Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Jordan is currently seeking her MS in counseling with the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. Originally from Kingston, TN, she received her BA in sociology with minors in religion and psychology at Maryville College. She joined UT Knoxville and EPC in 2015. We asked her to reflect on some past and current experiences. Read her responses below.

Awards

• “Most Outstanding Student – Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program” awarded by the UT Knoxville Counselor Education Program, Spring 2017
• “Most Outstanding First Year Student – Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program” awarded by the UT Knoxville Counselor Education Program, Spring 2016

Accomplishments

• Member of Chi Sigma Iota – Upsilon Theta Chapter, Counseling Academic and Professional Honor Society International, Fall 2016
• See resume for more details

Current Occupation

Throughout graduate school, I have worked as an advocate at the Family Crisis Center, a domestic violence program within the Helen Ross McNabb Center (HRMC). I am also currently employed as an advocate at the Sexual Assault Center of East Tennessee, another HRMC program. In each of these roles, I work to empower individuals who have experienced trauma, whether in the form of intimate partner violence or sexual assault/abuse.

Personal Interests

Outside of school and work, I enjoy taking advantage of the incredible live music scene that Knoxville has to offer. I love hiking and camping in Big South Fork; most recently, I have begun to conquer my fear of heights by learning how to rock climb. I have some of the best friends a girl could ask for as well as an incredibly supportive family. I live in South Knoxville and can often be found snuggling with my precious pup, Norah.

Future/Vocational Goals

My internship at the Sexual Assault Center of East Tennessee solidified my desire to seek employment as a counselor for trauma survivors. In the future, I would love to work in a community mental health agency that specializes in therapeutic trauma services.

What sold you on this program/department/university?

When I decided to pursue a degree in counseling, I knew that I needed a program that would be trauma informed, theoretically sound, collaborative, and supportive. Because I was already working in the field as an advocate for youth and young adult survivors of interpersonal violence, I met plenty of clinicians from a variety of programs. To put it simply, I was most impressed by the individuals with a degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from UT Knoxville. I had several pivotal conversations with recent UT grads in which I learned:

1. Faculty and staff genuinely care about their students.
2. Faculty members encourage students to explore various theories and techniques.
3. Recent graduates felt prepared to enter the workforce and provide competent clinical services.

During my time in the program, each of these factors has been affirmed, time and time again!

What would you tell an incoming student who joins the program/department?

One of the most unique and life-changing aspects of my time in the program has the process of developing deep and meaningful relationships with my peers. I can honestly say that my cohort has been my primary support system and my source of sanity during grad school. So, my advice to incoming students is this: Take full advantage of this unique time in your life. Be intentional about getting to know your peers. Sit in a different chair each class period so that you interact with your full cohort. You’ll be surprised at the wealth of knowledge, humor, humility, and love that will blossom out of these relationships!

Four faculty members and two doctoral students from the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling were recognized at the Chancellor’s Honors Banquet on April 19, 2017.

See below for a description of each individual’s award.

Excellence in Academic Outreach
Honors those who exemplify UT’s land-grant mission by using intellectual capital to benefit the citizens of Tennessee.

Robert Kronick
Professor & Director of University-Assisted Community Schools

“Engaged research says it all. It’s what I do. I am overwhelmed that the university recognized this work. This award acknowledges the efforts of a great deal of folks doing the work.”

Extraordinary Service to the University
Honors those who exemplify UT’s land-grant mission by using intellectual capital to benefit the citizens of Tennessee.

S. Wayne Mulkey
Clinical Professor

“I appreciate the support and encouragement of my colleagues in the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling over the past three years. It is clearly an honor to know that my peers respect the work I have done at the University of Tennessee. Fond memories shall follow with me throughout the duration of my next retirement.”

Extraordinary Professional Promise
Honors awarded to undergraduate and graduate students who demonstrate professional promise in teaching, research or other contributions.

