The 20th cohort of NIU’s School Counselor Institute (SCI) will finish this spring. Launched in 2005, the program enables licensed clinical mental health counselors to earn their Illinois Professional Educator Licenses and School Counseling endorsements without pursuing a second master’s degree. Students
Read moreCOUN 500 graduate students present research on profession-related topics
Burnout. Social anxiety. Communication barriers. Intimacy. Negative parental emotions. New graduate students in COUN 500: Professional Identity and Ethics in Counseling researched these topics and more for the course’s annual poster presentation, held Dec. 8 in the Sky Room. Melissa Fickling, associate
Read moreCounseling faculty win national award for excellence in standards, innovation
When NIU received the national Robert Frank Outstanding Counselor Education Program Award this fall, Suzanne Degges-White was thrilled. But she wasn’t surprised. Just look at the facts, she says. The first in Illinois to receive the seal of approval from the Council
Read moreCounseling alum Sarah Nauman scores as a ‘Chicago Bears Classroom Legend’
When the caller ID on Sarah Nauman’s ringing phone showed “Chicago Bears,” she knew just what to do. Nothing. “I was like, ‘Telemarketer spam.’ I’m like, ‘I’m not answering that.’ I’m like, ‘Whatever.’ My husband, Tyler, was sitting next to me, and
Read morePh.D. candidate Priyanka Jha receives top award for counseling scholarship
Priyanka Jha was barely a teenager in India, and already brimming with ambition and confidence, when her ultimate destination in life came into view. “Since sixth-grade, I’ve always wanted to pursue a doctoral program – and in the U.S.,” Jha says. “I
Read moreGrateful: Double-alumna Mary Noe sees reward in sharing ‘gifts’ of NIU degrees
Mary Noe knows the key to flourishing and informational transactions between high school students and educators. Listening. “I feel that a lot of students do not have many people who would listen to them talk; they would talk at them but not
Read moreCall to action: Yenitza Guzman inspired by Counselor Educator of the Year honor
Yenitza Guzman wants to make the greatest impact possible in her calling to help others. “As someone who has worked with underprivileged and diverse populations, I know that there is a lot of trauma out there. I know that there is a
Read moreCongratulations!
Congratulations to these members of the NIU College of Education family! Five graduate students in the Department of Counseling and Higher Education’s M.S.Ed. in Counseling program were awarded the Jerry J. Murphy Master Scholarship, funded by the Aurora, Illinois-based INC Mental Health
Read moreTaking the plunge: Melissa Fickling taps AI to enrich course in counseling ethics
New graduate students in this fall’s section of COUN 500: Professional Identity and Ethics in Counseling probably weren’t expecting what Melissa Fickling told them. Fickling, associate professor in the Department of Counseling and Higher Education, revealed that she had devoted the summer
Read moreCongratulations!
Congratulations to these members of the NIU College of Education family! Injung Lee, a faculty member in the Counseling program, received a 2024 Professional Research Grant from Association for Counselor Education and Supervision. Lee’s project aims to understand international doctoral students’ experiences
Read moreCongratulations!
The College of Education ranks 183 in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Education Schools, moving up 19 spots from last year. *** Several faculty, alumni and current students of the Department of Counseling and Higher Education were honored at
Read morePowerful sounds: Peitao Zhu to perform free piano recital, share musical healing
Peitao Zhu was only 5 when he began piano lessons. Doing so made sense. His parents, now retired, both were professional musicians: father Xicai Zhu, a singer, and mother Xiaorong Zhu, who taught traditional Chinese instruments. “My mom was actually my first
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