Heidelberg counseling program receives funding

TIFFIN --- Heidelberg University's Master of Arts in Counseling (MAC) program has been awarded $318,000 in funding from the Ohio Wellness Workforce Fellowship Program to boost the number of graduates working in behavioral healthcare settings. The funding is available to students who are pursuing degrees or certificates in social work, marriage and family therapy, mental health counseling, psychiatric/mental health nursing and substance abuse/addiction counseling. It comes at a critical time when more than 20% of Ohioans live with a mental health condition or a substance abuse disorder and nearly 2.4 million live in communities that have an inadequate number of behavioral health professionals. The funds are available for students who are in the last two years of an academic program that is preparing them for positions in the behavioral health workforce, Dr. Robin DuFresne, assistant professor of graduate counseling, said in a release provided by the university. DuFresne worked at the ground level on a statewide committee to help generate ideas and identify needs that led to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine prioritizing the behavioral health workforce in Ohio. Heidelberg's award will provide up to $10,000 per student for scholarship assistance or paid internships to assist grad students with completing the MAC program. "Students are required to be Ohio residents, complete their internship at a community behavioral health center, and commit to working one year post-graduation at a community behavioral health center," DuFresne explained in the release. For MAC student Makayla DeMoss, the financial assistance is fantastic news as she looks to complete her master's degree at Heidelberg. DeMoss, who is in her final semester of the MAC program, is finishing her internship and is excited about the opportunity for a variety of reasons, as stated in the release. The assistance will help get people in the behavioral healthcare field more involved with agencies, many of which are woefully understaffed. "The internships take up a lot of our time and many people have other full-time jobs on top of their internships," DeMoss said in the release. "That can be very exhausting, especially in a field with such a high burnout rate already." DeMoss plans to put the funding she receives back toward her studies and utilize it to gather materials for the office where she'll be practicing. "I'm extremely grateful for this opportunity," she added. After graduation, DeMoss plans to continue her work at Firelands Counseling and Recovery Services in Seneca and Sandusky Counties, the agency where she has worked for the past two years as well as her internship site. The grant is part of DeWine's plan to increase the number of behavioral healthcare providers to meet growing demand, according to the release. In May, he proposed an investment of $85 million of federal funds that would make education more affordable for students who commit to behavioral healthcare careers. Randy Gardner, chancellor of the Ohio Department of Higher Education, made the award announcements last month. "The health and success of Ohio's families and communities depend on effective strategies to recruit and retain health professionals," Gardner said in the release, calling the Fellowship program "an important statewide initiative."