ZETA BOARD

President ………………. Kristen Woods

President Elect …….. Stephanie Perry

Treasurer …………………. Justin Smith

Secretary …………… Ryan Humphries

Social Media …………….. Amber Keltz

Involvement ……………….. Katie Reed

Involvement …………. Michelle Henry

Newsletter Editor ………. Garrett Irby

Mentorship …………….. Julia Venable

Marketing …………….. Matt McKenzie

Hospitality ………. Tania Blankenship

Hospitality ………….. Ginger Mayfield

At Large …………………………. Bre Carr

At Large …………………. Emilie Shaver

The Compass is produced by

the Zeta chapter of Chi Sigma

Iota as a service to students

in the Counselor Education

Program of The University of

Alabama at Birmingham.

CONTENTS 1 The First Word by Kristen Woods 2 Adam Johnson Chasity Casey & Jessica Wilson 3 Kelsie Dale Julia Venable & Tania Blankenship 4 Katie Reed Kenton Bartlett 5 Virginia Inge & Ginger Mayfield Michelle Henry 6 Amber Keltz & Kristen Woods 7 Kendra Cahill & Stephanie Perry

8 Anna Guerdat and Jennifer Reynolds 9 Courtney Samples & Ashley Winfree Bre Carr 10 Haley Papajohn & Harriet Smith Kathryn Pugh & Meliah Capers 11 Antonia Hill Ashton Hale 12 Sandra & William Muhammad 13 Jessica Smith & Susan Kirkland 15 The Last Word

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The First Word

A Letter From the Zeta President

Hello Students!

Each year the Alabama Counseling Association (ALCA) Conference provides an opportunity for students from counseling education programs across the state to participate in content sessions and poster sessions. Every year UAB Counselor Education Program (CEP) students utilize this opportunity to present sessions pertaining to research they are conducting, literature reviews on interesting

topics, or new information they feel is pertinent to the counseling profession. This year’s conference was held November 19-21 in Huntsville, Al with over 14 UAB CEP students participating.

As always, UAB CEP students continued their tradition of presenting poster sessions. As you will see in this special edition, each one was packed with information while also being aesthetically beautiful!

A number of students attended the Chapter IV reception. This was an opportunity for students to receive information on programs occurring in

their district. The reception also served as an opportunity for The Zeta Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota to recognize students participating at ALCA. Framed certificates were presented to each UAB Counselor Education Program student for presenting a content or poster session by Zeta President Kristen Woods and President Elect Stephanie Perry. Zeta is proud to recognizeUAB CEP students for their hard work and dedication each year at ALCA. That is what this special edition of “The Compass” is dedicated to.

Sincerely,

Kristen Woods

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Earthworks

By: Adam Johnson

The purpose of my poster is to provide an overview of a planned implementation of a local community outreach project targeting homeless veterans who are unemployed and suffering from a Substance Use Disorder as well as trauma-related psychopathology and other mental disorders.

The newly proposed EARTHWORKS will have a new admission criteria of unemployment. Contingency Managed Work Therapy (CMWT), Therapeutic

Goals Management (TGM), Intensive Case Management (ICM) and Seeking Safety will be the primary evidenced-based interventions used in the new program. The proposed project is an adaptation of EARTH (Enhanced Addiction Recovery Through Housing). Dr. Joseph Schumacher and Dr. Jesse Milby created the Behavioral Day Treatment model and are co-authors of TGM and CMWT.

This poster aims at describing Animal-Assisted Therapy or AAT and the implications of the use of AAT in the counseling profession. The poster provides information to help educate professionals about what AAT is, how AAT impacts the counseling process, ethical concerns about the use of AAT, and how to become certified in AAT. The poster also looks at how the animal-human bond and non-evaluative social support from animals aid in mental health improvements and/or stability.

The Therapeutic Benefit of Furry Friends

By: Chasity Casey & Jessica Wilson

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The Missing Domain: Culture in our Schools

By: Kelsie Dale

The recent publication of the International Model for School Counseling Programs by Brooke Fezler and Cheryl Brown raises questions about how well the American School Counseling Association's National Model is currently serving American students. The International Model is almost a word-for-word clone of the ASCA

model with the exception of one major component: the International Model adds an extra cultural domain. Overall, culture is rarely mentioned in ASCA's current model. Meanwhile, multicultural competencies and knowledge are becoming more common in mental health literature and education in response to

growing knowledge of how influential culture is to a person's mental health and overall well-being. It is important for school counselors to adapt their focus in order to address the needs of the children that are serviced. An added cultural domain would help school counselors better inform students, help underserved populations in schools, and help improve the mental health of children in the American education system.

Trust-Based Relational Intervention

By: Julia Venable and Tania Blankenship

Children who have experienced abuse and neglect have special needs with or without a disability or diagnosis. School counselors must provide parents and teachers with strategies to effectively deal with behaviors that arise from the trauma of abuse and neglect effecting homes and classrooms.

