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Practitioners are also “forthright in describing any potential conflicts of interest that may interfere with professional effectiveness, whether these conflicts are financial or personal belief systems” (Guiding Principle III.5; also see Standard III.5.2). Standard III.5.3 states:

School psychologists recognize when their own beliefs, attitudes, or experiences pose a barrier to providing competent services to a particular client or family. In such situations, the school psychologist obtains supervision that would allow them to provide quality services, if feasible. If not feasible, they ask for reassignment of the case to a different school psychologist, or they direct the client to alternative services and facilitate the transition to those services.

As discussed previously, school psychologists may not discriminate against persons, including students and their families, based on actual or perceived characteristics such as race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity (NASP Standard I.3.1). Furthermore, public school staff generally have no legal right to refuse to teach or provide school services to a specific student (e.g., Hatton v. Wicks, 1984). Standard III.5.3 was written to acknowledge that, in unusual circumstances, a school psychologist’s own beliefs, attitudes, or experiences may pose a barrier to working with a specific client, family, or type of problem. The purpose of the standard is to assure school psychologists that it is ethically permissible to ask for supervision, assistance, or assignment of a client to a different school psychologist when such situations arise.