Counselor Educator Award
This award honors a faculty member or instructor employed by an accredited graduate program preparing future school counselors who has made significant contributions to the preparation, mentorship, and professional growth of the next generation of school counseling professionals. Applicants will have demonstrated a deep commitment to developing highly skilled, compassionate, and ethical counselors through exemplary teaching, supervision, research, and service. They create learning environments that bridge theory and practice, inspire counselor candidates to embrace their role as advocates for all students, and provide consistent guidance, encouragement, and constructive feedback. In addition to their work in the classroom, they extend their influence into the field, actively engaging with the school counseling community, contributing to professional organizations, advancing the profession through scholarship, and collaborating with K–12 schools to ensure counselor preparation remains current and impactful. Through their dedication, passion, and leadership, these individuals leave a lasting imprint on both their students and the school counseling profession as a whole.
Professional recognitions are among WSCA’s most meaningful awards, celebrating exceptional contributions to the school counseling profession. To help ensure a strong and thoughtful review process, we encourage supporters of a nominee to collaborate on a single, complete nomination rather than submit multiple applications. The strongest nominations are often those that bring together meaningful input from several sources in a single, well-prepared submission. If more than one nomination is received for the same individual, only the first application submitted will be reviewed.
Nomination Questions:
*The individual counselor nominated and the nominator must be members of WSCA to be eligible to win.*
1) Describe how the faculty or instructor has guided and supported graduate students in becoming effective school counselors. Include specific examples of how they help students build knowledge and skills, confidence, and a strong sense of professional purpose.
2) Share how the nominee connects classroom learning to real-world school counseling practice, inspires students to advocate for the needs of all students, and models professionalism and ethical decision-making.
3) Provide examples of how the nominee’s impact reaches beyond their graduate program, such as building partnerships with schools to enhance counselor preparation, contributing to professional organizations, engaging in research or publications, or developing resources that strengthen the school counseling profession.
View our grading rubric for this award to see the criteria used when selecting the award recipient.
Nomination Instructions:
Fill out the form below to submit your nomination online.
