ACASanFran2017 standing room only workshop with the results of his live neuroscience demonstration, featuring our Counseling@Northwestern graduate student, Tunde.

Work-Life Balance/ Experiencing Healthy Work and Play

Dr. Michael Lazarchick

After a long day of workshops, Michael Lazarchick leads a highly-engaging session on workplace wellness, featuring audience participation and relaxing breathing and visualization techniques. Here he demonstrates the power pose—made famous in a 2012 TED Talk by social psychologist Amy Cuddy— which can be used to inspire confidence in the workplace. If you’d like to learn more about promoting wellness, we invite you to take a look at our Actionable Resources for Building and Maintaining Wellness in Your Life.

Dr. Michele Kerulis

Dr. Michele Kerulis is a member of the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) Executive Committee and serves as the 2016-2017 AMCD Treasurer. She and other members of the Executive Committee were recognized by AMCD President Dr. Kimberly Frazier for their contributions to the association during the 2017 American Counseling Association annual conference in San Fransisco.

Want to read more about our time at the 2017 ACA Conference? Visit our Day 2 Event Recap!