School counselors' preparation for and participation in crisis intervention.

Due to the recent focus on incidents of school violence, there has been a heightened awareness of the need for effective crisis intervention in public schools (American Psychological Association, 1993; Canter & Carroll, 1999; Cunningham & Sandhu, 2000; Poland, 1994; Riley & McDaniel, 2000). Although there are differing opinions of what actually constitutes a crisis, Caplan (1964) specified key factors that continue to define the term. During a crisis, individuals are in a state of "psychological disequilibrium" (Caplan, p. 53) and are unable to escape or effectively deal with the problem at hand. Similarly, Slaikeu (1990) stated that a crisis creates "a temporary state of upset and disorganization, characterized chiefly by an individual's inability to cope with a particular situation using customary methods of problem solving" (p. 15).

Crisis in the context of a school, although similar to Caplan's (1964) and Slaikeu's (1990) definitions, has unique features because of the school's social structure and the sense of community within the school. Johnson (2000) explained that a school crisis "brings chaos" that "undermines the safety and stability of the entire school" (p. 18). Johnson also stated that a school crisis exposes children and staff to "threat, loss, and traumatic stimulus" and undermines their "security and sense of power" (p. 3).

Specific types of crises affecting the school community include suicide; death, grief, and loss; school shootings; gang activity; natural disasters (earth quakes, hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes); drug abuse; sexual and physical abuse; and medical emergencies (Brock, Sandoval, & Lewis, 2001; Johnson, 2000; Pitcher & Poland, 1992). Although this list is by no means complete, these examples are incidents that threaten the security and stability of a school community.

During a crisis, immediate support facilitates recovery for the students and the school community (Johnson, 2000; Poland & McCormick, 2000). Even though there is some debate as to who is primarily responsible for assisting with crisis intervention (Brock et al., 2001; Johnson), the American School Counselor Association's (ASCA, 2000) position statement provides direction in defining the school counselor's role. Based on this statement, "the professional school counselor's primary role is to provide direct counseling service during and after the incident" (ASCA), school counselors are expected to serve students and school personnel during times of crisis by providing individual and group counseling; consulting with administrators, teachers, parents, and professionals; and coordinating services within the school and in the community (ASCA, 1999, 2000; King, Price, Telljohann, & Wahl, 2000; Riley & McDaniel, 2000; Smaby, Peterson, Bergmann, Zentner Bacig, & Swearingen, 1990).

Considering the recent emphasis placed on the need for effective crisis intervention and the profession's self-defined role, it is important to determine if the school counselor's preparation aligns with the demands of the profession (Lockhart & Keys, 1998; Perusse, Goodnough, & Noel, 2001). It is also prudent to evaluate feedback from school counselors, taking into account the recency of their graduation. If counselor educators are increasing their emphasis on the knowledge and skills required for effective crisis intervention, practitioners' responses should reflect this trend.

In addition to pre-service preparation for crisis intervention, continuing professional development activities provide another avenue for developing expertise in responding to crises (Brock et al., 2001; Goldberg & Governali, 1995; King & Smith, 2000; Riley & McDaniel, 2000). Information related to crisis intervention is available through school district in-services, community and national crisis training programs, professional conferences, journal articles, books, and video training. The extent to which school counselors are seeking to improve their crisis intervention skills should be reflected in their continuing professional development activities.

It is also important to provide practitioners the opportunity to define high priority topics of crisis intervention. Based on their experiences in the school setting, school counselors are in a key position to provide practical information to university faculty and those in charge of continuing professional development (King, Price, Telljohann, & Wahl, 1999; Korinek & Prillaman, 1992). Using this information, academic preparation can be focused on these identified areas of greatest need. Course work and supervised learning activities in practica and internships can be strategically developed in order to better prepare school counselors to meet the challenging needs of students, families, and schools during times of crisis.

In developing the research questions for this study, four key areas of interest were identified:

1. University preparation: (a) What university course work and practicum/internship experiences have prepared school counselors for crisis intervention? (b) Based on their perception, how well does university course work prepare school counselors to deal with school crises? (c) Has there been an increased effort on the part of counselor education programs to prepare school counselors for crisis intervention?

2. Continuing professional development: Are school counselors participating in professional development activities to increase knowledge and skills in crisis intervention?

3. Participation in school crisis intervention: (a) Are school counselors familiar with crisis plans? (b) Are school counselors participating on crisis intervention teams?

4. Recommendations for counselor education: Which high-priority topics of crisis intervention do school counselors suggest for strengthening school counselor education?

