How many school psychologists are there in the country? How many are providing psychological services in the nation’s schools? A 2004 NASP study examining these questions provides the best—perhaps only—recent empirically based answers. This article briefly presents some of the results of the study, makes comparisons with the previous study in 1999, and discusses the implications of collecting this type of data for the future of the profession. Estimates of changes in the degree to which states are meeting the NASP-recommended ratio of one school psychologist per 1,000 students are also provided, and the benefits and limitations of such estimates are considered.
The school psychology credentialing systems come to mind first as logical sources of information on the number of school psychologists in the country. Apart from the NASP Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential, the credentialing of school psychologists is a matter governed by state laws, and there is a great deal of variability from state to state. The state agency usually charged with the credentialing of school psychologists is the state department of education, though in some states psychology licensing boards also credential school psychologists. Twenty-six states use the NCSP as part of their standards for state certification. The NASP website provides brief summaries by state of certification and licensure requirements, with links to state departments of education and state licensing boards (www.nasponline.org/certification/state_info_list.html).
With these credentialing systems in place, determining the number of credentialed school psychologists in the country would seem to be an easy matter. However, this has not proven to be the case. Difficulties have been reported in obtaining official data on the number of credentialed school psychologists in some states. This situation is one of several reasons why there is currently no compendium of school psychology workforce data that one can reach for to discover how the workforce changes from year to year.
One federal publication, however, is becoming just such a centralized source for information on mental health practitioners and trainees, from social workers and psychiatrists to psychiatric nurses and school psychologists. The most recent edition,Mental Health, United States, 2002, includes school psychology data for 2000, making possible comparisons between the school psychology workforce and the other professions that provide mental health services (Center for Mental Health Services, 2004). One impetus for the present study was the need for updated data for the 2004 edition of this publication. The study was conducted in the fall of 2004 (Charvat, 2004).
The school psychology credentialing systems come to mind first as logical sources of information on the number of school psychologists in the country. Apart from the NASP Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential, the credentialing of school psychologists is a matter governed by state laws, and there is a great deal of variability from state to state. The state agency usually charged with the credentialing of school psychologists is the state department of education, though in some states psychology licensing boards also credential school psychologists. Twenty-six states use the NCSP as part of their standards for state certification. The NASP website provides brief summaries by state of certification and licensure requirements, with links to state departments of education and state licensing boards (www.nasponline.org/certification/state_info_list.html).
With these credentialing systems in place, determining the number of credentialed school psychologists in the country would seem to be an easy matter. However, this has not proven to be the case. Difficulties have been reported in obtaining official data on the number of credentialed school psychologists in some states. This situation is one of several reasons why there is currently no compendium of school psychology workforce data that one can reach for to discover how the workforce changes from year to year.
One federal publication, however, is becoming just such a centralized source for information on mental health practitioners and trainees, from social workers and psychiatrists to psychiatric nurses and school psychologists. The most recent edition,Mental Health, United States, 2002, includes school psychology data for 2000, making possible comparisons between the school psychology workforce and the other professions that provide mental health services (Center for Mental Health Services, 2004). One impetus for the present study was the need for updated data for the 2004 edition of this publication. The study was conducted in the fall of 2004 (Charvat, 2004).
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