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Screening for Childhood Resiliency Factors

By: Katie Reed

The effects of exposure to domestic violence in the lives of children can have serious implications, such as exhibiting internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems. Additionally, these children are at an increased risk of repeating the cycle of abuse in future relationships.

However, many children are still able to overcome this adversity and live lives marked by resilience. What sets these children apart, and what can be done to help others have the same chance?

I developed the Childhood Protective and Risk Factors Checklist for Domestic

Violence to help answer these questions. The proposed checklist can provide a guide for practitioners to uncover and understand the protective and risk factors associated with resilience in children. This conceptualization can then provide direction for effective, individualized interventions to increase protective factors and decrease risk factors to best help children and their families.

My presentation examines the idea of “choice paradox.” In it, I explore how having too many choices can sometimes inhibit our ability to make decisions and/or feel content with decisions we make. I also examine how this concept can impact counselors’ techniques, philosophies, and work with clients.

Choice Paradox

By: Kenton Bartlett

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Effectiveness of Positive Psychotherapy

By: Virginia Inge and Ginger Mayfield

Positive Psychotherapy (PPT) is a treatment approach pioneered by Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Tayaab Rashid. PPT asserts that the goal of therapy should not be limited to diminishing negative symptoms of disorders.

PPT does not believe that psychopathology or disorders do not exist, but seeks to take a different approach in treatment. Recovery includes hope, a meaningful and fulfilling life, a positive sense of identity, and taking responsibility for one’s own

well-being. Currently, PPT consists of a manual with fourteen weeks of guided exercises that seek to promote positivity and help the client discover character strengths. The emphasis of growth is placed on using positive character traits and practicing identified strengths in actions that lead to both individual and collective well-being.

Adults Recovering from the Effects of Stroke

By: Michelle Henry

Who are the people most likely to attend counseling while providing care for a family member that has had a stroke? My poster describes The Caring for Adults Recovering from the Effect of Stroke (CARES) project, and what we have found so far regarding the overall health and mental health of caregivers and non-caregivers. I have titled it, “A Look at People Most Likely to Utilize Mental Health Services While Providing Care to a Family Member After Stroke”.

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A Review of Positive Psychotherapy on Allostatic

Load and Major Depressive Disorder

By: Amber Keltz and Kristen Woods

The purpose of our research was to review Positive Psychotherapy effects on Allostatic Load and Major Depressive Disorder. Martin Seligman, a founding father in positive psychotherapy believed psychology had not adequately addressed curing mental illnesses or assisted individuals to lead productive lives, and did not nurture their talents ( Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Prevention researchers use human strengths to form buffers against mental illnesses. Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi, (2000), highlighted human strengths of optimism, courage, work ethic, honesty, perseverance, flow and insight as being positive buffers. These buffers are important when it comes to managing stress and maintaining proper homeostasis within the body.

Djuric, Z., Bird, C., Furumoto-Dawson, A., Rausher, G., Ruffin, M., Stowe, R., & Tucker, K.,2008, used the term allostatic load to refer to the overall biological burden that is carried out within an individual through daily adaption in response to physical and emotional stress.

In high periods of stress, inflammatory cytokines can cause sickness behaviors s that stem from the altering of neurotransmitters and neural systems that regulate mood, cognition, and behavior (Slavich, G., & Irwin, M.,2014, January 13). The neural pathway responsible for excitatory influences from the amygdala are highly susceptible to lack of allostasis, which leads to “depressive” symptom behavior (McEwen, 2009).

Our ongoing research surrounds the idea that mindfulness based techniques can help improve symptomatic behaviors in depressed clients and lead to an overall better sense of wellbeing.

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LGBTQ 101

By: Kendra Cahill & Stephanie Perry

LGBTQ 101. Creating a safe and affirming space for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer Client. What Counselors need to know.

Prejudice and discrimination are often a daily part of life for anyone who identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning (LGBTQ). This consistent pressure of disapproval and stress may result in depression, anger, anxiety, posttraumatic stress, self-blame, and internalized homophobia. Imagine that the person a client goes to for help inadvertently uses a microaggression. Unfortunately, that is the reality for many LGBTQ clients who pursue counseling

services from incompetent mental health professionals. LGBTQ clients can benefit from the therapeutic counselor client relationship. However if counselors are not properly trained in this area the resulting consequence of the loss of that client and the therapeutic relationship are truly unfortunate. LGBTQ people are everyday Americans who want the same

chance as everyone else to pursue health and happiness, earn a living, be safe in their communities, serve their country, and take care of the ones they love. Counselors can have a positive and impactful role for improving the quality of their clients’ lives and this includes the underserved LGBTQ community. Gender identity and sexual orientation are relevant in effective treatment and counseling. However, many clients are not open about their sexual orientation or gender identity in mainstream mental health facilities. These clients may be uncomfortable due to fear of negative responses or homophobic/transphobic

attitudes of the counselor and their staff.

