Counselor / Athletics Mental Health Specialist

Davidson College•Davidson, NC

11d•Onsite

About The Position

The Counselor / Athletics Mental Health Specialist is a 12-month position providing counseling services to Davidson College students, with a focus on scholar-athletes. The position delivers counseling and crisis services, training, consultation, and educational outreach to student-athletes, coaches, and athletics department staff. It interacts as needed with scholar-athletes, parents, department personnel, faculty, deans, and campus counseling services to support quality care. The role provides clinical services to scholar-athletes in collaboration with others to enhance their personal, academic, and athletic success. It also assists the Director of Counseling Services in developing and implementing the philosophies, policies, and procedures that guide counseling operations for scholar-athletes. The position requires integrity, strong communication, effective conflict management, awareness of potential safety concerns, collaboration, sound decision-making and problem-solving, commitment to quality service, adaptability, and openness to supervision and feedback. The position reports to the Director of Counseling Services. It works primarily in an office setting within the Center for Student Health and Well-Being and in athletics facilities. Some evening and weekend availability may be required for team schedules, outreach programming, and crisis response.

Requirements

Master’s degree or higher in clinical mental health counseling, social work, clinical or counseling psychology, or a closely related field.
Licensed or license-eligible as a mental health professional in North Carolina (e.g., LCMHC, LCSW, or licensed psychologist), with full licensure obtained within an established timeframe of hire.
Clinical experience providing individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, and risk assessment; experience with college-age populations is preferred.
Demonstrated ability to collaborate within interdisciplinary teams and navigate confidentiality appropriately across multiple stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Experience providing clinical services to athletes, ideally within an NCAA Division I setting.
Personal or professional background in athletics and familiarity with athletic culture and the demands placed on student-athletes.
Training or certification in sport and performance psychology, such as Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC).
Experience designing and delivering outreach and training programs.
Demonstrated commitment to culturally responsive practice with diverse student populations.

Responsibilities

Counsel individuals and groups regarding personal, social, career, and academic development.
Provide crisis intervention, including screening, consultation, and safety assessment.
Provide crisis management, triage, and walk-in emergency services.
Conduct evaluations for student-athletes in individual and group settings.
Provide counseling and limited follow-up services as needed, and refer students to other providers and agencies when appropriate.
Maintain clinical records in accordance with legal, ethical, and departmental standards.
Consult with parents, department personnel, physicians, faculty, deans, campus counseling services, and others as appropriate to provide quality care.
Collaborate with the Associate Director of Sports Performance and Mental Fitness, the Director of Sports Performance, and Sports Medicine staff, including athletic trainers and team physicians.
Attend clinical staff meetings and other staff meetings as requested.
Design and deliver mental health education and prevention programming for student-athletes and teams on topics including stress, performance pressure, injury and transition, substance use, disordered eating, and help-seeking.
Train coaches, athletic trainers, and athletics staff to recognize and respond to student-athletes in distress and make effective referrals.
Support mental health screening initiatives consistent with NCAA mental health best practices.
Collaborate with the Director of Counseling Services to develop, implement, and periodically review athletics counseling policies and procedures, including referral pathways, emergency action planning for mental health, and confidentiality and information-sharing protocols.
Serve with the Director of Counseling Services as the primary liaison between Counseling Services and the Athletics Department, fostering integrated, interdisciplinary care.
Collect and report utilization and outcome data to the Director of Counseling Services to inform service planning and demonstrate impact.
Stay current with NCAA guidance, legislation, and best practices related to student-athlete mental health.
Participate in clinical supervision, case consultation, and continuing education to maintain licensure and clinical competence.
Contribute to broader Counseling Services and Center for Student Health and Well-Being initiatives, including after-hours or on-call coverage as assigned.
Perform other duties as assigned.