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Abstract
ABSTRACT
Maya Angelou said, “You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lies, you may trod me in the very dirt, but still, like dust, I'll rise”. Despite the growing diversity of schools, and the need for more social emotional support of students from minoritized groups, the school counseling profession continues to lack diversity in practitioners, despite a major push for social justice and advocacy in the profession. This lack of diversity is seen specifically with the underrepresentation of Black male school counselors, while their experiences as school counselors are absent from the literature. In the spirit of social justice, critical race theory was utilized as a theoretical framework, and thematic narrative analysis, the goal of this research was to evoke the voices of Black male school counselors, critique the impact structural racism has had on their personal and professional journey, excavate their resiliency and perseverance, and ascertain their perspectives on strategies to recruit Black men into the profession. Findings from this research provided insights into the experiences and thoughts of the participants personally and professionally. A total of 10 Black male school counselors from school districts around the Southeast of the U.S. served as storytellers for the research. The data analysis consisted of narratives of each participant to identify recurring themes. The analysis revealed themes that were categorized as structural racism, and themes categorized as counter-narratives that have a significant influence on the personal and professional experiences of Black male school counselors. Themes that were extracted from their experiences included feelings of racial fatigue, tokenism, code switching, burden of their identities, resilience, advocacy, cultural pride, and community building.
Maya Angelou said, “You may write me down in history with your bitter, twisted lies, you may trod me in the very dirt, but still, like dust, I'll rise”. Despite the growing diversity of schools, and the need for more social emotional support of students from minoritized groups, the school counseling profession continues to lack diversity in practitioners, despite a major push for social justice and advocacy in the profession. This lack of diversity is seen specifically with the underrepresentation of Black male school counselors, while their experiences as school counselors are absent from the literature. In the spirit of social justice, critical race theory was utilized as a theoretical framework, and thematic narrative analysis, the goal of this research was to evoke the voices of Black male school counselors, critique the impact structural racism has had on their personal and professional journey, excavate their resiliency and perseverance, and ascertain their perspectives on strategies to recruit Black men into the profession. Findings from this research provided insights into the experiences and thoughts of the participants personally and professionally. A total of 10 Black male school counselors from school districts around the Southeast of the U.S. served as storytellers for the research. The data analysis consisted of narratives of each participant to identify recurring themes. The analysis revealed themes that were categorized as structural racism, and themes categorized as counter-narratives that have a significant influence on the personal and professional experiences of Black male school counselors. Themes that were extracted from their experiences included feelings of racial fatigue, tokenism, code switching, burden of their identities, resilience, advocacy, cultural pride, and community building.