Ally → Advocate → Activist: Developing Your Social Justice Identity as a Counselor or Therapist

Ally → Advocate → Activist: Developing Your Social Justice Identity as a Counselor or Therapist (on-demand)

• Intended for: Novice/Beginning Learners: No advance knowledge required
• Content/curriculum: The entire curriculum is focused on law & ethics
• NBCC Content Area: Counseling Theory/Practice and the Counseling Relationship, Social and Cultural Foundations, Counselor Professional Identity and Practice Issues
• CE hours available: 1.5

Program Description

“I am so overwhelmed by the world events and I do not know what to do.”

As counselors and therapists, our professional codes of ethics all have provisions around the imperatives for us to advocate for our clients – yet very few of us have been given practical training on what that means. The need for advocacy is growing larger by the day as we continue to march towards authoritarian rule in the United States. What does it mean for us to show up as counselor-advocates in this time? What if it feels hard to even get out of bed and face the day with “regular” client work – without even considering all the ways that the world is falling apart around us?

This practical workshop is designed to be the first of many open, supportive, collaborative spaces where therapists and counselors can come together and talk about what we are doing in our professional and personal lives to respond to this moment. The entire workshop is focused on how to implement the ethics of advocacy as counselors, therapists, and social workers.

This training will give action-based ideas starting from wherever you are at, to step into more social justice work in any capacity that you are capable of right now. We will look at reasons we may feel frozen or stuck, the challenges of capitalism, and the privileges we hold that may even be holding us back. We will talk about professional identity and what it means to be an ally, compared to an activist, collaborator, co-conspirator for change – and what might happen for some of us as compassionate carers when we don’t step into action in the face of crisis.

Do these words intimidate you? That’s OK! Do they excite you and make you feel inspired? That’s obviously awesome also! We are all coming into this from our own positionality and all parts of ourselves are welcome to this training. Bring your fears, hesitancy, overwhelm. Bring your anger. Bring your heart.

Therapy is not neutral. Politics is personal. We are all being affected by the events happening around us. Whether you choose to be more prominent as an activist in some capacity (or maybe you already are!) or if this is all brand-new to you and intimidating and you don’t know where to start, we will talk about options available to be participants and not just victims in this moment of change. The focus will be on advocacy in everyday life, with an emphasis on opportunities and the immense need for advocacy within the mental health profession in 2026.

Educational Goals

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this program, participants will be able to:

• Identify at least 3 possible barriers to advocacy that may impeded a therapist or counselor
• Identify at least 3 organizations or groups working on social issues that would benefit from advocacy
• Self-assess for skills and competencies that can be used in advocacy as a counselor or therapist
• Describe potential benefits to developing advocacy skills as a counselor or therapist

Equity Focus

This training focuses on power and privilege in counseling, and supports self of the counselor work for the clinician which can be crucial in caring for clients with different cultural positionality and experience.

Presenters

Presenter Name: Lisa Wenninger, PhD, MBA, LPCC/LPC/LMHC, NCC, BC-TMH (she/her)

Dr. Lisa Wenninger (she/her) has a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision from Antioch University Seattle. She is a National Certified Counselor and is licensed in California, Washington, and Virginia, with a telehealth-only social justice counseling practice working with individuals with marginalized identities who are navigating a complex and difficult world. Dr. Wenninger serves on the Board of Counselors for Social Justice to promote advocacy and allyship within the counseling profession and help nurture development of the professional identity of counselor-advocate in colleagues. Dr. Wenninger makes a point to attend the meetings of the California Board of Behavioral Sciences and in other ways stay on top of laws and regulations affecting counselors and our clients. She regularly provides continuing education courses on topics such as law and ethics of telehealth, culturally informed diagnosing, and antiracism in counseling, and consults with organizations interested in building more inclusive and welcoming cultures.

Resonant Equity, Inc. has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7682. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Resonant Equity, Inc. is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.