Wilson Counseling
Perhaps you have heard of the Counseling Center at Wilson, but never really knew what it was about. Did they just do counseling? What other services did they offer? Did they do events? Whether you are a freshman, a returning student, or a senior a few months from graduation, you may not know what the Counseling Center does. I sat down with Angela Baker, the Director of Counseling, and asked her these common questions.
Firstly, I asked her to describe the Counseling Center. She told me that the Counseling Center is a service provided to students who are considered to be of full-time status. They provide counseling on an individual, therapeutic basis as their main service. Counseling is provided by Baker, Dr. Robin Witmer-Kline, and graduate students from Shippensburg’s counseling program. This semester, they have interns Belinda Goins and Harleigh McCloskey as counselors.
However, this is not the only service they offer. Should you need medication, they have a medication management program run by Dr. Lisa Marie Wright, who is a registered psychiatric nurse practitioner. She visits the Counseling Center twice a month to fulfill prescriptions. Baker told me that to participate in the medication management program, a student must be seeing a counselor “on a regular basis.”
Students who are not considered full-time are students who are part-time or graduate students are not eligible for counseling through Wilson’s Counseling Center, but Baker says, “…we can assist the student in getting set up with a provider in the community.” So even if you cannot get counseling on campus, the Counseling Center will still help you get help.
The Counseling Center also has weekly events throughout the semester. Baker says these can be found in the Be Bold Bulletin as well as on our Wilson Portal. One of the events next week focuses on coping with seasonal affective disorder using light box therapy. The Counseling Center also has their own light box that students can sign out for free, should they need it. Baker states that they provide a variety of topics for the workshops and events that are relevant to college students.
The Counseling Center has a variety of services to offer students on campus from all walks of life. Baker says that “Our goal for everyone, regardless of their reason for using services, is to provide a safe, nonjudgmental, confidential, and unbiased space for students to process and explore their concerns to whatever degree they feel comfortable with and to receive essential emotional support.” They clearly care about the students’ emotional and mental wellbeing, and a lot of effort is put into ensuring their wellbeing is taken care of. I asked Baker what she liked the most about the Counseling Center, and this was her response: “It is such an honor and privilege to be a witness to someone’s unfiltered journey. I am constantly in awe of the resiliency I witness on a daily basis.”
To reach out to the Counseling Center, you can email counseling@wilson.edu. Their events are Mondays after lunch; try and attend if you can and get to know the Counseling Center for yourself!