California State University, Chico
Division of Student Affairs
Counseling, Wellness, and Testing Annual Report
This report is subdivided into two separate reports; one for Counseling and Wellness and a
second for the Testing program.
I.
Counseling and Wellness Mission and Values Statement
The Counseling Center holds the fundamental belief that a student’s intellectual and
personal development is inseparable, and that the University’s primary academic
mission is most fully served through the development of the whole person. The Center
strives to achieve this through the delivery of a variety of services intended to enhance
personal and academic effectiveness, interpersonal growth, emotional support in crisis
conditions, and promote a healthy campus environment. In addition, it is our belief that
systemic social inequalities exist which impact the growth, development and sense of
worth and wellness of students. It is our belief that responsible action must take place
which addresses and strives to eliminate forms of oppression which diminish wholeness
and effectiveness (e.g., racism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, classism and other
biases).
General Program Goals
1. Provide psychological support and intervention to students experiencing various
forms of personal and academic crises. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 4; Division Goals:
Growth).
2. Provide counseling for students to explore and change ineffective life strategies
that are impeding academic success. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 4; Division Goals:
Growth).
3. Provide professional consultation to faculty, staff, administration, students, and
parents on how to best handle situations with students who are having difficulty
functioning within the University. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 2, 4; Division Goals:
Excellence, Growth).
4. Deliver preventative and developmental psychological education on a variety of
important topics related to healthy and effective living through outreach
presentations to students and other members of the campus community.
(Strategic Priorities: 1, 2,& 4; Division Goals: Growth).
5. Provide direct educational services in the form of teaching or clinical supervision
to graduate students and interns learning advanced counseling skills. (Strategic
Priorities: 1, 4; Division Goals: Growth, Leadership).
6. Maintain top quality and current expertise in clinical and counseling skills through
ongoing expectations of professional reading and opportunities for professional
training. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 2; Division Goals: Excellence, Service).
7. Engage in research and evaluation activities in order to monitor the efficacy and
relevance of the counseling services being offered. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 5;
Division Goals: Excellence, Service, and Integrity).
8. Maintain an overall program that is efficient and effective in its organization and
operation. (Strategic Priorities: 1, 5, 6; Division Goals: Excellence, Service, and
Integrity).
The above mission statement and goals guide us in meeting both Student Affairs’
and California State University Chico’s goals and mission in the following ways:

Recruitment, retention, graduation and satisfaction of students are
outcomes associated with services provided by college counseling
services (Illovsky, 1997, Turner & Berry, 2000; Wilson, Mason & Ewing,
1997).

We are continually working to create and maximize a supportive and
culturally competent environment in which students are able to clarify
and develop educational goals and bring these to fruition.

Our goals articulate the many ways we serve Northern California, other
regions of the state, nation and world. Personal counseling impacts and
improves the lives of our students and their families. We serve the entire
campus through our wellness and educational outreach programming.
Our internship program trains future counseling professionals who serve
our entire north state community.
II. Departmental Accomplishments

Safe Start- 40 face to face preventative workshops were delivered to the
1900 students that reside in on-campus housing. This year, a more
comprehensive program evaluation and learning outcome assessment
was performed utilizing Student Voice. Students reported learning
specific safety strategies (e.g., using the “buddy system, being aware of
their surroundings, use of Blue Light phones) and increased awareness
of risks (e.g., pervasiveness of acquaintance rape, risks associated with
drinking). A synopsis of this research will be made available on our
website.

Intentional efforts towards the retention of at-risk/non-traditional students
 Stress reduction and coping workshops delivered to EOP students
and international students
 Active involvement and leadership in Conversations on Diversity
 Mentoring students of color (staff involved in advisory roles for
Men of Honor, Native American Club, Summer Bridge, Diversity
Summit, PRIDE, Women’s Center)
 Support group developed for DSS
 Diversity training program continued for clinical interns
 Received the “Innovative Program Award,” a statewide recognition
from the Organization of Counseling Center Directors in Higher
Education for our program, “The Red Tent,” October 2007
 Received national recognition at ACPA (March 2008) where our
program, “The Red Tent,” was selected for an innovative program
presentation.

