ASU Counselor Training Center Expands Services to Meet Growing Mental Health Needs

Managed by the School of Counseling and Counseling Psychology within the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts, the CTC provides affordable and confidential counseling services while facilitating hands-on training for graduate students. Jamie Bludworth, the director of the CTC, emphasized the center's goal of making mental health care accessible and encouraging early help-seeking behavior.

"We want to provide the services, and we want to be available to folks before they reach the levels of crisis or emergency," said Bludworth. The original CTC clinic was established in 1956 on the Tempe campus. This year, a new clinic was opened on the Polytechnic campus, offering in-person psychological assessments, including evaluations for ADHD and learning disorders for individuals over the age of 8.

In addition to these assessments, the CTC has introduced autism spectrum assessments and bilingual general counseling services in Spanish, available both in-person and via telehealth. While the costs for comprehensive neurological testing can range from $750 to $3,500, the CTC charges between $400 and $600, with the center operating without profit, relying on fees to cover assessment material costs.

Funding for the program comes from the school and college, alongside ongoing efforts to secure grants to sustain these services. The CTC provides graduate students working toward licensure the opportunity to practice under supervised conditions, with all sessions recorded and stored securely for training purposes.

Second-year graduate student Sophie Heywood mentioned that supervision addresses clients' concerns regarding counseling provided by students of similar age. She highlighted the benefits of this demographic similarity, stating it fosters a sense of understanding.

Clients are typically assigned to a single counselor for a semester lasting 12 to 15 weeks. Once a counselor's practicum concludes, clients may be referred elsewhere or placed on a waitlist for a subsequent semester.

Graduate students have shared their experiences, including second-year student Paige Hartman, who expressed initial feelings of imposter syndrome despite her background in counseling. "I did have a moment of, 'Am I gonna be good at this?'" she recalled, but added that focusing on her clients helped her overcome those doubts.

Looking ahead, Bludworth announced plans for another clinic at the Downtown Phoenix campus within the next six to eight months, noting the dedication of both students and supervisors in providing high-quality service.