METHOD

Participants

Upon request, the American School Counselor Association provided 400 randomly selected names, phone numbers, and addresses of current members. Of the 276 completed surveys (69% return rate), 236 (59% of 400) were considered valid for the purposes of this study. Surveys were excluded if the participant reported never working as a school counselor.

Respondents reported practicing as school counselors for an average of 6.25 years (SD = 6.22 years). Eighty-five percent of the participating school counselors were female. Approximately 53% of the counselors reported graduating after 1995. Counselors reported the following information regarding their level of education: approximately 3% were temporarily certified, 88% completed a master's degree, 5% a specialist degree or a master's plus 30 hours, and 3% completed a doctoral degree.

The participating school counselors represented school districts in 35 states in the United States and three foreign countries. Twenty-eight percent of the counselors worked in the northeastern United States, 32% in the southern states, 20% in the north-central states, 19% in the western states, and 1% outside the United States.

Questionnaire

The preliminary version of the questionnaire was refined based on the feedback from participants in a pilot study (N = 47-16 graduate students enrolled in a school crisis intervention class and 31 school psychologists working in a school setting). The refined questionnaire was also used in a parallel study conducted with school psychologists (N = 276; Allen et al., in press). The majority of participants in these two studies indicated their willingness to participate if the questionnaire could be completed in 10 minutes or less. As a result, it was designed to be completed in 10 minutes.

Participants were asked questions related to demographic information: gender, year of graduation from a counselor education program, years of experience as a school counselor, level of academic preparation, number of students in the school district, student to school counselor ratio, ethnic composition of students served, and type of community (rural, suburban, or urban). In addition, 16 questions solicited information related to the four categories of research questions: university preparation (seven questions); continuing professional development (two questions); participation in school crisis intervention (five questions); and recommendations for counselor education programs (two questions).

In the section focusing on university preparation for crisis intervention, participants were asked if they received such preparation as part of their graduate programs. If so, they reported the type of preparation (a specific class, a class from another department, integrated into course work, seminars/workshops, other). Students were asked to rate the extent to which their course work prepared them for responding to school crises (1 = not at all prepared to 5 = very well prepared). In addition, participants responded to an item that addressed if they had experiences with crisis intervention as part of internships or practica. If so, they were asked to indicate the type of crises with which they had experience.

The list of crisis topics (see Table I for the list of topics) was based on a 15-year review of crisis intervention topics presented at national convention programs of the American School Counselor Association, the National Association of School Psychologists, and the American Counseling Association (Allen, White, et al., 2001). Additional support for these topics was also evidenced by information gathered from a 31-year review of journal publications related to school crisis topics (Allen, Marston, & Lamb, 2001).

As part of the university preparation section, participants were asked about the adequacy of supervision received for crisis intervention. Also, they responded to a question that addressed who provided the majority of the supervision for crisis intervention (university faculty, site supervisor, both equally).

In the second section of the questionnaire, school counselors indicated their participation in professional development activities related to crisis intervention, selecting from a list (e.g., Red Cross first aid or CPR; local in-services, seminars, and/or sessions on crisis intervention, ASCA national conventions). Participants were provided an opportunity to list other forms of professional development. Another question addressed how the professional development experiences were provided or accessed (school district provided, personally sought, both).

Regarding school counselors' participation in crisis intervention, participants indicated whether their school or district had a crisis plan, and if so, whether it was a district-wide plan, an individual school plan, or a combination. Also, participants were asked to rate their level of familiarity with the plan (1 = not familiar to 5 = extremely familiar). In addition, participants responded to the following issues: (a) Do you have mock drills to practice the crisis plan (excluding fire drills) at least once per year? (b) Does your district/individual school have a specified crisis team? and if "yes" was reported for the previous question, (c) Are you a member of the district/individual school crisis team?

The final section addressed recommendations for counselor education regarding crisis intervention. The participants were asked to rate the importance of having one university course devoted to crisis intervention (1 = not important to 5 = extremely important). In addition, participants were asked to rank order their top three choices of topics that should be emphasized in a crisis intervention class. The list of topics was the same as noted earlier in this section.

After completing the questionnaire, participants were encouraged to elaborate on their experiences with crisis intervention. This provided school counselors an opportunity to clarify responses and to offer additional information not previously solicited.

Procedure

Two university professors, four graduate students in counseling psychology programs, and two under graduate research assistants attempted to contact each of the 400 randomly selected ASCA members by phone. All participating school counselors responded to the same scripted questionnaire. Participants were given the option of completing the questionnaire in a phone interview format or in a written format (questionnaire mailed by regular mail or by e-mail). These options were offered to accommodate school counselors' busy schedules and increase the likelihood of their willingness to participate.

