School Counselor Education Program Memo and Attestation

At the March 2023 Board of Regents meeting, the Department proposed a revision to the registration requirements for school counselor education programs leading to Initial and/or Professional certification. The proposal aligns the registration requirements for school counselor education programs with those of teacher and educational leadership education programs by requiring school counselor education programs to include the following three coursework/training areas

• School violence prevention and intervention,
• Social patterns of harassment, bullying and discrimination, and
• Identification and reporting of suspected child abuse or maltreatment..

If adopted, the amended regulations will require school counselor education programs to include this coursework/training in their program requirements by July 1, 2024.

The Department is surveying institutions with school counselor education programs leading to Initial and/or Professional School Counselor certification to determine if they include coursework or training in one or more of these three areas as part of their curriculum. This information will be shared with the Office of Teaching Initiatives (OTI), and OTI staff will use this information to expedite their review of  school counselor candidates’ certificate applications. 

All institutions with registered school counselor education programs leading to Initial and/or Professional School Counselor certification should complete and return the Statement of Assurance form  by April 5th, 2023 to OCUEinfo@nysed.gov. If your school counselor education program(s) leading to Initial and/or Professional certification do not currently include one or more of these areas in the curriculum, but the curriculum is revised and includes all three areas prior to the effective date of the proposed regulation changes (July 1, 2024, if adopted), please send an updated attestation form to the Office of College and University Evaluation (OCUE). OCUE will share the updated information with OTI, ensuring a smoother application process for your institution’s candidates applying for school counselor certification.