IMHCA Scholarship Recipients Attend ICA Conference
Last October IMHCA awarded scholarships to graduate students in Idaho counseling programs for their outstanding essays. The scholarships allowed these students to attend the Idaho Counseling Association’s ICA/ISCA Annual Conference in November. The following are letters we received from scholarship recipients Michael Carey and Courtney Goossens reflecting on their experience at the Conference.
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"It was such an honor to be able to attend the Idaho Counseling Association Conference as a IMHCA scholarship recipient. I am so grateful for the experience and it is something I will always look back on. Attending a conference during the COVID-19 pandemic comes with many challenges and setbacks, but the organizers did a such great job at putting this together. There were so many engaging presentations and the topics that were covered were all so enlightening when it comes to sharpening my skills as a future counselor. I’ve been to a couple of conferences throughout my undergraduate but this one is my first as a Masters counseling student. Even though it was completely online, this was my favorite I have attended so far.
It was inspiring to be around such an amazing group of people who are trying to make a difference in the world. There was a special moment for me while attending the conference that I will forever cherish. I felt a sense of belongingness and that I had finally found my tribe- a group of individuals who are on the same mission as me. I am beyond excited to attend the conference next year to continue on my path of developing myself as a counselor and to make an impact on the community I live in.
Thank you IMHCA for the opportunity, I am so grateful to have been able to attend the ICA Conference!"
Michael Carey
Master’s Student, Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Idaho State University
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"I think the biggest takeaway from my experience at the ICA conference is that we as counselors always have a responsibility to continue to educate ourselves, because even after 10-20 years in the field, there is always more to learn.
One of the sessions I attended today was on Racial and Cultural Trauma and its effects on people who could be our clients. I got to hear personal stories of the presenters who had been victims of racial trauma and stories of other practicing counselors who admitted having to own up to times when they had hurt friends or colleagues through micro-aggressions. Many of the topics of sessions were focused on racial trauma and anti-racism, especially as we live through the current political climate of 2020.
Although I have tried to spend some time educating myself on these topics, I am yet again humbled and reminded that I will never achieve cultural competence. I can aspire to become more culturally competent, while also recognizing that there will always be more perspectives to hear and more lessons to learn. I was also struck by the participants’ willingness and desire to increase their own personal awareness and identify their own blind spots to better be able to work with marginalized clients. I feel grateful to be in a profession where so many people seek to grow and have those hard conversations in order to better be able to serve others."
Courtney Goossens
Master’s Student, Clinical Mental Health Counseling
Idaho State University
Presented by Dr. Michele Kerulis (left) and Jennifer Robertson (right).
