Strategic Priorities: Investment
Goal 1. Access and Diversity: Increase awareness of the availability of psychological services for all students, and increase services to and understanding of the broad spectrum of our diverse campus community.
Benchmarks (measures of the degree
of success over the next 5 years):
- Every student will exhibit awareness of SCC services available.
- Increase contact by 5% with students from diverse groups through outreach initiatives, consultation, and clinical activities.
- Increase programming and activities by 5% focused on promoting awareness and appreciation of diversity.
Objective 1.1: Provide comprehensive access to SCC services and increase campus-wide awareness of mental health services.
Strategies:
- Continue to provide uninterrupted hours of service by SCC staff through walk-in crisis services during business hours and through after-hours crisis response.
- Continue to explore alternative and additional advertising/publicity for SCC services.
- Continue to improve web-based information and services (e.g., provide additional self-help information).
- Continue to expand consultation and liaison relationships with residence halls, faculty/staff and student organizations.
- Continue to expand psycho-educational presentations and campus-wide programming on mental health and wellness/prevention issues.
Objective 1.2: Increase services to traditionally underserved populations.
Strategies:
- Continue to provide multicultural training opportunities for psychologists-in-training.
- Increase clinical services available specifically to diverse populations (e.g., support groups).
- Ensure advertising materials are inclusive and accessible to diverse populations.
- Continue collaboration with both Student Diversity Relations and the Cross-Cultural Academic Advancement Center in provision of services to diverse students.
Objective 1.3: Increase campus-wide awareness and appreciation of diversity.
Strategies:
- Support opportunities for faculty/staff to obtain diversity training (e.g., Allies training to address needs of GLBTQ students).
- Increase participation, presence, visibility, and financial sponsorship in other campus-wide diversity initiatives.
- Initiate campus-wide outreach programs to promote diversity.
- Increase funding for psychologists to obtain professional development in order to provide quality service for diverse students.
Goal 2. Human Resources and Infrastructure: Increase and use resources to recruit and retain quality staff to support an optimal work environment.
Benchmarks (measures of the degree of success over the next 5 years):
- Increase professional staff toward meeting national average of student-to-staff ratio according to annual AUCCCD Survey of Counseling Center Directors.
- Maintain secretarial support staff to meet ongoing needs of full time professional staff.
- Maintain effective, efficient and professional office procedures.
- Maintain competitive professional staff salaries comparable to Big 12 counseling centers in Texas with APA-accredited training programs.
- Facilitate accomplishment of appropriate state licensure for all professional staff.
- Acquire and update necessary audio/visual and computer equipment for in-house training and outreach program.
- Obtain appropriate technical support to provide necessary clinical services.
Objective 2.1: Recruit and Retain a High Quality Professional Staff.
Strategies:
- Provide salary structure comparable to Big XII, APA-accredited counseling centers in Texas.
- Continue monthly meetings between Director and professional staff members to facilitate personal and departmental goals.
- Develop staff retention incentive plan (e.g., career ladder).
Objective 2.2: Increase Efficiency, Effectiveness and Professionalism of Office Operations.
Strategies:
- Provide training opportunities for support staff to ensure effective office procedures, including training in APA ethical standards.
- Maintain and upgrade computerized scheduling software.
- Refine office policies and procedures annually.
- Conduct annual performance evaluations of support staff and revise PDQ job descriptions as needed
- Meet bi-weekly with support staff to evaluate office practice effectiveness.
- Create Scope of Care Statement
- Finalize departmental Policies and Procedures Manual
Objective 2.3: Update and Maintain Computer Hardware/Software and Audio/Visual Equipment to Provide Necessary Clinical Services
Strategies:
- One-third of departmental PC’s to be replaced on an annual basis.
- Acquire in-house technical support to assist in purchasing and maintenance of technical equipment.