TPC Journal-Vol 11-Issue-1

122 The Professional Counselor™ Volume 11, Issue 1, Pages 122–128 http://tpcjournal.nbcc.org © 2021 NBCC, Inc. and Affiliates doi: 10.15241/jds.11.1.122 Joshua D. Smith, Neal D. Gray Lifetime Achievement in Counseling Series An Interview With Michael Ryan Each year TPC presents an interview with a seminal figure in counseling as part of its Lifetime Achievement in Counseling series. This year I am honored to introduce Michael Ryan. He identifies as a professional school counselor and advocate and shares his experiences and perspective on the professionalization of school counseling. I am grateful to Dr. Joshua Smith and Dr. Neal Gray, who continue to bring the contributions and vision of leaders in the profession to TPC readers. Their interview with Ryan provides a view to his path to school counseling, his work to meet the needs of underrepresented student populations, and how he empowers students and staff as agents of change and in so doing promotes a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities of professional school counselors within his community. I imagine his approach may both resonate with and energize TPC readers. —Amie A. Manis, Editor Michael Ryan, MEd, NCC, is a certified school counselor and currently is the Coordinator of Student Supports for Monongalia County Schools in Morgantown, West Virginia. He holds a BA in psychology fromWest Virginia University, an MEd with a school counseling concentration from California University of Pennsylvania, and a higher education certification from Salem International University with his Principal, District Administrator, and Superintendent certification. Prior to his current position, Ryan was an elementary school counselor for 6 years in Monongalia County. During that time, he was named the 2018 West Virginia School Counselor of the Year. He also did work in career counseling at a college as well as community mental health counseling prior to becoming a school counselor. In Ryan’s current position, he is responsible for providing student supports for almost 12,000 students in the county across Pre-K through 12th grade. He has been instrumental in coordinating social- emotional learning practices for the county and helping to implement a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) model that looks at the whole student and is consistent from school to school. He is the head of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Department of the county, which he had the privilege of building from the ground up. He is also responsible for providing professional development to the county staff in areas such as social-emotional learning, trauma-informed practices, and diversity and inclusion. Ryan is an active member of the surrounding community and multiple organizations, through which he builds relationships to help find support for the students of the county. He is a part of the West Virginia School Counseling Association governing board and a member of the American School Counselor Association. In this interview, Ryan shares his insights on growth and change within the school counseling profession, his path to becoming a school counselor, his passion for advocacy, and the importance of unified practices to benefit each person in the community.