A New Era in School Counseling offers in-depth knowledge of how the school counselor, who is deeply embedded in all aspects of the educational system, can work most efficiently and effectively in the schools. This new edition underscores the heightened focus on leadership and collaboration, as well as the increased attention to meeting the mental health needs of school-age students, particularly meeting the spiritual and religious development of students by way of the school counseling program. Growing technology brings about increased responsibility for the school counselor. This text takes a more comprehensive look at school counselors’ roles in meeting the need of K-12 students in this digital age.

The significant changes in the school counseling profession that are reflected in this text include:
The change from the three developmental domains adopted by the American School Counselor Association in 1997 (Cambell & Dahir, 1997) to the American School Counseling Association Mindsets and Behaviors for Student Success (ASCA, 2014) have impacted both the structure and content of student competencies. This significant foundational change to the ASCA National Model impacts a variety of professional practice areas addressed by this new text edition, including action plan and results report templates, and multiple other forms provided by way of this edition change.
This text reflects on the recently revised Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP, 2016) Standards, particularly noting the significant reduction in the number of preparation standards from 2009 to 2016 for the specialty of School Counseling.
This text redefines the invisible student, broadening the concept of universal academic achievement. Characteristics that better clarify students who may not be reaching their full potential as another subpopulation of student at risk are addressed.
The creation of ASCA University, or ASCA U, specialist training is highlighted to aid in meeting the growing emphasis on leadership and heightened competence. Specific training topics are highlighted to meet growing demands for competence in these areas.