The purpose of this article is to provide a rationale for the integration of mindfulness interventions into school counseling. Mindfulness practices currently are neither widely known nor well utilized in the school counseling environment. Implementation of mindfulness in schools may help students increase academic performance, develop social…

Government guidance in 2008 endorsed the "Targeting Mental Health in Schools" (TaMHS) agenda, which sets out to promote mental health in schools through the delivery of universal and targeted interventions. This paper initially defines mental health and outlines the TaMHS initiative. It then offers empirical findings from four focus…

School counselors are a well-positioned resource to reach the significant number of children and adolescents with mental health problems. In this special school counseling issue of "The Professional Counselor," some articles focus on systemic, top-down advocacy efforts as the point of intervention for addressing child and adolescent…

K-12 online learning is growing at an exponential rate in the United States and around the world. Students and teachers are entering and embracing the K-12 online learning environment. Thus, it becomes imperative for school psychologists to follow. In order to offer the most productive learning environment for all students, the services provided…

Motivation is an important foundation of academic development in students. This article discusses academic motivation; its various component concepts in areas such as beliefs, goals, and values; and intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. It also presents major, widely studied theoretical perspectives of academic motivation and briefly illustrates…

In this article we illustrate the roles of school psychologists, administrators, social workers, teachers, and parents in school reform by describing the adoption, initial implementation, and formative evaluation of an evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL) program within several rural Midwestern school districts in a geographically…

Youth suicidal behavior is a significant public health problem, and schools can play an important role in youth suicide prevention. However, schools cannot do this alone; they need the student's family members and peers, and other professionals and community members, to do their part. School personnel, and particularly school-employed mental…

When first introduced to Re-ED principles 25 years ago, the author was intrigued by the concept of wellness versus pathology in work with troubled and troubling children. Since then, she has worn many professional hats. Her most memorable position has been as a clinician, teaching and supervising both traditional therapists and nontraditional…

High-stakes tests have played an increasingly important role in how student achievement and school effectiveness are measured. Test anxiety has risen with the use of tests in educational decision making. Students with high test anxiety perform poorly on tests when compared to students with low test anxiety. School psychologists can play an…

Sexting, the practice of sending sexually explicit messages or photographs of oneself or others on digital electronic devices, presents challenges for schools and professional school counselors. The implications of sexting for schools, school counselors, students, and parents are discussed. School counselor interventions, developing school…

This article presents a review of the literature on orofacial clefting in children. The authors review the etiology, prevalence, and variations of clefting as well as issues related to neuropsychological, social, academic, emotional, and behavioral functioning of children with clefts. Finally, the authors discuss the implications for school…

According to the U.S. Department of Education (2010), Latina/o English language learners (ELL students) are less likely to complete high school and attend college compared to their White non-Latina/o peers. Numerous factors affect Latina/o ELL students' academic achievement, including insufficient resources, acculturation issues, attitudinal…

Problem: Education and research on social work's role in preventing client suicide is limited. Method: Seventy advanced master of social work students were randomly assigned to either the training group (Question, Persuade, and Referral suicide gatekeeper training) or the control group. Outcomes measured over time included suicide knowledge,…

The percentage of students educationally identified with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is on the rise and school counselors are called to serve this population. Social stories are recommended in the educational literature to address the social and behavioral challenges of students with ASD, but a need exists to examine social stories within the…

Through an embedded single-case study design and qualitative methods, this article describes the school-wide implementation and preliminary results of a restorative practices (RP) program within a culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) elementary school. Located in an urban area with high rates of crime, violence, and poverty, the three-year…