John Potter, clinical associate professor in the Department of Dispute Resolution and Counseling, joined a Zippia.com panel of experts to assess the pandemic’s impact on graduates starting their careers.
He sees positive outcomes from the pandemic that include adopting different ways of learning. Gaining these kinds of skills is important he says.
For him, the knowledge his students have acquired to resolve conflicts will benefit them any where they go.
To read the article, click here.
In an NBC5 interview about why people are not grasping the current number of pandemic deaths in Texas, which are at a peak of 10,000, Clinical Associate Professor Greta Davis discussed the psychology involved.
She explained the concepts of confirmation bias, cognitive dissonance, and people’s stress response to COVID-19.
Dr. Davis chairs the Department of Dispute Resolution and Counseling at SMU Simmons.
For more, see story below.
Perspective on What 10,000 COVID-Related Deaths in Texas Looks Like
With the conclusion of the spring semester the Simmons School is happy to announce the following faculty promotions:
Congratulations to Michael Harris (Education Policy and Leadership) who was promoted to Full Professor, and to Sushmita Purkayastha (Applied Physiology and Wellness) and Meredith Richards (Education Policy and Leadership) who received tenure and were promoted to Associate Professors.
Clinical faculty promotions include four who moved from Clinical Assistant to Clinical Associate status: Roxanne Burleson (Education Policy and Leadership), Greta Davis (Dispute Resolution and Counseling), Amy Ferrell (Teaching and Learning), and Diane Gifford (Teaching and Learning). Three faculty were promoted from Clinical Associate to Clinical Full: Margaret Jacome (Dispute Resolution and Counseling), Misty Solt (Dispute Resolution and Counseling, and Ashley Tull (Education Policy and Leadership). Plaudits to them.
SMU’s Center for Family Counseling in Simmons is now offering free telehealth counseling to anyone who needs it during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What started as a work-around to help the community during this period of mandatory social distancing has proved to be so successful that the center will continue offering remote counseling even after the staff returns to seeing patients in-person.
The clinic, associated with SMU’s Master’s in Counseling program, provides a variety of counseling services to adults, adolescents and children who are dealing with anxiety, depression, behavior difficulties, grief and loss, stress and parenting. Like many other businesses and clinics in Dallas, SMU’s Center for Family Counseling has temporarily closed its offices to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Clinic staff recognized, however, that because they were forced to close the clinic’s doors, there might be more people in need of mental health services related to isolation and other stay-at-home issues, said Clinic Director Terra Wagner.
“So we moved to offering services via Zoom,” Wagner said. “However, we plan to continue offering telehealth services, even when we return to seeing clients in person,” she said, explaining that they discovered they can serve more clients using a combination of telehealth and in-person appointments.
The Center for Family Counseling normally operates on a sliding scale fee system to accommodate low-income clients, with charges ranging from $5 to a maximum of $45 per session. All services will be free until further notice, Wagner said.
In addition to the telehealth counseling, five new remote support groups are also open for registration, free of charge: Adult Mindfulness Group, Adolescent Support Group, LGBTQ+ Parenting/Caregiver Support Group, LGBTQ+ Adolescent Support Group and LGBTQ+ Adult Support Group. These support groups started will meet via Zoom. Registration for all groups will remain open until groups end on May 7.
Counselors at the center are graduate students in the Master’s in Counseling program offered by SMU’s Simmons School of Education and Human Development. They have completed most of their coursework as well as clinical skills classes to prepare to work with clients under faculty supervision. The program is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs.
The clinic helps address the national shortage of mental health professionals by training counselors and providing affordable services. According to a spring 2019 report by Mental Health Dallas, the state of Texas is home to the second highest number of areas in the United States with a mental health professional shortage.
Earlier this year, SMU relocated the Center for Family Counseling from Plano to a new Dallas location in Expressway Tower, 6116 N. Central Expressway, Suite 410. Services are offered Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. To schedule an appointment, please call 214-768-6789. If the Center for Family Counseling can’t meet your needs, you will be referred to another provider.
The COVID-19 global pandemic has disrupted every aspect of our lives. Educational institutions, companies, non-profit organizations, government agencies have implemented social distancing policies and mandated telecommuting. Schools have closed and children are engaging in at-home learning alongside parents who may be remotely working for the very first time. What can managers do to lead effectively?
Embrace Technology: Get out of your comfort zone to lead in new ways using technology.
Nurture Relationships: At this time of physical distancing, your people need to know you care about them.
Establish New Norms: Let your people know you will be reaching out to them more often and why.
Reassess Priorities: What was important two weeks ago may no longer be as urgent or relevant.
Update Procedures: It’s no longer business as usual.
Greta Davis, Ph.D., specializes in career counseling and serves as department chair and clinical faculty member of SMU Simmons’ Dispute Resolution and Counseling program.
As families shelter at home, many may experience a disruption of daily routines and feel challenged by a lack of predictability. During this time, children need to feel safe. Dr. Brandy Schumann, clinical associate professor of counseling at SMU’s Simmons School of Education and Human Development, says kids will be seeking additional reassurance from their caregivers to soothe their perception of chaos. Here are some of Schumann’s tips to help.
Brandy Schumann, Ph.D., specializes in play therapy and serves as a clinical faculty member for SMU Simmon’s Counseling program and the Center for Family Counseling. She co-wrote these tips with SMU counseling alumna, Vivian Murcia,’ 17, M.S.
Dr. Sarah Feuerbacher, director of Simmons’ Center for Family Counseling, helped Prosper residents organize a town hall after two people killed themselves during a 24 hour period. Her concern hit close to home since of one of them was her neighbor.
According to comments she made to NBC5, she said, “We need to be able to learn, we need to be able to do something for the families who are hurting right now and to help those who are hurting out there.”
Feuerbacher asked student interns to participate and provide counseling services to attendees who requested assistance.
The Dallas Morning News recently published an investigative report on area psychiatric hospitals and their safety records. Sarah Feuerbacher, director of the Center for Family Counseling at SMU Simmons, was quoted on how patients and families may assess these hospitals.
An earlier Morning News investigation ultimately led to the voluntary closing of Timberlawn Hospital in Dallas.
Sarah Feurerbacher, director of Simmons’ Center for Family Counseling, SMU Plano, comments on differing parenting styles in CBS11’s story on “free range” parenting. See story.
Sarah Feurebacher, director of the Center on Family Counseling in Simmons, comments on how much is too much to share. Read article here.
