Expanding the Counseling Services at FIU

The words therapy and counseling were once a taboo, but thankfully have been normalized and are now a need in the lives of several thousands of people around the world. Counseling is incredibly helpful and with the racial and cultural transition the United States is in and has been for the past hundred years it is so much more important for counseling to become integrated within society. With the transition comes several people from the youth who have been affected by the transition and have acquired some mental health problems in the process. Mental health issues such as lack of self-esteem, depression, and overall lack of self-worth. The youth of color hurt the most from the media and societies view of them compared to their white counterparts. There are several studies that have data and back up the once ignored idea that people of color suffer the most academically socially and mentally.

One study in specific titled Being Well vs. Doing Well: Self-Esteem and School Performance among Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Racial and Ethnic Groups written by Carl L. Bankston, an American sociologist informs the public of the fact that students of color have lower self-esteem which then affects their academic achievement. Carl L Bankston goes on to explain the harm that students of color are undergoing because of socioeconomic status and their families immigration status. That being said the needs for counseling are at an all time high in colleges, and the colleges who have already implemented counseling services need to expand them to accommodate more students and the needs of these students. Once these things are done there will be a rise in students who are more active in school events and who have a higher self-esteem, students who will make more of an effort in their academic goals at FIU.