Approximately 40% of the interviews were completed by phone, 55% by regular mail, and 5% by email. School counselors who could not be reached at their work number were contacted by mail. Six weeks after the initial mailing, a follow-up letter with an enclosed questionnaire was sent to each counselor who did not respond after the initial mailing.

RESULTS

University Preparation for Crisis Intervention

Approximately 64% of the school counselors reported having some type of exposure to crisis intervention during graduate school, either through course work or during practicum and internship. Forty-seven percent of school counselors reported specific university course work related to crisis intervention. Although only 10.6% of school counselors reported having a specific class designated for school crisis intervention, 28.4% reported having crisis topics integrated into other course work. Approximately 10% reported learning about crisis intervention in seminars or workshops during their graduate preparation and 5.1% reported enrollment in a crisis intervention class from another department.

School counselors indicated how well university course work prepared them to deal with school crises on a scale of 1 (not at all prepared) to 5 (very well prepared). On average, they reported feeling less than "adequately prepared" to deal with crisis situations (M = 2.52, SD = 1.06). Fifty-seven percent reported feeling "minimally prepared" or "not at all prepared" to deal with crisis situations. Twenty-four percent reported feeling "adequately prepared." Only 18% of the total sample reported feeling "well prepared" or "very well prepared" to deal with school crises.

Approximately 55 % (n = 130) of the school counselors reported participating in crisis intervention during practicum or internship. The types of crises experienced most frequently were situations involving abuse (physical and/or sexual abuse), suicide, grief and death, and aggression/violence. The number and percentage of counselors who assisted with specific situations involving crisis intervention during practicum or internship are presented in Table 1.

Approximately 55% of these counselors reported that school-based supervisors provided the majority of supervision for situations involving crisis intervention. Almost 27% of the counselors reported both university professors and school-based supervisors contributing equally to this type of supervision. The remaining 18% reported that university professors provided the bulk of supervision for crisis intervention.

When school counselors were asked if supervision for crisis intervention during practicum and internship was adequate, 53.7% responded "yes." School counselors who reported equal supervision from both the university professor and the on-site supervisor were more apt to report satisfactory supervision of crisis intervention than those school counselors reporting supervision from only one type of supervisor, [chi square] (2, N = 130) = 13.28, p = .001.

In order to determine the trend in university preparation for crisis intervention, the data were divided into two separate groups based on year of graduation: those graduating prior to 1995 (n = 111) and those graduating during 1995 and after (n = 125). Based on the difference between these two groups, there appears to be an increase over time in the percentage of counselors reporting university preparation for crisis intervention, [chi square] (1, N = 236) = 8.23, p = .004.

Prior to 1995, 37.3% of counselors reported university preparation compared to 56% in the more recent years (1995-2001). In comparison to counselors graduating prior to 1995, the recently graduated counselors also reported significantly more practicum and internship experiences, [chi square] (1, N = 236) = 22.63, p < .00001. Almost 70% of the recently graduated counselors reported having experiences related to crisis intervention during practicum and internship compared to 38.7% of those graduating prior to 1995.

Continuing Professional Development in Crisis Intervention

School counselors reported taking advantage of opportunities to increase their knowledge about crisis intervention after graduation. Three-fourths of the counselors reported that school districts either provided for or assisted with the costs of continuing education related to crisis intervention. Almost 22% of the counselors reported covering their own expenses for additional instruction in crisis intervention.

Approximately 69% of the school counselors reported participating in local professional development opportunities geared toward crisis intervention. This included school district in-services, local speakers, and community seminars. Counselors reported taking advantage of other opportunities to learn more about crisis intervention, including reading about crisis intervention in books or journal articles (52.5%), attending state and regional conventions (31.8%), and participating in Red Cross First Aid or CPR (23.7%). Other continuing professional development activities included training for crisis intervention through Red Cross Disaster Mental Health (11.4%), National Organization for Victim Assistance (6.8%), ASCA Conventions (5.5%), and American Psychological Association Conventions (3.4%).

Participation in School Crisis Intervention

Ninety-four percent of the school counselors reported working in districts with school crisis plans in place. When given five options ranging from 1 (not familiar) to 5 (extremely familiar), school counselors reported being "very familiar" with the school crisis plan (M = 3.7, SD = 1.1). Of the total sample, 75% of the counselors rated themselves as "familiar" or "very familiar" with the crisis plan in their school.

