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The Role of a Community Counselor

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The Role of a Community Counselor
Donte Love

Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to address the role and function of the community counselor. Additionally, the framework of the community counseling model is taken into account, including some of the strategies used in community counseling.

The Role of a Community Counselor
Community counseling can be defined as “…a comprehensive helping framework that is grounded in multicultural competence and oriented toward social justice (Lewis, Lewis, Daniels, & D'Andrea, 2011). While this definition may serve as a starting point, any meaningful understanding of the role and function of a Community counselor requires more than a brief description or a cursory glance at a definition. …show more content…

The Community counseling model necessitates the importance of understanding multiculturalism on an individual and group level. “4. Individual development and community development are inextricably linked” (Lewis et al., 2011). As individuals interact with their surroundings they are confronted with inequalities and social systems that negatively impact their well-being. Community counseling confronts the institutions that have a detrimental impact on the lives of individuals and the community as a whole. These assumptions and the definition of Community counseling impart a multifaceted approach to helping and lay the foundation for understanding some of its primary components. However, the concepts of multicultural competence, social justice and the strategies that are used to bring about the healthy development of individuals and the community require a look at the role and function of community counselors.
Community counselors have the responsibility of serving both individuals directly and serving the community. It follows then that the community counselor’s role includes human development and community development. Ultimately, healthy human development is about choice, respect empowerment and a sense of belonging, all of which are emphasized in the community counseling model. An effective community counselor uses focused and broad-based strategies to bring about healthy human development. Focused strategies

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