School Counselors' Role in Child Rights and Human Rights Education: Moving beyond One's Professional Comfort Zone

Average American students are seldom aware of child and human rights principles and their impact globally and locally. School counselors are one logical group of school specialists skilled to facilitate school-based, rights-based (i.e., child and human rights) initiatives to promote students' awareness. Moving beyond their professional comfort zones, school counselors have: (1) training in leadership, systemic change, advocacy, and collaboration; and (2) requisite skills to facilitate students' development of a rights-based foundation to become engaged and responsible global citizens with a mature rights-based lens. Rights-based resources are offered for guidance lessons, academic lessons, and extra-curricular programs.