Counseling Across and Beyond Cultures : Exploring the Work of Clemmont E. Vontress in Clinical Practice

Professional counseling is a dynamic field, necessarily changing to reflect shifting societal norms and client needs. In an increasingly multicultural and globalized society, there is a growing need for counselors to be sensitive to the diverse needs of clients expressing different cultural and ethnic beliefs and facets of racial, gender, sexual, age, ability, disability, or class identities. Using as a starting point the pioneering work of Clemmont E. Vontress, the contributors to Counseling Across and Beyond Cultures trace the evolution of multicultural counseling and discuss remaining challenges for practitioners. Essays include a personal reflection by Vontress himself, critical analyses of the growth of multicultural counseling, considerations of his influence in Canada and the UK, and African and Caribbean perspectives on his work. Throughout, the importance of Vontress's accomplishments are celebrated, while critical analysis points the way towards further work to be done in the field.