Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts Senate Bill S210 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 876 FILED ON: 1/18/2023
3	3	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 210
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Pavel M. Payano
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act expanding licensure opportunity for school counselors.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Pavel M. PayanoFirst Essex 1 of 2
16	16	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 876 FILED ON: 1/18/2023
17	17	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 210
18	18	By Mr. Payano, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 210) of Pavel M. Payano for
19	19	legislation to expand licensure opportunity for school counselors. Consumer Protection and
20	20	Professional Licensure.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
24	24	(2023-2024)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act expanding licensure opportunity for school counselors.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 SECTION 1. The first paragraph of section 165 of chapter 112 of the General Laws, as
30	30	2appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out clause (3) and inserting
31	31	3in place thereof the following clause:-
32	32	4 (3) demonstrates to the board, the successful completion of a masters degree in a relevant
33	33	5field from an educational institution licensed by the state in which it is located and meets
34	34	6national standards for granting of a masters degree with a subspecialization in marriage and
35	35	7family therapy, rehabilitation counseling, counseling, or a relevant subspecialization approved by
36	36	8the board; provided, however, that all relevant graduate coursework credits, as determined by the
37	37	9board, that an individual earns that count towards the credit requirement for professional
38	38	10licensure as a school counselor by the department of elementary and secondary education shall
39	39	11be applied towards this educational requirement for applicants seeking licensure as a mental
40	40	12health counselor, including credits earned in a graduate program that is less than 60 credits. To 2 of 2
41	41	13be eligible for licensure, an applicant must have 2 additional years of supervised clinical
42	42	14experience in the relevant field in: (i) either a clinic or hospital licensed by the department of
43	43	15mental health or accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals or in an
44	44	16equivalent center or institute; (ii) in a school setting as a school counselor licensed by the
45	45	17department of elementary and secondary education; or (iii) under the direction of a supervisor
46	46	18approved by the board. For purposes of this clause, “Supervision” shall be defined as no less than
47	47	19200 hours of supervised clinical experience, including experience as a school counselor licensed
48	48	20by the department of elementary and secondary education, at least 100 hours of which shall
49	49	21consist of individual supervision with a clinician who has expertise in marriage and family
50	50	22therapy, rehabilitation counseling, school counseling, educational psychology, or counseling and
51	51	23who holds a masters degree in social work, marriage and family therapy, rehabilitation
52	52	24counseling, educational psychology, counseling or an equivalent field or holds a doctorate degree
53	53	25in psychology, or a medical degree with a subspecialization in psychiatry; provided, however,
54	54	26that experience as a school counselor shall only apply towards the supervised experience
55	55	27requirement for applicants who are seeking licensure as a mental health counselor;
56	56	28 SECTION 2. Said section 165 of said chapter 112, as so appearing, is hereby further
57	57	29amended by inserting after the word “section”, in line 30, the following words:- provided,
58	58	30however, that a school counselor shall be qualified to sit for the written or oral examination for
59	59	31licensure as a mental health counselor.