Jessica Diaz McKechnie ’03, M.A. ’07, Ph.D. ’12, a three-time Terp and Prince George’s County native, is the inaugural director of the College of Education’s new Post Master’s Certificate in Supporting Immigrant Students for Professional School Counselors, a school counseling program that launched in Spring 2025 in partnership with Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS). As the child of Chilean and Peruvian immigrants, McKechnie is inspired by her own experience as a PGCPS student to prepare school counselors within PGCPS to care for the immigrant students in their schools, who now comprise nearly 40% of the PGCPS student population. During a time when 68% of school counselors nationwide report that they engage in individualized counseling in response to racism and racial bias, the need for all school counselors to engage in counseling practices that support the unique needs of immigrant students is clear.
In observance of National School Counselors week, we sat down with McKechnie to talk about what she believes school counselors should know about working with immigrant and refugee students. With the federal decision to allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) into schools, McKechnie acknowledges that counselors, educators, and administrators are working in crisis mode. Secondary trauma is a real possibility for school counselors for those who experience significant stress and burnout due to their duty to protect students and communities in these challenging circumstances. Collaboration with like-minded leaders, both within the school and at the district level, is crucial to effectively address the needs of immigrant and refugee students. School counselors cannot do this alone; they need the support and leadership of school administrators and other stakeholders. In our conversation, McKechnie noted that a standard practice of care in school counseling is inadequate in complex communities with large immigrant populations, such as Prince George’s County. McKechnie shares four ways school counselors can adapt their practice and engage in culturally responsive school counseling that takes a student's culture, ethnicity, and social influences into consideration.
- Gain cultural insight.
McKechnie describes cultural insight as knowing who is in the school building and getting to know them personally, which includes their worldviews and cultural practices at home. This step requires collaboration among administrators, teachers and counselors to identify cultural differences between the school and the student. “With your assistant principal or principal, come up with a plan that works best, such as when you're going to make time to meet in small groups or one-on-one with immigrant or refugee students,” she says. She also suggests creating activities and lessons for teachers to execute in the classroom that support students in talking about their culture, homes and life experiences. “Teachers are going to learn a lot about their kids through story times and books that you can give that offer them opportunities to talk a little bit more about their home experience," says McKechnie. As trusted sources that students spend a lot of time with, teachers can be a valuable resource for building relationships with students and gathering information about the student’s home life and experiences.
- Exchange narratives.
Exchanging narratives involves providing a safe place for individuals to share personal stories about themselves and their experiences, in order to build community and relationships. McKechnie recalls inviting a quadriplegic to discuss his experiences with her University of Maryland class to further understand disability as a culture. “It would always start off really uncomfortable for the students and then by the end they would be asking him all the questions that you would ever think of asking. It became this very open, magical space,” she says. Student narratives may also be shared during a needs assessment (a survey that gathers information from students and families about their needs). Asking pertinent questions can open up discourse surrounding the student’s personal life.
McKechnie acknowledges that although this work is difficult, it is important: “There’s a fear [among some school counselors] that you’re going to unlock difficult conversations that you’re going to be unable to handle or you’re going to unlock trauma that you’re not comfortable talking about. But I think this idea of openness in the school building is really important,” says McKechnie. To alleviate this fear, McKechnie suggests starting by building trust with students. “When you build this level of trust, there is always well-meaning behind the inquiries about a student’s culture, upbringing or personal experiences.”
- Cater your needs assessment to the culture of the student.
Culturally responsive counseling requires more than a routine needs assessment, it calls for counselors to anticipate needs. “When an immigrant family comes in, there may need to be individual meetings with the school counselor that help them feel safe in the school,” says McKechnie. While she encourages counselors to ask about cultural differences and concerns, they may also need to take sensitive information counselors into consideration. “I would never tell a school counselor to ask an immigrant family if they’re documented or undocumented,” she says. Instead she suggests asking: "Is there anything around the immigration process that you are worried about?”, or “What languages do you speak at home?”. These questions can provide space for students and their families to discuss immigration-related concerns with a school counselor. Differentiating the needs assessment for immigrant students will not only deepen the counselor’s understanding of the student, but it will also help the student share their personal story or narrative.
- Advocate for a schoolwide culture of inclusivity.
The culture within the school and the culture within a student’s home may be vastly different, but McKechnie believes it is the duty of counselors to help find a middle ground. This requires a systemic shift within the school and how school administrators and staff approach culture. She gives the example of a student being bullied for their cultural differences and indicates this is not the time to ask the student to build resilience. “That’s saying that the kid just has to deal with the bullying,” says McKechnie. “We all are going to agree to conduct ourselves in a certain way and expect that behavior from all students as well.” To gain buy-in from school administrators and teachers, McKechnie suggests looking at the broader picture. “A student who is experiencing trauma in a school building is not alone. It’s probably an issue that many others are experiencing. If we are not going to speak up about the students’ experience of trauma in the school building, we are likely perpetuating that experience for them in that building,” she says. “The school can either re-traumatize or it can be a catalyst to help heal the trauma from things like oppression, racism, phobias and isms.” Cultural competency and social justice must be a mindset for school counselors working with these populations. They need to be equipped with the knowledge and skills to understand and advocate for the rights and well-being of immigrant and refugee students. This requires ongoing training and professional development, as well as a commitment to social justice.
If you are a PGCPS counselor who would like more information about the Supporting Immigrant Students for Professional School Counselors post master’s certificate program, please click here. The program, which focuses on immigrant and refugee students, extensively explores how policy and laws around immigration affect the education system.
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