Mission and Philosophy

Mission

The mission of the Master of Arts in Counseling Programs is to educate, supervise, and mentor students to develop knowledge, skills, and personal awareness necessary for them to function as professional counselors.  The Master of Arts in Counseling Program promotes excellence in professional preparation by providing a comprehensive education that integrates an understanding of Christian faith with professional counseling in a variety of religious and secular settings. The programs are based on a holistic biological, psychological, sociocultural, and spiritual understanding of human development. In addition to general counseling proficiency, students specifically are trained to become Marriage, Couple, and Family, Mental Health, or School Counselors.

1. The mission of the Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling Program is to train students in the knowledge, skills, and practices of counseling in order to provide competent care for individuals, couples, and families within a multicultural and pluralistic society of embracing (1) a family systems orientation to counseling, (2) the highest ethical standards of the profession, (3) an exploration of the person of the counselor, and (4) professional development through participation and leadership in professional organizations.
2. The mission of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program is to train entry-level counselors capable of functioning competently and ethically in mental health delivery environments wherein they work from an overall developmental/wellness model utilizing a neumobiopsychosocial framework that employs systematic and culturally sensitive intervention strategies.
3. The mission of the School Counseling Program is to prepare school counselors capable of supporting the academic, career, and personal/ social development of the students whom they serve, P-12, through (1) the use of data to inform school counseling programs and practices, (2) excellence in knowledge and practice, (3) integrity through adherence to codes and standards for ethical practice, (4) management of their own professional development, and (5) competent school counseling and educational practice.

 

Philosophy

Professional counselors use various interventions to facilitate wellness, personal growth, and mental health among those whom they counsel. A multidimensional holistic view of persons examines the interplay of physical, psychological, social, and spiritual aspects of life. The practice of professional counseling is based on knowledge of mental health, counseling, and human development principles and involves cognitive, affective, behavioral and systems interventions and strategies.