As we think about the meaning of this day, we find ourselves humbled. Humbled by our own dark history, but even more so by the strength and resilience of the Black community. And on this day we want to celebrate Black educators, counselors and admissions professionals working tirelessly to uplift all of our communities by inspiring young students to dream big.
Today is the day to remind ourselves that, even in our darkest hours, we all have gifts to receive and gifts to give. And while we can’t change the past, we can take ownership of it to move forward. We all have the ability to strengthen and be strengthened by our community, to be educated by the perspective of others and share our own vulnerability, and, especially in the counseling profession, to see others as the amazing humans they are.
And as we await the Supreme Court’s ruling on the use of race in college admissions, it’s important to remain as aware of how the decision may affect others as we are of how it affects ourselves. The college admissions landscape has faced an unprecedented amount of change in the last 3 years, and whatever the SCOTUS ruling it seems likely that we’ll be seeing even more unpredictable change on the horizon. With so much talk of plummeting admit rates, the pressure to perform is more intense than ever for our young student population nationwide.
So take a moment, and move from a place of caring – especially when it comes to interacting with students and educators everywhere. This is a time to stop, reflect, and make a choice to lift each other up.
