Chi Sigma Iota
Newsletter
Chi Sigma Upsilon Chapter
FALL/WINTER 2014
Br
Cover Art by Brienne Miller
Inside this issue:
Member Cultural Narratives
2
White Ribbon Campaign for Healthy Nonviolent Relationships
3
Power of Peer Mentoring
3
Call for Cultural Narratives!
3
Massage for Self-care
3
Be Involved! Wear an Ugly Sweater Party & Backpack Drive!
4
Are you a Member? How to join CSI!
4
Page 2
Crumbling Steadily by Brienne Miller
My Journey to Becoming a
Culturally Competent
Counselor by Jamie Johnson
I’ve done some things of which
ship? I wonder if others do the
I am not proud to belong. To
same kinds of thinking that I
belong and feel accepted by
do…As I become more keenly
others is all I’ve ever wanted,
aware of my domination over
and still want as I prod waist
others, I lose some of the sta-
deep through my third decade
bility on which I have stood for
of life, heavy responsibility
so long. I feel the vulnerable
clinging to my stride. This is
sores left in the wake of reali-
important to me to describe for
zation that I, we, have created
a variety of reasons one of
this. Human beings devised
which is parenthood, another is
these layers upon layers of
relief that I’m more aware of
hierarchy in our world that
what I’ve done in a well-
benefit some people, while
intentioned effort to connect
limiting and suffocating others.
with other people. I’ve messed
As a sisgender female and a
up though; I’ve said things to
person with white skin, I have
My personal journey toward becoming a counselor who is
people I’ve
many options that others do
competent in multicultural issues did not begin with an
sought to
not because they have other
awareness of the needs for these ideals. Instead, it began
help with
than white skin and live places
with me naively believing that I understood the concepts of
prejudice
with scarcity. How, for so long,
racism, sexism, minorities and discrimination because I
laced infer-
have I been blind to the inequi-
had read about these issues in books, and had attended
ence. I’ve
ties that harm so many? I’ve
courses focused on the solving of these world problems.
noticed
been unsettled, each day more
My work outside the classroom, both for school and within
physical
and more.
the field, forced me to recognize my ignorance of the ex-
“How, for so long,
have I been blind
to the inequities
that harm so
many?”
In my experience a competent multicultural counselor’s goals not only intersect with Chi Sigma Iota’s mission “to promote scholarship,
research, professionalism, leadership, advocacy, and excellence in counseling,” but mirror those ideals in a strong and
powerful way. The mirroring of the above-stated mission is
necessary because it takes each of these ideals to truly
recognize the various levels and aspects of culture, and to
respect those differences in others that do not reflect our
own worldviews.
reactions to
periences, values and suffering of individuals from other
passersby
cultures. My concepts of the cycles of poverty and violence,
with a
which had been handed out to me before on clean work-
shameful
sheets drawn in circles with clear lines and arrows, ap-
acknowl-
peared to have a straight-forward “fixes” for the problems
edgement of my hesitation. I’ve
involved. These issues and their obvious solutions were less
done all of these things while
apparent and offered the people suffering less alternatives
internally congratulating my-
when I approached them in a real life situation.
self that I’m not one of “those”
After experiencing the ways in which the system is not al-
white people. And what makes
me think I should be recognized as on of the enlightened,
one that is free to carry the
ugly, wretched weight of oppression and one up-“woman”
CSI awarded a National
Counselor Examination
Prep scholarship to one
of our members this Fall!
Good luck to all CSI members taking the upcoming
for NCE for Licensure and
Certification! Stay tuned
for upcoming scholarship
opportunities!
ways willing or able to support members of minorities, interacting with people who come from different cultural
backgrounds and belief systems than myself, and witnessing the fear that discrimination creates for all involved, I
now recognize the need for me to act as an advocate and
leader in my behavior as a professional as well as in my
personal life.
Page 3
White Ribbon Campaign
Call for Cultural
Pledge to never commit, condone, or remain silent about violence on November 21, 2014! The Domestic Violence & Child Advocacy Center, Healthy Fathering Collaborative, and Passages, Inc. invite all men
in Greater Cleveland to join in the White Ribbon Campaign this fall to promote health nonviolent relationships.
Chi Sigma Iota members Julie Kallenborn, Brenda Sims, & Brienne Miller helped cut ribbon for this important event. Chi Sigma's presence was greatly appreciated and gratitude is extended to Julie and
Brenda for their participation and service!
Power of Peer Mentoring
Experience Narratives!
One important way for us all
to connect and grow closer
as a community is to share
an important cultural
experience or other writing
that has shaped you. This is
In the infancy of our peer mentoring program, Chi Sigma successfully matched Madison Wheeler with
mentor Jamie Johnson. Madison reported that Jamie provided excellent support and guidance with
some of her concerns. If you are a new student in the counseling programs, we invite you to reach out
to Chi Sigma to be connected with a more mature student who may provide additional support as you
apply for practicum/internship and any other advice you may need. If you are a more advanced student and are willing to be added to our mentor list please provide your name and email address to
Briana Russ, brnnruss@yahoo.com
Massage for Self-care by Sage Johnson, Licensed Massage Therapist
a personal way to connect
individuals to aspects of
cultural awareness. Let's
start within our community. If
you would like to share an
experience or insight, please
send any officer an email
Although most counselors are familiar with self-care and educate our clients on its importance we often
find it a challenge to put the concept into practice in own lives. Our work can be emotionally stressful,
having a good self-care regimen in place can go a long way to keeping us balanced and to avoid burn out. I
with your submission. Thank
you for sharing!
would like to bring your attention to one of the oldest healing arts, a powerful and beneficial form of self-care that you may not have considered: Massage!
Massage and its correlates bodywork and somatic therapies are defined as the application of various techniques to the muscular structure
and soft tissues of the human body. There are more than 250 variations of massage, bodywork, and somatic therapies and many practitioners utilize multiple techniques.
♦
You can find more information on different modalities and what to expect in a session here: www.massagetherapy.com/learnmore/
whattoexpect.php.
♦
The American Massage Therapist Association AMTA offers a free professional massage therapist locator service at;
www.findamassagetherapist.org.
♦
The American Holistic Health Association lists some great certified bodyworkers here: http://ahha.org/ahhasearch.asp.
♦
Cleveland State University has its own Wellness Services offered through the Campus Recreation Center, http://www.csuohio.edu/
services/recreationcenter. Their licensed massage therapists offer 30- and 60-minute sessions with many package options to fit your
budget.
Schedule a massage for yourself and reap the benefits to your body, mind and spirit!
Your Chi Sigma Upsilon Advisor & Officers
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Logan Lamprecht
Student Officers:
Brienne Miller, President,
Jennifer Vasquez, Vice President,
Briana Russ, Treasurer,
Sage Johnson, Secretary.
To Join Chi Sigma Upsilon
•
Fill out our Chapter Application available at the CASAL office along with a
$10 application fee payable to CSU Chi Sigma Iota.
•
Look out for an email from Logan or Brie indicating you may now sign up
nationally @ https://www.csi-net.org/?page=Membership
•
Log into Chi Sigma Iota National, Sign up and pay the new member fee of
$50.
You will be notified via email and officially be a member! The induction ceremony will be held on April 23, 2014 where you will receive your official membership certificate, membership pin, and recognition for your contributions to our
chapter.