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���������ƽ�� is committed to your success, and after hearing students’ request for more comprehensive mental health services, we’re excited to announce a new ���������ƽ�� Counseling Center (RUCC) on our Chicago Loop Campus. Resources will be covered by tuition for all ���������ƽ�� students, and the center’s suite of services will be completely confidential. 

���������ƽ�� understands that the college experience can be incredibly stressful, no matter what stage in life you choose to pursue a degree. Students just out of high school are adjusting to living away from home for the first time and deciding their career path, while working professionals need to balance classwork with the demands of their full-time job. And every student contends with deadlines, finances and school-life balance. The RUCC with have a variety of services to assist with all these issues.

“We will be one of the few completely confidential resources of campus for all students,” says the center’s director Dr. Gabe Becker. “For students and families coming to ���������ƽ��, we want you to know that this is a space where you can receive high-quality therapy and resources that won’t ripple into other elements of their school life unless they want them to.” 

If you are dealing with anxiety, depression or any other mental health issue, you will be able to register for an initial appointment with one of the center’s licensed counselors (once they are hired) to develop a diagnosis and treatment plan. From there, the center can offer regularly scheduled therapy sessions, support groups and 24-hour access to TimelyCare: a telehealth service that specializes in mental health. And while the Center was just established and still staffing the office, the organization is already preparing services for students and faculty this fall semester. All Lakers will be able to register for workshops that focus on stress reduction and suicide prevention, and the center will soon develop specialized programming for student-athletes and particular majors. No matter your level of need, the center will be committed to your mental health contributing to—not impeding—your academic success. 

“The metaphor I like to use is that if you attend college without any external support system, it’s like trying to earn a degree with both hands tied behind your back,” says Becker. “If you have access to some other service, like financial aid or a guidance counselor, it’s like accomplishing the task with one hand free. But if mental health is preventing you from being your best self, we want this center to give you both hands to academically succeed.”

Dr. Becker also places the Counseling and Wellness Center in the strong 80-year tradition of social justice at ���������ƽ��. “One of the many things I took away as a graduate student myself at ���������ƽ�� is that psychology is a crucial element of any social justice mission,” he says. “Our staff is trained to work with a student body that is multicultural, ranges from living on campus to commuter, and hails from all over the world. We know the students asked for this, and we’re committed to working with them all holistically.”