Providing a safe therapeutic space for LGBTQ clients is essential. As mental health professionals we know that LGBTQ is not a mental disorder and in and of itself is unrelated to psychological disturbance or maladjustment. It is societal stressors such as prejudice and discrimination which account for the finding that LGBTQ people report elevated rates of Major Depressive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety

Disorder, suicidality, and substance abuse (Sue & Sue, 2013). By providing an all accepting counseling model for counseling offices and settings, we can ensure that our LGBTQ clients know from the very start of the counseling process that being completely open about who they are and who they love is not only safe for them in our office, but expected.

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Defining the Cyberbully: A Literature Review

By: Anna Guerdat and Jennifer Reynolds

With today’s fast expansion of the popularity of social media and online resources, cyberbullying is quickly becoming more prevalent. Brett Holfeld and Mark Grabe (2012) studied the prevalence of cyberbullying in 665 middle school students, and found that one in five students reported being bullied online in the past year, with 55% of those students being repeatedly victimized in the past thirty days before they conducted this research. Since cyberbullying can have many negative impacts on its victims, the factors that lead an adolescent to bully have been explored.

According to Peter K. Smith, Helen Cowie, Ragnar F. Olaffson, and Andy Liefooghe (2002), cyberbullying is an aggressive, intentional act carried out by a group or individual, using

electronic forms of contact, repeatedly and over time against a victim who cannot easily defend himself or herself. Because cyberbullying has quickly become a vast issue, counselors owe it to today’s youth to conduct more research. Since cyberbullying can have many negative impacts on its victims, the factors that lead an adolescent to bully has been explored. Research has shown that high internet use (Kowalski and Limber, 2007), positive attitudes toward cyberbullying (Bentley & Li, 1995; Bosworth, Espelage, & Simon, 1999; Barlett & Gentile, 2012) and peer group influences on individual bullying

behavior (Mouttapa, Valente, Gallaher, Rohrbach, & Unger, 2004) are characteristics of cyberbullying behavior among adolescents. Future research looking at temperament and social dominance orientation could help address who takes part in cyberbullying. Defining the characteristics of the cyberbully can lead to intervention and prevention.

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Vicarious trauma is a phrase first used by McCann and Pearlmann that is used to describe pervasive changes that occur within counseling clinicians over time as a result of working with clients who have experienced some kind of trauma (1990). Vicarious trauma in clinicians can be a result of several types of counseling environments and clientele, with those who work with sexual violence, child abuse and neglect, and chronic health issues experiencing the highest percentage of vicarious trauma symptoms (Schuaben & Frazier 1995). Exposure to repeated trauma in the counseling setting can result in a heightened awareness in five areas, including safety, trust and dependency, esteem, control, and intimacy (McCann & Pearlman 1990). The American Counseling Association has identified warning signs for counselors who may be experiencing vicarious trauma and include symptomatology in areas such as

behavioral, interpersonal, personal values/beliefs, and job performance. It is imperative for counselors and other helping professions to be able to recognize the signs, as well as be aware of how to prevent vicarious trauma. Self-care, limiting work load, continuing professional education, and maintaining therapeutic self-awareness are all components that can prevent vicarious trauma in counselors.

Vicarious Trauma in Counseling

By: Courtney Samples and Ashley Winfree

Love and War in Relationships

By: Bre Carr

This is an integrative examination of neural underpinnings in interpersonal relationships and the quality of attachments in the couple system utilizing the psycho-biology approach to couples therapy.

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How Major National Disasters Affect Mental Health

By: Haley Papajohn and Harriet Smith

Major natural disasters can have extremely harmful affects to the mental health of those who are its’ victims.

We described the varying affects that surviving a natural disaster can have on those who experience it, what can be done to alleviate these effects, and how this

impacts the counseling profession.The two of us have been through multiple natural disasters, including Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ivan, and the April 27th Tuscaloosa tornado. From these horrific events, we understand the aftermath that they can have first hand on oneself, one’s family, and the community as a whole.

We reviewed the literature regarding play therapy as a therapeutic technique in dealing with adolescents who have experienced trauma. Adolescents tend to be more resistant to talk therapy and teens who have encountered trauma can suffer emotional dysregulation and disorganized relational attachments, which can make verbal communication more difficult. Play therapy creates a safe space within the therapeutic relationship for clients to process their experiences and express their emotions. Teens may feel shame, fear, or guilt in connection with their trauma, so it is important that counselors are aware of alternative methods to help them.