Sarah Nadel
PhD Student in Evaluation, Statistics & Measurement (ESM)

“I was deeply honored to not only be nominated for the award, but to also receive it. This award means a great deal to me, but I can’t accept it without thanking my ESM faculty and peers as we have partnered on so much together. Additionally, my advisor, Jennifer Ann Morrow, has been an instrumental part of my success in my ESM doctoral program. She is a driving force for me to succeed every day and without her guidance, as well as the guidance and knowledge from all ESM faculty, this award wouldn’t have been possible. I’m deeply honored and blessed.”

Excellence in Advising
Bestowed by the Office of the Chancellor and the Teaching Council of the Faculty Senate to honor outstanding work in advising.

Barbara Thayer-Bacon
Professor

“I am so proud of the students I’ve had the opportunity to work with while at UT! It was wonderful to hear their words of support and gratitude for my mentoring of them. They have made me feel so appreciated. A big thank you to my students! The number keeps growing!! -your Dr. Barb”

Extraordinary Professional Promise
Honors awarded to undergraduate and graduate students who demonstrate professional promise in teaching, research or other contributions.

Victoria Gail VanMaaren
PhD Student in School Psychology

“The faculty and staff in our department have been nothing but supportive of all of my endeavors. I’m honored by this award, and mindful of the fact that it would not have been possible without the mentorship and encouragement of the entire department.”

Extraordinary Community Service
Rewards a faculty member who exhibits the volunteer spirit in the community.

Laura S. Wheat
Assistant Professor

“I am so very honored and humbled to receive this award, given the remarkable things faculty and staff across campus are doing! The Grief Outreach Initiative is dear to me and I’m thankful to be its shepherd. I hope to continue to nurture and grow it for years to come, so that more and more kids and teens will have safe places to honor their grief.”

To see photos of our recent award recipients, please go to the “EPC Award Winners” album on our EPC Facebook page.

*Award descriptions listed from Chancellor’s Honors Banquet program and website.

Jessica Nelson, master’s student in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program, was awarded the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries (NAJA) Graduate Scholarship. Initiated in 1962, the NAJA Graduate Scholarship Program has awarded over 5o0 grants totaling over a million dollars for graduate study in fields addressing the unique needs of youth and children.

“I feel honored to have been selected for this scholarship. I am sure there were many other qualified applicants. I also feel affirmed in my educational and career paths.”

She found this scholarship opportunity by searching the internet for graduate student scholarships. To apply, she filled out an online application form including a personal statement, resume, and the cost of attending UT Knoxville. She also had to request official transcripts to be sent to NAJA and three letters of recommendation. Once she was selected as a semi finalist, she had a 10-minute phone interview with the NAJA scholarship board.

What do you think made your application stand out?

The NAJA scholarship is specifically for graduate students living in states with a NAJA chapter who plan to work with children. Because my resume reflects my commitment to working with children in Tennessee, I believe they were confident when I told them I would continue on this path as a counselor.

The Upsilon Theta Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota (CSI), is the 2017 recipient of the CSI Outstanding Individual Program Award for its engagement with the Odd Fellows Cemetery Project. This award honors a chapter program that provides outstanding community service or professional development. The criteria include planning, committee involvement, length of time, recruitment strategies, advertising, media, and attendance at program. Two people were integral to this award – current service chair Justin Hawkersmith, and past service chair Kevin Webster.

Justin is a master’s student in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program and co-chaired the position with Kevin last fall. Kevin (’16) is an alumni of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program and became the service chair in 2015. With the guidance and support of current and past faculty advisors (Casey Barrio Minton and Shawn Spurgeon, respectively), they helped create and grow relationships Upsilon Theta built with the Knoxville Reanimation Coalition and Katherine Ambroziak (associate professor from the College of Architecture and Design), who heads the project at the Odd Fellows Cemetery.

