In an effort to endorse the department鈥檚 commitment to diversity and social justice, the Counselor Education & Counseling Psychology Graduate Student Organization (CECP GSO) established a scholarship to assist in the recruitment and retention of graduate students from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds.

Now fully endowed, the CECP GSO Diversity Scholarship funds an annual award for an incoming or current CECP graduate student who identifies as an ethnic or racial minority.

The scholarship is supported by fund-raising through the annual CECP GSO Diversity Gala, an event held each spring to celebrate diversity and recognize scholarship recipients. Since its establishment in 2001, the Diversity Scholarship has supported over 30 counseling students in completing their programs at 向日葵视频.

Student Eligibility

Applicants must be students who have been admitted to a counseling program in the Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology department and who come from a diverse racial or ethnic background. Scholarship recipients are selected based on the merits of written essays submitted to the nominations committee.

Past Diversity Scholarship Recipient: Daniel Joseph Ferrer

"I returned to 向日葵视频 in 2017 with the drive to obtain my Master of Science degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a specialization in Children and Adolescents. I am a Filipino immigrant whose family came to this country in order to pursue the 'American Dream.' Obtaining the Diversity Scholarship helped me move one step closer to that dream as it helped build the foundation that I would stand upon during my journey.

After I received the scholarship, I wanted to make my own impact for the department that constantly provides support to me and the rest of the students. I took on the role of the CECP GSO Diversity Chair during my second year in the program and I fostered conversations with other students in the program to increase cultural awareness. I truly believe that diversity can be spread by anyone, all it takes is a genuine conversation, an open mind and a leap of faith."

Why a Diversity Scholarship?

What faculty and students in the department can gain from ethnic and racial diversity extends past the quality of education and training.

By actively engaging in the pursuit of a multicultural department we expect to:

• foster an academic, professional and social environment that embraces diversity
• encourage enrollment of diverse groups
• promote leadership among people of diverse backgrounds