Eighty percent of the counselors served in districts with locally organized school crisis teams. Sixty-one percent reported participating as a member of a school crisis team. Almost 43% reported having "practice drills" (excluding fire drills) at least once a year to familiarize school personnel with procedures involved in crisis plans.

Recommendations for Counselor Education

School counselors recommended high priority crisis topics to be emphasized in counselor education programs. School counselors were instructed to rank their top three responses to emphasize the importance of the topic. Their recommendations are presented in Table 2. Approximately 30% of the school counselors listed suicide as the highest priority crisis topic. Two other frequently recommended topics were aggression/violence and creating school district crisis plans. Other topics of importance were grief/death and abuse (sexual or physical).

School counselors were asked to rate the importance of having one university class devoted specifically to crisis intervention. They were given response options ranging from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important). On the average, most school counselors reported that having a university class geared specifically to crisis intervention was "very important" (M = 4.298, SD = .997). In comparison to the more recent graduates, school counselors graduating prior to 1995 indicated an equal level of importance for offering a university class on crisis intervention. Rather than just providing one class, participating counselors also suggested that both crisis prevention and intervention should be integrated with existing course work.

DISCUSSION

Because there has been an increasing demand for school counselors to provide crisis intervention within the school setting, the preparation for crisis intervention is an important topic for the profession (Ho, 2001; Johnson, 2000; McWilliam, Maxwell, & Sloper, 1999; Riley & McDaniel, 2000). The purpose of this research was to provide a basis from which to initiate discussion regarding the match between the preparation of school counselors for crisis intervention and the demands of the profession.

Even though feedback from school counselors suggests recent graduates are receiving more preparation for crisis intervention than in the past, almost one third of school counselors continue to enter the profession with no formal course work or supervised experiences in their practica or internships. Translated into practical language, children attend schools where counselors are not prepared to provide crisis intervention.

In order to prepare school counselors to meet the emotional needs of children and staff during crises, the profession must encourage more extensive preparation both at the university level and in continuing professional development. However, this recommendation lacks the specificity of how to accomplish the goal of strengthening counselor preparation for the role of crisis intervention. Recommendations must be clearly stated and directed to the individuals and groups who shoulder the responsibility.

There is a need for students in counselor education programs to be proactive in seeking appropriate academic preparation for crisis intervention. If course work is not currently available within their program's outlined sequence of classes, then seeking a crisis intervention course outside the department may be necessary. Students can also gain valuable experiences in crisis intervention by volunteering for crisis hotlines, emergency shelters, and community mental health services that support families during times of crisis.

The first step for counselor educators is to evaluate their curriculum. They must determine ways to integrate crisis intervention into existing course work and practicum/internship experiences. There is a need for counselor educators to provide specific instruction for the topics of suicide, aggression/violence, and school district crisis plans. Other suggestions for counselor educators include inviting guest speakers to classes, providing informal "brown bags" and discussions among faculty and students, consulting and collaborating with other professionals to update syllabi with current resources and reading materials, arranging practicum/internship sites that provide students with experiences in crisis intervention, and providing appropriate supervision for those students who are faced with crisis situations.

It is recommended that school counselors actively seek and participate in professional development activities that increase their knowledge and skills in the area of crisis intervention. Experienced school counselors can also assist in providing supervision to graduate students during practicum/internship and in mentoring less experienced counselors.

Although the majority of school counselors are familiar with their district's school crisis plan, school counselors should work with administrators and other professionals to evaluate, improve, and update existing plans. Support systems for students are strengthened when school counselors prepare teachers and other staff to assist with the immediate needs of crisis intervention. In regard to preparing school staff and administrators, Brock et al. (2001) stated: "A crisis response plan is useless without personnel capable of conducting crisis intervention" (p. 52). Experienced school counselors can assist with staff development activities and in-services that teach the basic skills of crisis prevention and intervention.

School counselors should encourage collaborative roles with school administrators, school crisis teams, and community agencies (Adelman, 1996; Cunningham & Sandhu, 2000; Ho, 2001; Keys, Bemak, Carpenter, & King-Sears, 1998; Luongo, 2000). Coordination of resources is critical in maximizing the positive efforts and programs within the school and community to not only intervene effectively during a crisis but to prevent crisis situations.

School administrators can assist with crisis intervention by first assessing their own level of knowledge and skill for responding to school crises. Effective and informed leadership at all levels is crucial to supporting students, families, and staff during a crisis. Additionally, school administrators, both at the local and district level, can assist by funding continuing professional development activities in the area of crisis intervention. School counselors' efforts are best supported by informed administrators who acknowledge and promote services that assist with the mental health needs of children and staff during a school crisis.