Kevin said, “I was sincerely elated and surprised, not because I didn’t think our project was worthy of recognition, but because I had not done anything like this before. Although recognition is not necessary, it can help keep momentum going for an organization. It can stimulate even bigger and better ideas and growth. I hope the award motivates others who join CSI to think about not only what they can do but also what is possible. I am also excited for what this means for the Knoxville Reanimation Coalition, the group whose mission it is to maintain, revitalize, and enhance the East Knoxville community. I think they are doing some of the most important work in Knoxville. They don’t do it for recognition; they engage in hard work to improve the neighborhood that is home to them.”

Justin expressed, “I am truly honored to be receiving this award and to see how Kevin and Katherine Ambroziak’s hard work has paid off. If there is anything I would like to add to this piece, it would be how important service and advocacy (the driving force of service) are to the counseling profession. If we truly want to serve our clients whether we are in schools or in mental health settings, we need to be active and intentional members of our community, and I think service events through Chi Sigma Iota are excellent way to begin that meaningful process of engagement.”

Kevin explained the application process:

Every fall, CSI opens applications for chapter awards and student nominations for national positions. Casey Barrio Minton (associate professor), our current chapter advisor and long-time member of CSI, encouraged us to apply for the chapter award. I agreed with her that I thought it was a good idea, and I was happy to help. I honestly did not think we would have a chance because I thought the relationship was too new. However, since CSI-UT’s participation in the the Odd Fellows Cemetery project, our student engagement in service activities improved tremendously – in part because of the uniqueness of the project itself, in part from some new enthusiasm coming from the student board, and in part because I think there are some emerging ideas coming from the counseling community regarding social justice and community-level work that individual “therapy” simply does not address. Service and building community relationships are critical aspects of my life that I love and want to share with others, and I tried to provide that opportunity for anyone who was interested while I was service chair. So, naturally, I think others picked up on that.

Justin Hawkersmith and myself worked on the application proposal with Casey Barrio Minton and Katherine Ambroziak to submit letters of recommendation for the project. We spoke on not only what it meant to engage CSI counseling members in a project that was off campus and in a predominantly black community but also on the importance and meaning of the project itself. The cemetery represents an important part of black history and black heritage in Knoxville, and its current dilapidated state is worth the reflection and attention of the greater Knoxville community. Counselors, who more often than not are white and middle class, will go on to work with individuals from a variety of communities different than their own, but may not have an in-depth understanding of those communities and the issues within them. Given the current climate of our society, it is integral more than ever that organizations and university groups build and foster relationships and work on real problems.

Barrio Minton really helped make the process easy. Writing the application was the easy part, because the project meant a lot to me and Justin and I hoped to really see it continue even after I graduated from the program. Barrio Minton really helped pull it together, helped us stay organized, and made sure we had what we needed to submit a quality proposal.

Upsilon Theta was recognized and awarded during a ceremony held at the ACA Annual Conference and Expo in San Francisco, CA from March 16-19, 2017.

For more information about this project, check out the following Counselor Education blog stories:
CSI-UT Sponsors Service Event at Odd Fellows Cemetery
CSI-UT Returns to Odd Fellows Cemetery to Continue Service
CSI-UT Sponsors Service Event at Odd Fellows Cemetery

Casey Barrio Minton, associate professor, is the 2017 recipient of the American Counseling Association (ACA) Arthur A. Hitchcock Distinguished Professional Service Award. This award honors service by an ACA member at the local, state, or national level in promoting the well-being of the counseling profession. It is the most well-established national award still given by the ACA, having started in 1975.

“I serve the organizations I serve because I believe our collective work facilitates a context in which professional counselors can develop their skills and serve their communities. On one hand, the recognition feels deeply meaningful and affirming because it reflects back an important part of my identity. On the other, it feels somewhat incongruent; I serve because I believe we have a collective responsibility to our profession and our community, not for individual recognition or reward.”

Barrio Minton was nominated for this award by the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling (AARC), a division of ACA for which she has served as president. She will be recognized and awarded during a ceremony held at the ACA Annual Conference and Expo in San Francisco, CA from March 16-19, 2017.