Director of Counseling & Psychological Services

California State University•Allen, TX

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS) provides strategic leadership and vision for mental health service delivery within the Division of Student Affairs. This role involves developing and implementing long- and short-term plans, managing resources, conducting program evaluations, and ensuring compliance with relevant laws and professional standards. The Director is responsible for creating comprehensive strategies for counseling services, focusing on student development, satisfaction, and retention, and promoting a data-driven approach to problem-solving. Additionally, the position entails clinical oversight, including maintaining a limited clinical caseload, providing supervision, and ensuring adherence to evidence-based practices. A critical component of the role is crisis management, where the Director serves as a key member of the University's Multidisciplinary Team (MDT), leading CAPS' participation in emergency responses, providing consultation on mental health interventions, and developing proactive plans for threat mitigation and violence prevention protocols. The Director also oversees financial and staff resource planning, allocation, and management for CAPS, including budget preparation and staff training and evaluation.

Requirements

Master's degree from a regionally accredited university in counseling psychology, clinical psychology, counselor education, social work, marriage and family, or other closely related discipline.
Supervised internship, supervised field placement, or equivalent as part of the requirement for the degree, which included clinical assessment, counseling, and crisis intervention.
Substantial experience in a clinical and/or counseling setting with the ability to serve in a supervisory capacity.
Abilities and attributes that enable effective representation of mental health issues in the campus community, and effective interaction with, and the ability to earn the respect and trust of, counseling staff, colleagues, administrators, faculty, staff, parents, and students.
Current, valid, and unrestricted license to practice in any US state.
License eligible in California within 6 months.
Graduate-level academic training in clinical and professional functioning, such as diagnosis and assessment, counseling theory and practice, ethical issues, supervision, diversity, and research.
Evidence of involvement and commitment to educational and professional development.
The ability to present comprehensive evidence-based information to management, faculty, staff, and student groups.
Knowledge of budgeting and forecasting for the purposes of assisting in the development of a student affairs organization.
Strong team-building skills.
Active experience with emergency management and/or behavioral/healthcare intervention activities.
Demonstrated ability to administer a comprehensive counseling program to meet the needs of a diverse community and to deliver student-centered services and programs.
High degree of initiative to accomplish University and Division of Student Affairs (DSA) goals.

Nice To Haves

A Doctorate degree is strongly preferred.
Supervised internship, supervised field placement, or equivalent as part of the requirement for the degree, which included clinical assessment, counseling, and crisis intervention, preferably with a diverse college-age population.
Familiarity with current issues and trends in higher education.
Knowledge of National, State, and local laws related to providing mental health services, including FERPA & HIPAA.
Management experience in a collective bargaining environment.

Responsibilities

Provides vision and strategic direction for CAPS; develops long- and short-term plans for mental health service delivery, including strategic planning and goal setting, identifying and achieving service objectives, managing staff, financial, and other resources, conducting program evaluation, and engaging in counseling, outreach, consultation, and preventive mental health activities.
Develops, implements, and evaluates the vision, purpose, aims, objectives, and strategies for all programs and services within CAPS.
Creates comprehensive planning, implementation, assessment, and quality improvement strategies for counseling services to ensure a positive experience for students, faculty, and staff, with a focus on student development, satisfaction, and retention.
Regularly monitors and reports on CAPS' financial status.
Produces administrative and financial plans, proposals, and reports to support CAPS' work and keep internal and external stakeholders informed on key issues.
Advises the Assistant Vice President for Student Wellness (AVPSW) and other university officials on crises, offering guidance on mental health services and interventions.
Acts as a key member of the multidisciplinary team and crisis response unit, providing consultation, leading CAPS participation in emergency responses, and offering post-crisis support.
Develops and updates emergency plans to ensure safety for students and staff and supports the creation and evaluation of the Student Wellness (SW) Business Continuity Plan, Emergency Operations Plan, and Resource Allocation and Management Plan.
Promotes a data-driven approach to problem-solving and decision-making.
Implements best practices in designing, developing, and overseeing mental health programs.
Develops and executes programs and services within CAPS that align with the university’s strong student-centered philosophy.
Assists with strategic planning, mid- and long-range planning, and overall assessment and quality improvement efforts for CAPS.
Serves as the administrator, lead trainer, and consultant for CAPS; designs and conducts workshops and creates materials to promote CAPS services and support students, faculty, and staff in mental health matters.
Ensures CAPS compliance with relevant federal, state, and local laws, as well as professional standards, CSU and CSUCI policies, procedures, and guidelines.
Recommends, develops, and implements policy and procedural changes to ensure compliance.
Oversees financial resource planning, allocation, and management for CAPS.
Prepares the annual operating budget and manages financial policies and procedures.
Oversees staff resource planning, allocation, and management within CAPS.
Trains, supervises, and evaluates all staff members.
Develops and recommends long-term personnel strategies based on enrollment projections, expected revenue, and strategic goals.
Maintains a limited clinical caseload, provides supervision, ensures adherence to standards, and guides evidence-based practices.
Provides consultation/liaison to the University community, particularly in high-risk and crises.
Fosters effective working relationships with faculty, staff, and administrators.
Must maintain legally required confidentiality, be highly knowledgeable of the legal responsibility to report individuals at risk of harm to self/others, and to maintain strict informational boundaries that in this environment are highly subject to pressure.
Advances equity-minded practices and social justice with CAPS operations where appropriate, ensures services are accessible, promotes an organizational culture of collaboration, and provides leadership development for CAPS staff.
As time and resources permit, participates in regional, state, and national organizations on psychological services, student affairs, and higher education.
Assists the AVP for Student Wellness with providing leadership on special projects.
Creates, develops, and maintains a robust Mental Health Peer Program (MHPP).
Serves as a member of the University's Multidisciplinary team (MDT) and assists the university in crisis response efforts, specifically providing consultation as it pertains to mental health interventions and actively leading CAPS participation in emergency response and post-crisis support for individual and campus-level needs.
Leads the creation of clear, effective, and proactive plans for avoiding or mitigating newly emerged and evolving threats.
Make level-headed decisions in crises—alert top management about relevant threats.
Develops expertise in threat assessment, trains MDT team and campus community; evaluates violence prevention protocols.
Develops ongoing expertise in threat assessment and management and shares this expertise through outreach and training on threat assessment and management to the MDT and campus community.
Supports the MDT Chair (AVP Student Affairs/Dean of Students) through advisement of the MDT that assesses risk and threats to the University’s employees, students, and property.
Evaluates the effectiveness of the policies and procedures for managing violence prevention and for expanding and improving response protocols and programs.
Serves on Divisional and University committees as directed by the AVPSW (e.g., Campus Access, Retention, and Equity Team (CARE), and MDT, etc.
Performs additional related duties as assigned.