When National Association of Black Counselors (NABC) co-founders Tamara Ferebee and Dr. Faye Barner launched the organization this past November, it was out of a need for a supportive, professional community geared specifically to the Black counselor identity.
With more than 100 members and growing, NABC’s vision is to ensure that all counselors “possess the knowledge, attitude and skills to ensure that the mental health needs of the African American community and the African diaspora are competently attended to and addressed for the individual and the collective.”
The co-founders are now working to grow the organization, further its legislative advocacy and professional development offerings, and notably, bring in paraprofessionals who disproportionately provide mental health services to Black children and families, they say.
“Up until this point, there has not been a professional organization specifically slated for Black counselors and for the Black counseling profession,” Ferebee told Diverse. “We are looking to expand and provide services, which is different than a lot of other professional organizations. We [also] hope to expand to be able to provide a platform for people to be able to submit research and publish.”
Ferebee, NABC’s executive director of Human Services Administration and a licensed professional counselor who has been practicing for more than 20 years, said Black counselors make up only 10 to 15 percent of professional counselors.
“In mental health professions, period, it’s low. Because of that, it’s hard to find us,” she said. “We’re trying to specifically increase the number of Black professionals that come into the field.”
Some of the initiatives NABC plans to introduce to increase the number of Black counseling professionals include a mentor-mentee program.