Suicide prevention efforts
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Internship Development

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Increased emphasis in staff and faculty training
Increased the number of “Distressed Student” workshops previously
offered to faculty and staff
Developed an “Active Minds” chapter on campus
Effort was put into a proposal of a substance abuse treatment
program (ASPIRE) to be modeled after San Diego State University
Received the “Agency of the Year” Award from the School of Social
Work
Attended and presented a training workshop at the Northern California
Training Directors Conference
Assessment efforts


Utilized Student Voice to deliver five different student learning
outcome surveys
Participated in the University of Michigan’s Healthy Minds Study

Preparing for the move into the new student services building
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Purging/recycling of unneeded/out dated material
Old technology updated (e.g., VCR tapes converted to DVD)
Many forms electronically formatted
New furniture and equipment ordered
On-going delivery and revision of move plans
Renaming of our unit
Don Graham was nominated for and received “Counselor Emeritus” status
III. Changes in Policies and Procedures

We are in the process of revising our Policies and Procedures manual in preparation
for the IACS site visit in spring 2009.

As a result of findings in the Healthy Minds Study (Fall, 2007), and in preparation for
our move into the new Student Services Building we have simplified our name to
“Counseling and Wellness”. We are removing the term “Psychological “in order to
reduce the stigma associated with counseling services.
IV. Resources Summary
Counseling and Wellness Budget Summary



General fund allocation is similar to the prior year.
Robust roll over is due to salary savings accumulated due to staffing
changes.
Higher travel budget is due to new director attending national conferences
COUNSELING
COSTS
SALARIES & WAGES
Regular Staff
Temp Help
Student Assistant
Total Salaries and Wages
Work Study costs
OPERATING EXPENSES
Supplies & Services
Printing & Copying
Phone
Other Communications
Travel/Prof Dev.
Postage
Equipment
Misc. (define)
Total Operating Expense
TOTAL COSTS
REVENUE
Total Base Allocations
Salary Increase Allocation
One-time Allocations
Rollover (reserves) from 06-07
Total Revenue
Projected Reserve (one-time)
(roll forward to 08-09)
Work Study Allocation
Work Study Costs
Remaining Work Study
Gen.
Fund
Projected
Costs
NonState
Projected
Costs
771,422
3,328
18,257
793,450
0
0
0
0
Work
Study
Costs
12,610
15,898
3,170
1,185
5,935
10,813
73
0
37,075
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
830,525
0
806,330
46,069
0
168,112
1,020,511
0
0
0
0
189,986
0
15,972
12,610
3, 362
0
0
0
Staffing

We lost a critical position central to our service delivery process when the
ASC1 took a job in another department. Our ASA1 stepped up to fill her
position and several different part-time employees were hired to fill in this
position. This was quite disruptive to office functioning as the newly
promoted ASC1 was often performing the job of two people (i.e., her new
role, training and covering for her former role). This was on top of
significant additional responsibilities required in organizing a move into
the new Student Service building.
Facilities/Equipment

In preparing for our move into the Student Services building we have
secured the following purchases from Group II money:

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

V.
12 new computers for counselors and staff
Consoles created for electronic web-based check-in of
clients
New waiting room chairs and settees
New desks, bookcases, client chairs and task chairs for all
offices
Worktables on wheels for Wellness center and work room
Conference table and chairs for small group rooms and
large group rooms
AV cabinets and other storage cabinets for workroom,
service room, small group rooms
Psychological Counseling Program Evaluation 2007-2008
Program Goal 1: Intentionality and Accountability
This is an area under development and in which we have made considerable
progress.



We have utilized Student Voice to perform seven separate program evaluations
We are using this data to improve programming efforts and eliminate or address
outcomes that are inadequate
We have guided the Wellness program toward intentional programs based on
data provided by the Healthy Minds Study
Strategic Priorities 5 & 6; Division Goals; Excellence, Integrity and Service
Program Goal 2: Diversity Competencies (training and outreach to underserved
and at-risk student groups).
This is an area where we continue to do outstanding work as demonstrated below:

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Several workshops for EOP were provided
Several workshops for international students were provided
Mentoring and faculty advising was provided for many diverse student groups
and events (e.g., AS Women’s Center, Native American Club, Men of Honor,
PRIDE, Active Minds, Diversity Summit, Red Tent, Spirit of a Woman
Conference, Latino, African American, Native American and Latino graduations).
Many of our faculty are actively involved in planning, coordinating and
assessment activities for Conversations on Diversity
Weekly diversity training is provided for interns and interns participated in
Conversations on Diversity
Professional staff participated in cross cultural supervisory training (3 hour long
sessions).
Strategic Priorities 1, 2, 4 & 6; Division Goals; Diversity, Excellence, Growth,
Leadership, Integrity and Service
Program Goal 3: Collaborative Wellness Outreach
Efforts in this direction were very successful and include:


Implemented data driven prevention efforts between Wellness Center,
Counseling Center, and Internship Training program (e.g., the development
of Active Minds chapter was a joint project between Wellness interns and
clinical interns).
2 research assessment/prevention projects were complete by our Social
Work Intern, Rachel Sicke (i.e., Safe Start Assessment, a grant proposal for
drug and alcohol intervention).
Strategic Priorities 1, 2, 4, 5 & 6; Division Goals: Excellence, Growth, Leadership,
Integrity and Service
Program Goal 4: Suicide Prevention
Our goals to increase competencies and intentional programming were met by

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Staff participation in Suicide Competency training
Active Minds chapter established on campus.
RA’s provided training in suicide prevention
Increase in number of “Students in Distress” workshops provided to
faculty and staff (e.g., CLIC staff, Registrars Office, Veterans Affairs)
were new audiences.
Strategic Priorities 1, 2, 4, 5 & 6; Division Goals: Excellence, Growth, Leadership,
Integrity and Service
Program Goal 5: Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness
Refinements were made to the Freshmen Safe Start program



40 face-to-face preventative workshops delivered to the 1900
students that reside in campus housing.
A more comprehensive program evaluation and learning outcomes
assessment was performed utilizing Student Voice.
Several meetings were attended and support provided to the
Community Response to Violence proposal being submitted by Lori
Beth Way (Criminal Justice) for our campus.
Strategic Priorities; 1, 4, 5 & 6; Division Goals: Excellence, Growth, Leadership, and
Service
Program Goal 6: Programmatic Research and Assessment
Exceeded expectations

.

