YSU’s counseling program earns recognition

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

The counseling program at Youngstown State University is the recipient of the 2014 North Central Association for Counselor Education and Supervision Innovative Counseling Program Award.

The award was presented at the NCACES Conference in St. Louis. NCACES represents 13 states including Ohio.

The award honors an outstanding counseling program that is unique and innovative. NCACES said YSU’s Counseling Program in the Beeghly College of Education demonstrates increased excellence through its advocacy initiatives, co-curricular experiences for graduate students, connections to the community through high-quality field experiences, delivery of free and reduced counseling services to the community through the Community Counseling Clinic and scholarship by faculty and graduate students.

The program, accredited through the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, has graduated more than 1,500 graduate- trained counselors over the past 45 years who have served the area as licensed professional clinical counselors, licensed/certified school counselors, licensed/certified chemical dependency counselors, student affairs professionals, professors, agency directors and other public servants.

For information about the YSU program or to pursue a career as a clinical mental-health counselor, school counselor, addiction counselor or student affairs/college counselor, contact Jake Protivnak, associate professor and department chairman, at jjprotivnak@ysu.edu.

Nicole Adamson, an assistant professor at the University of Pembroke in North Carolina, a YSU alumna, believes the university’s counseling program provided her with the best education available.

“The faculty members are very accessible, and I spent a lot of individual time exploring my career options with my adviser, Dr. Protivnak,” she said. “As a result, I am now a licensed professional counselor and a licensed school counselor, which has made it very easy to find fulfilling employment.

Becky Varian, director of the YSU Center for Student Progress, also gives the program positive reviews.

“I made a scary decision in 2006 to quit my teaching position and return to school for a graduate degree at Youngstown State University,” she said. “It was one of the best decisions of my life. The Student Affairs Program provided an extremely supportive environment and, as a nontraditional student, that support made all the difference for me. Many things had changed in research since I obtained my undergraduate degree, but my instructors were always available to answer questions and guide me with proper methods for academic writing and citation. It was because of this support and encouragement that I thrived in the program as well as in my current career.”