{"id":8880,"date":"2023-01-04T08:51:12","date_gmt":"2023-01-04T14:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin-new\/?post_type=campus_story&p=8880"},"modified":"2023-01-04T08:51:12","modified_gmt":"2023-01-04T14:51:12","slug":"howell-returns-to-uw-platteville-discusses-importance-of-diversity-and-representation-in-mental-health-counseling","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/howell-returns-to-uw-platteville-discusses-importance-of-diversity-and-representation-in-mental-health-counseling\/","title":{"rendered":"Howell returns to UW-Platteville, discusses importance of diversity and representation in mental health counseling"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo<\/a>
Brittany Howell<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI love my job. I love counseling,\u201d said\u00a0Brittany Howell<\/a>,\u00a0multicultural specialist and counselor<\/a>\u00a0at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. \u201cBeing a former student of color on campus and to now help current students navigate the same journey, it\u2019s full circle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Howell, a licensed professional counselor, earned her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degrees from UW-Platteville and returned to her alma mater in December 2021, with the focus of providing counseling services to minority student populations. In her role, Howell facilitates programming including Mental Health Monday, a weekly multicultural support group and is the liaison for the athletics department in providing mental health resources to student-athletes. Howell explains how the outreach programs allow students to have a safe place to engage in open dialogue about mental health topics.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have talked about stress management and healthy relationships. The next\u00a0Mental Health Monday is November 28<\/a>. In that discussion, we\u2019ll be talking about anxiety and depression,\u201d said Howell. \u201cThe\u00a0multicultural support group<\/a>\u00a0aims to establish a sense of belonging and community for the minority student population on campus, through dialogue and sharing their personal experiences as they relate to being a student of color on campus. It\u2019s an overall opportunity for the students to connect with one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Howell, for many underrepresented minority students, attending UW-Platteville can be a difficult transition, where students can feel isolated and experience imposter syndrome [involving feelings of self-doubt of their skills, talents and accomplishments], however Howell notes, having more representation on campus can help students feel more comfortable in expressing their concerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s already hard for students of color to ask for help. Having someone they can identify with can make it easier for them to engage in those help-seeking behaviors,\u201d said Howell. \u201cIt allows students to feel understood. It creates a cultural space for them to be themselves. It shows the university is committed to prioritizing minority student populations by acknowledging the mental health needs of the students.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior to joining UW-Platteville, Howell worked in Milwaukee as a vocational rehabilitation counselor and spontaneously looked at the university\u2019s website. Howell saw the multicultural specialist opening and knew she had to apply. When students hear about Howell\u2019s days of being a Pioneer, from being the former president of the Black Student Union to being a practicum student in the UW-Platteville counseling office, Howell said they\u2019re often surprised. She emphasized the importance of her students knowing about her undergraduate and graduate days.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt gives students a sigh of relief,\u201d said Howell. \u201cMost students are appreciative of the connection we make, whether it\u2019s through individual counseling or through one of the programs. Students find it comforting to know that I also walked the same path before.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Howell embarks on her one-year anniversary of being back in the southwest corner of the state, she said her favorite part of her position is guiding students to see they have the key to their success.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m committed to creating these spaces for students of color, because I know first-hand how it feels to feel isolated, alone and to not have a sense of belonging,\u201d said Howell. \u201cTo witness the progress students are making when they decide to put their mental health first and prioritize themselves, to take care of themselves \u2013 witnessing that progress is the gratification I need to stay in this position.\u201d<\/p>\n

To learn more about University Counseling Services, visit\u00a0www.uwplatt.edu\/department\/counseling-services<\/a>.<\/p>\n

To learn more about the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs, visit\u00a0www.uwplatt.edu\/department\/office-multicultural-student-affairs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Written by Ruth Wendlandt<\/p>\n

Link to original story: https:\/\/www.uwplatt.edu\/news\/howell-returns-uw-platteville-discusses-importance-diversity-and-representation-mental-health<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI love my job. I love counseling,\u201d said\u00a0Brittany Howell,\u00a0multicultural specialist and counselor\u00a0at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. \u201cBeing a former student of color on campus and to now help current students navigate the same journey, it\u2019s full circle.\u201d Howell, a licensed professional counselor, earned her bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degrees from UW-Platteville and returned to her alma […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":8881,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[93],"story_category":[],"class_list":["post-8880","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-platteville"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/8880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8880"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=8880"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=8880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}