Participated in the Healthy Minds Study (National survey of mental health
status, utilization and barriers to accessing mental health services on college
campuses) conducted by the University of Michigan School of Public Heath
Conducted the following programmatic assessments:
Counseling Learning Outcomes Survey
Internship Evaluation
Internship Learning Outcome Study
Client Satisfaction of Services Survey
Evaluations of Wellness Center Programming (10 programs evaluated)
Safe Start program assessment (2)
Assisted with assessment of Conversations on Diversity program
assessments
VI.
Ongoing Assessment Efforts
Statistics on Program Usage
PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELING 2007-2008
The Psychological Counseling Center provides students help in resolving personal problems and crises, in making
important life decisions, and in developing a variety of personal survival skills.
Individual Counseling
2007-08
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
579
Assessments
431
402
468
477
584
20*
Crisis Intervention
626
658
686
631
139
556
Triage
133
165
167
166
445
1727
Individual sessions
2128
2072
1783
1676
1554
20
Couples sessions
125
101
217
N/C
41
2
Telephone sessions
46
32
4
3
7
78
Individual screening for groups
101
129
72
83
98
3042
Total Sessions Attended
3566
3675
3180
3077
2891
Avg. number of sessions/client
3.4
3.4
3.1
2.9
2.8
3.2
*Appointments for crisis intervention have been replaced by a triage system. Thus, triage numbers are up.
Crisis intervention is reduced as many of the students presenting in “crisis” are now triaged.
.
Clients by Gender
Males
Females
Unmarked
Total
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
320
714
7
1041
299
766
19
1084
323
672
38
1033
302
708
30
1040
303
641
9
953
334
717
28
1079
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
13
80
127
402
704
14
76
151
689
1171
12
164
105
552
833
8
59
84
341
565
10
73
101
465
824
10
76
100
611
1086
**women’s service usage demonstrates greater variance
Group Counseling
Number of Groups
Students Attending
Number of Sessions
Student Contacts
Total Contact Hours
(contacts x hours seen)
Types of Groups:
Most groups offered
both in spring and fall
Assertiveness/Self Esteem
Food Issues & Body Image
Bi-Polar support group
Better Relationships
Women’s Support Group
Disability Support Group
Group counseling continues to prove very helpful for those students working on certain kinds of
issues. This despite the continuing preference by most students for individual counseling.
Psychological Consultations
The center provided professional consultations to a variety of individuals or groups who were dealing
with students or others who were in crisis or suffering psychological difficulties.
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
Faculty
20
13
Parents
16
15
Staff and Administration
10
8
Judicial Affairs & Housing
11
8
Violence in Workplace Team
2
2
Students
3
2
University Police
2
1
Community
5
3
Total Consultations
69
52
*two clinicians did not turn in their reports for consultations performed
Outreach Efforts Counseling:
19
30
14
7
4
14
5
5
98
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
10
11
30
10
6
7
5
6
85
24
50
24
19
12
11
16
6
162
18
37
28
7
5
5
8
3
111*
Workshops and Presentations
Type of Audience
Number of Events
Year
Student Audiences
Faculty & Staff
Parent Orientation and welcomes
The Community
Total presentations
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
60
44
18
7
129
82
34
17
46
179
78
9
13
5
105
56
12
10
4
82
142
9
23
14
189
86
15
46
5
152
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
Attendance at Workshops and
Presentations
Year
Student Audiences
Faculty and staff
Parent Orientation
The community
Total Attendance
Outreach Topics:
Positive Psychology
Bi-Racial Identity
Active Minds
Eating Disorders
Depression/Suicide
Orientation to our services
Native American Issues
Stress management
Supervision and Training
Hours provided for intern supervision
Hours of training provided to interns
2059
1852
2257
1352
1380
3857
279
380
440
92
117
116
780 *
1105
866
986
177
290
90
365
608
34
85
454
3208
3702
4171
2464
1759
4717
*attendance increased due to name change of presentation
Study Skills
New Student/Parent Issues
Safe Start
Crisis/Risk Management
Time Management/self care
Sexual Assault Prevention
GBLT
2002-03
192
2003-04
182
2004-05
235
EOP: Life Management
Communication Skills
Pride/Safe Zone
RCC & ARCC Training
Body Image
2005-06
480
2006-07
96
2007-08
184
20
26
124
134
88
96
Campus Wellness Center Program Usage 2007-2008
The Campus Wellness Center’s mission is to maximize individual choice and provide
students the opportunity to establish lifestyle patterns that promote lifetime well being
through peer education, forums, fliers, informational tables, and wellness related events.
Workshops and Presentations by Interns
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08
Number of Presentations:
15
18
19
20
5
13
4
Attendance:
315 463
303
294 128 279 170
Topics Included:
Social Wellness, Stress Management, Eight Areas of Wellness, Homesickness
Wellness Forums
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08
Number of Forums:
15
16
17
22
14
17
16
Attendance:
714
797
501 578
404
394
291
Topics Included: Eating disorders, Stress management, Yoga, Tai chi, Managing Money,
Setting Goals, Perfectionism, and Healthy Lifestyle
The Wellness Interns set up informational tables in various sites on campus throughout
the semester.
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08
Number of Informational Tables:
12
8
12
18
11
24
12
Number of Participants:
438
299
264
360
485 575
200
Topics at the Tables Included: Domestic Violence, Healthy Food Habits, Financial Stress
and Stress Management, Eating Disorders Week, Relationships, Time Management,
Caesar Chavez, Mental Health Awareness, Achieving Goals and Survivor Series
Participation in Other Events/Informational Tables on Campus
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08
Number of Events/Tables:
NA
8
10
12
10
5
11
Number of Participants:
NA
269
733
928
570
365
300
Drop-ins at Wellness Center
Many students take advantage of the center’s drop-in services. Students came to the
Center seeking information on a variety of wellness-related topics to use in presentations
and papers for class. Services included flyers, printed handouts of many topics and
loans of audio and video presentations. Students are also able to check out books, all of
which have been donated from various publishing companies for our wellness library.
Number of Students: 01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08
688
549
342
251
232
495
25 *
*coordinators failed to keep an ongoing tally of student visits and inquiries
Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) Measures
SLO were assessed through several measures and are described below.