Play Therapy with Teens who Experienced Trauma

By: Kathryn Pugh &Meliah Capers

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I presented “Coping Skills as a Protective Factor against the Stressors of African-American Youth Living in Low Income Inner-Cities with High Rates of Violence.” I presented the urgent need for solutions and interventions, placing particular importance on the overwhelming amount of violence in the areas of the country where the populations are predominately African-American and of lower socioeconomic status and how it affects the youth that reside in these communities. Studies show that the acquisition of appropriate coping skills could help reduce emotional and behavior issues, such as anxiety resulting in hyper-vigilance, depression, substance abuse, inability to adapt, and being more

susceptible to mental illness. that have been found to be a direct result of the experience and witnessing of violence within their neighborhoods. With more awareness, knowledge, and understanding of the issues that this population faces, mental health professionals, policy makers, and program developers can better direct interventions at helping these youth to develop alternatives ways to deal with issues that stem from the chronic violence within their communities.

Coping Skills as Protective Factors

By: Antonia Hill

A Call for Mental Health Care at the End of Life

By: Ashton Hale

Palliative care is an integrated approach to end of life medical treatment that uses an interdisciplinary team of physicians and other specialists to provide holistic care to patients andtheir families.

Physical, mental, spiritual, and psychosocial needs are all important in this model to increase comfort and improve of quality of life. My poster presents a literature review focusing on how patient’s receiving end of life care can benefit from the inclusion of counselors on these medical treatment teams.

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Social Justice Counseling and the New Jim Crow

By: Sandra Muhammad & William Muhammad

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We presented how Social Justice Counseling provides counselors with an understanding of how oppression shapes human behavior and how Social Justice Counseling promotes human development by the confrontation of injustice and inequality in society.

Recently, mentoring programs have become increasingly popular, especially for the at-risk youth population. Mentoring programs are an effective way to meet the various needs of the at-risk youth population within your school. As Maslow's hierarchy of needs shows us, one must experience a sense of love and belongingness and self-esteem to reach growth and self-actualization. A mentoring program can help an at-risk youth reach meet these internal needs through a positive, supportive relationship. “Although all mentoring programs aim to promote positive youth outcomes, they vary some- what in their goals, emphasis, and structure. Some programs have broad youth development goals, while others focus more narrowly on improving academic performance, helping youth stay in school, preparing youth for a particular line of work, or reducing substance abuse and other anti-social

behaviors” (Jekieklek, 2002). Despite the formal or informal nature of a particular mentoring program, there are core components that affect its’ success. We have created the acronym S.O.A.R. to identify four core components of a successful mentoring program.

SOARing School Mentorship Programs

By: Jessica Smith and Susan Kirkland

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S ---Strong Relationships between the mentors and youth: A main focus of the relationship is for the mentor to assist the mentee in setting goals that assist them in becoming academically successful and therefore enter the trade and/or career of their choice. This is only possible if the mentor and the mentee establish a

trusting relationship in which the mentor displays acceptance of and commitment to the youth.The greater the strength and trust of the relationship, the greater effects can be expected. The ideal result is for the youth to develop into a self-actualizing individual and is able to be more aware of their personal needs and achievements, rather than looking for fulfillment in the negative influences for social recognition.

O ---Organization and Collaboration: Organization within the program, and collaboration with the mentee as well as the parent or guardian positively influences the mentoring program. It is also essential for educators to be aware of the relationship to ensure the mentor is informed of the youth’s academic

progress. This will allow the mentor to serve as a liaison between the school and the parents. Therefore, if the parent or guardian is working with the mentor to ensure the youth’s academic success- the student will likely recognize the team of people that are willing to collaborate to ensure his or her success. It is important for the program to be organized so the involved adults in the mentorship program are aware of the activities and progress of the mentor and mentee.

A ---Accolades from the mentor: The mentees need positive reinforcement to assist a response to positive behavior rather than being further influenced by the societal norms that contribute to the delinquent behavior(s). The result is an increase in self esteem and taking ownership of what they have

accomplished. Mentoring relationships are also more effective if the contact between the mentor and mentee is consistent over a significant period of time (DuBois et. al, 2002). This allows time for the relationship to strengthen and benefits to the child to be maximized. Ideally this will include face-to-face visits for a minimum of two hours per month, and regularly weekly contacts that can include emails, face-to-face, or phone calls.

R ---Relevance to the Mentee’s Needs and Desires: The mentor must endeavor to include the mentee in activities that are relevant to their circumstances and goals as well as their interests. This is not designed for the mentor to have their agenda that they wish to follow, but for the best interest of the youth.

Relevance also refers to using the best practices to develop the relationship. In their analysis, DuBois et al. (2002) found that expected effects for programs utilizing the full complement of evidence-based practices that they identified were nearly three times as large as the benefits found for youth in the typical program. This can be accomplished through adequate training and supervision of the mentors

SOARing School Mentorship Programs (cont.)

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The Last Word — A Picture Is Worth 1,000 of Them