Ashley Barnes Memorial Fellowship for School Counseling
Carolyn, a UNF Professor Emeritus with 29 years experience as a counselor educator, along with family members, established the Ashley Barnes Fellowship in honor of Ashley, who at 19, lost her life while deployed to Afghanistan in non-combat violence. Ashley aspired to be a school counselor or social worker and had plans to enter college on completion of her obligation to the army.
The Ashley Barnes Fellowship continues to be a tangible attestation of Carolyn’s devotion and passion for the preparation of school counselors at the University of North Florida.
The School Counselor Shortage
School counselors are often the first outcry when a student is hurting from child abuse, suicidal ideation, bullying, family trauma and unsafe environs. School counselors are there to support students by closing the opportunity, information and intervention gaps. However, there is a critical shortage of school counselors in this country, according to data from the United States Department of Education.
A full one out of five high schools do not have a school counselor, amounting to 653,700 high school students without this critical support. The American School Counselor Association recommends a one to 250 student ratio but the national average ratio is 385-to-1.
Fellowships such as the Ashley Barnes Memorial Fellowship for School Counseling will help offset the high cost of higher education and increase the number of candidates in the field.
Thank You for Your Support
Thank you for your gift of any size in memory of Ashley Barnes and to help support UNF graduate students in the School of Counseling program.