Dear Governor McAuliffe and Board members,

I am writing to you today regarding my concern of the CACREP accreditation that is being proposed in Virginia. One of my biggest concerns is the shortage of mental health counselors available to the amount of clients that are in need of services. Well-respected and experienced counselors have worked hard to get where they are today, this is not due to being CACREP certification. In this field of work I think it is essential to seek unity instead of creating a divide of affiliated and non-affiliated. With this thought, I can’t help but to think that this will cause a sense of superiority at schools battling to be better than another. This also promotes the concept that there is only one kind of counseling education that is seen as the “right way”. In many programs it is learned that there is never one answer or one right way when helping clients, due to encompassing so many different cultures, morals, values, etc. Graduates and professionals should not feel that they are invaluable due to the absence of this licensure.

I have been through courses with numerous teachers that do not have this license and their experiences and curriculum has expanded my mind so much already. It hurts to know that many professionals that are to come may be hindered and pressured due to the possibility of having this new regulation. In conclusion, I hope you consider the many stories that are seen in this forum and the negative impacts it may cause. We are in this together and we will make it out together, all with the same purpose of empowering and helping those in need.

Thank you,

Jennifer Pham