It is important for individuals and groups responsible for providing professional development to provide research-based information specifically geared to strengthening schools during crisis. Information must be practical and geared to fit the needs of the school community. Feedback from practitioners will be crucial in directing research efforts and focusing on topics that are of greatest need.

Limitations

Although school counselors in this study provided interesting and practical information regarding crisis intervention, it is important to acknowledge the limitations of the study when interpreting the data. First and foremost, it is difficult to determine if this sample is representative of school counselors nationwide. ASCA reported a membership of 11,890 (personal communication with Mera Smith, ASCA Membership Administrator, October 4, 2001). At this time, demographic data are not available for ASCA membership or for school counselors nationwide. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reported that during the 1999-2000 school year, 96,000 school counselors served students nationwide (Bairu, 2001). Based on these figures, ASCA membership only accounts for about 12.4% of the school counselors nationwide. Therefore, even though the information gathered from this questionnaire may be reflective of ASCA membership, there is no guarantee that this information is reflective of school counselors generally.

Because the majority of this sample is comprised of counselors graduating after 1990, it is anticipated that this sample may report a higher level of academic preparation for crisis intervention than those school counselors graduating prior to 1990. Therefore, the information from this sample of school counselors may reflect an inflated estimate of academic preparation for crisis intervention. Considering this information, the results of this research should be interpreted with caution. It is anticipated that school counselors, in general, are even less prepared and less involved than these research results indicate.

School counselors' responses were also limited by the brevity of the questionnaire. Although this aspect most likely increased the response rate, the brevity also limited the depth and quality of information that was collected.

Suggestions for Future Research

Future studies should be designed to focus on a specific area of crisis intervention. Although this questionnaire did not probe for detailed information about crisis plans, future research might address the adequacy of these plans and what part school counselors play in developing, organizing, and maintaining crisis plans. Another aspect of future research might be directed to identify what types of preparation are the most effective in teaching and preparing school counselors for crisis intervention.

CONCLUSION

Although the growing and demanding need for effective crisis intervention in the schools will ultimately be mirrored in continuing professional development programs and in university curricula, there is an urgency in the schools for professionals to develop and implement effective crisis prevention and intervention programs. Preparation at the university level, in addition to continuing professional development, are prime areas to target for improving the crisis intervention skills of school counselors.

The feedback from school counselors in this study provides the profession, both practitioner and counselor educator, with a place to start in understanding the school counselor's role in crisis intervention. A dialog needs to be maintained among university faculty, professional school counselors, school administrators, and those individuals and groups providing continuing professional development. Organized efforts from all fronts will ultimately improve the quality of crisis prevention and intervention services for schools and more specifically for the children served in those schools.

Table 1. School Crises Reported during Practicum
and/or Internship

Type of Crisis          n      Percent of
                               Counselors

Any Type of Crisis     130        55.1
Abuse                   74        31.4
Suicide                 72        30.5
Grief & Death           68        28.8
Aggression/Violence     57        24.2
Other *                 44        18.6
Crisis Plan             40        16.9
Critical Illness        29        12.3
PTSD                    22         9.3
Media                   15         6.4
Gangs                   15         6.4
Weapons                 12         5.1
Natural Disaster         4         1.7

Note. N = 236

* School counselors reported "Other" to indicate their
experiences with individual type crises such as teen preg-
nancy, divorce, failing grades, and conflict with parents
or peers.

Table 2. Recommended High-Priority Topics for
School Counselor Education

Crisis Topic                  Percent of Counselors
                                Recommending Topic

                        Topic #1    Topic #2    Topic #3

Suicide                   30.2        16.1        10.2
Aggression/Violence       24.6        17.4        15.5
School Crisis Plans       16.4        12.2         7.1
Grief & Death             12.5        10.9        19.5
Abuse (Sexual &
   Physical)               5.6        20.9        15.0
Drugs                      3.0         8.3         8.4

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Melissa Allen, Ph.D., is an assistant professor, Karen Burt is a graduate student, and Eric Bryan is an undergraduate research assistant; all are with the Department of Counseling Psychology and Special Education, Brigham Young University Provo, UT E-mail: Melissa_Allen@ byu.edu. David Carter, Ph.D., is an assistant professor, Ralph Orsi is a research assistant and graduate student, and Lisa Durkan is a graduate student; all are with the University of Nebraska, at Omaha.