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92 clients participated in an anonymous in-house assessment of learning
outcomes using PDAs. 50% or more of the students surveyed reported being
less distressed since visiting a counselor, better able to concentrate, better
able to perform academically, having learned how to improve their
relationships, feeling less stressed/anxious, more confident and better able to
make better. Over 50 % reported they learned how to make healthier choices
and how to handle life’s challenges better. 69% learned more about their
strengths and 72% reported learning that they were not alone.
Counseling Center interns were survey using a web-based approach to
assess learning outcomes of specific counseling related skills. The results
indicated very robust learning in the following areas; intake skills, substance
abuse and its impact on families, diversity issues, PTSD, mandated reporting,
counseling center safety procedures, use of electronic note keeping system,
personal strengths as counselors. Areas that need some attention (i.e.,
interns indicated they wanted to learn more) include: treatment planning,
termination issues, treating sexual assault, fitting treatment into a brief
therapy model.
Learning Outcomes of Wellness interns were also assessed using a webbased instrument. The interns were asked how much they had increased
their learning in the eight areas of wellness. The results were not robust,
responses scattered and frankly unimpressive. We will be using these results
to better develop this program. The interns did report learning a great deal
about public speaking and they became more aware of campus resources.
They also reported that they were more active on campus and had acquired
job skills that are necessary in a professional work environment. That fact
that they did not report learning a great deal about wellness informs the
decision to discontinue the program in its current form until we can
demonstrate it is more effective.
Learning Outcomes were assessed for 124 of the Freshman Safe Start
participants two months after presentations were given. Participants were
assessed in the dining halls via PDA’s to learn if they had retained any
knowledge from the presentations delivered the first week of classes. The
results were impressive. Two months post workshop, 80% of the survey
participants reported being more aware of unsafe situations as a result of our
workshops. 92% reported they learned about the difference between
consensual and non consensual sex and 78% report having used strategies
learned at the safe start program. These finding are qualified by the fact that
is self report data and that there are respondent biases as well as halo effects
which affect these findings. Even so, results suggest that the program results
in student learning and that we should continue the efforts of this program.
Most Critical Performance Indicators
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Program usage statistics
Client Satisfaction Surveys
Program evaluations (e.g., group, intern, outreach evaluations)

Learning Outcome Assessments (e.g. ,wellness interns, clinical interns,
counseling clients
Supervisor evaluations by interns/trainees
IACS Accreditation report and evaluation
Annual Counseling Directors Survey
Participation and feedback from qualitative and quantitative surveys of
Healthy Minds Study participants
Weekly staff assessment and clinical case discussions (Quad groups)
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VI.
Analysis
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It was anticipated that hiring wellness interns for a year (versus hiring
new interns every six months) would strengthen our program. It did
not. The number of programs produced was down significantly and
the number of students reached was lower than usual. Still unknown
is how much students actually learned from our programming efforts.
While student interns reported gaining skills in public speaking and
program development, the majority of interns did not report learning a
great deal about the areas of wellness they were promoting. This has
informed a decision to cut back this program until it can be organized
more effectively.
Student counseling, our primary mission, continues to be effective and
our limited resources in counseling hours effectively administered.
Counselors complain about not getting to see clients for as long as
they like. However, this year we saw more students and continue to
handle crisis, triage and short-term work efficiently and effectively.
Next year we would like to address and reduce our “no show” and last
minute cancellation rates. We are in the process of examining ways in
which other centers have taken action to address similar problems.
Improvements were made in the clinical internship program (e.g.,
interns attended a regional conference, the director supervised intern
research projects). We had a stellar group of clinical interns this year.
The research produced by our social work intern raised our profile
with the School of Social Work. The research faculty in the School of
Social Work was very impressed with our use of Student Voice. It was
my sense that the “Agency of the Year” award reflected these
improvements.
We learned more than ever about the mental health needs of students
on campus through our participation in the “Healthy Minds Study.”
Prior to this we had only collected mental health data on the students
who managed to walk through our doors. We learned in this study that
only 35% of the students sampled even knew we had a counseling
center on campus. While that result is not atypical on college
campuses, it gives us much room for improvement. We learned that
we need to make greater efforts to de-stigmatize help seeking. We
also need to make students more aware of the prevalence of
depression and anxiety on college campuses as these mental
illnesses are very common and very amenable to treatmentespecially when spotted early on.
VIII.
Psychological Counseling and Wellness 2008-2009 Goals
1. Maintain essential elements of program while significantly
reducing operating costs. Strategic Priorities 5 & 6; Division
Goals; Excellence, Integrity and Service
2. Outreach/Diversity: Continue to increase multicultural
competencies of staff and interns (i.e., awareness, knowledge
and skills) and outreach to underserved communities. Strategic
Priorities 1, 2, 4 & 6; Division Goals; Diversity, Excellence,
Growth, Leadership, Integrity and Service
3. Programmatic Research and Assessment: Continue to find
ways to assess student learning outcomes and perform program
evaluation (e.g., Wellness Center, Internship and student
services surveys) in order to maximize service delivery in the
context of a shrinking budget. Use results of last year’s
research (i.e., Healthy Minds Study, Learning Outcomes
assessments) to inform programming efforts. Strategic Priorities;
1, 4 & 5; Division Goals; Diversity, Excellence, Growth, Integrity
and Service
4. Prepare for IACS accreditation visit (May, 2009) and maintain
status as an IACS accredited counseling center.
5. Increase the use of technology and increase practices that keep
our services environmentally friendly (e.g., reduce printing,
increase the amount of information that is on the web, and
reduce energy use).