More and more college students are experiencing severe anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, prompting additional need for high-quality psychiatric care on college campuses. The challenge for many institutions is finding psychiatric providers, let alone providers who understand the student population and are able to provide higher levels of care for students experiencing severe depression, bipolar disorder I and II, complicated ADHD, suicidal ideation, and other psychiatric conditions. 

Turning to telepsychiatry, institutions have the opportunity to increase access to psychiatric care while reducing costs, protecting student privacy, and providing individualized care. At Mantra Health, we’ve built a telepsychiatry model around collaboration, clinical expertise, and evidence-based best practices, understanding that students need greater access to quality care and on-campus clinicians need more visibility into the students’ treatment plan. 

Join Nora Feldpausch, MD, the Medical Director at Mantra Health, to learn how to:

Work collaboratively with telepsychiatry providers to achieve clinical outcomes

Leverage the clinical model at Mantra Health to support students with psychiatric needs

Handle medication management through a virtual provider 

Engage in best practices when handling telehealth emergencies

Dr. Feldpausch will also share a case study which outlines the ways in which Mantra Health has worked with an institutional partner to bring high-quality psychiatric care to campus.

Dr. Nora Feldpausch began working as a psychiatrist in college mental health during residency and has continued to build on that passion for bringing innovation and excellent clinical care to university settings ever since. She has worked in a variety of college mental health settings, including helping to build a multidisciplinary team to address high-risk and post-hospitalization care for students at Colorado State University, and assisting with creating and staffing Michigan State University Counseling and Psychiatry Service’s first telehealth service. She joined Mantra's clinical advisory team in 2019, becoming Mantra's Medical Director in February 2021. Nora has helped scale Mantra’s clinical program, built protocols for addressing safety and EFFIcacy in hybrid care, and overseen the development of a provider group that's dedicated to ensuring the delivery of evidence-based, innovative approaches to college mental health care

How to provide higher levels of care to students with psychiatric conditions

Tackling High-Acuity Cases in Higher Education with Telepsychiatry

A large percentage of high school graduates are rethinking college enrollment, citing stress as the key deterrent, and 41% of current college students have considered stopping out, while 40% of all undergraduates are expected to drop out. 

Recognizing the importance of student persistence and retention, institutions are rethinking their strategies for supporting students’ mental health and well-being, and considering additional ways to increase their care offerings.

Join the Dean of Students at Washington College and the President of Moravian University for a frank discussion on resourcing for student mental health, understanding the existing telehealth options, and assessing which telehealth model is best suited for your institutional needs. 

How the state of college mental health has evolved post-pandemic

Ways to evaluate your existing mental health programs and services

What types of mental health offerings are available from telehealth providers

Why one institution chose a capacity expansion model and why another chose a whole campus care model

Bryon L. Grigsby, PhD, President at Moravian University

Dr. Bryon L. Grigsby, a Moravian University alumnus, currently serves as the 16th president of the institution, leading significant initiatives to enhance academic programs, facilities, and technology infrastructure. A pioneer of tech integration within classrooms, Grisby introduced a program to issue MacBook Pro laptops and iPads to all undergraduates, leading to Moravian being twice-named an Apple Distinguished School under his leadership. Grigsby's focus on community-building has resulted in new student orientation programs, cultural advancement centers, and community service initiatives. His tenure has overseen the development of innovative academic programs, significant fundraising, and capital improvements, including state-of-the-art health and sports centers. Prior to Moravian, Grigsby held leadership roles at Shenandoah University and Centenary College, and he is an accomplished scholar in medieval and early modern literature, and the history of medicine.

Gregory H. Krikorian, Dean of Students & Title IX Coordinator at Washington College

Gregory H. Krikorian currently serves as the Dean of Students & Title IX Coordinator at Washington College, Chestertown, MD. In this role, Greg serves as the supervisor of counseling, residential life, emergency operation and student conduct.  He has been responsible for the development and implementation a strategic plan for counseling services that has included launching tele counseling. Prior to joining Washington College Greg served as Vice President & Dean of Students for both Lebaon Valley College (13 years) and Hartwick College (11 years). He began his career in Higher Education as the Associate Dean & Director of Counseling at Bethany College. Prior to working in Higher Education Greg as a counselor several agency settings. Greg earned his BA from Niagara University and MA from Bowling Green State University. Greg is married and has five children.

Washington College is a private liberal arts college based in the rural area of Chestertown, Maryland. Founded in 1782, the institution has approximately 1,000 undergraduate students from 23 countries, with an acceptance rate of 70% and a student-to-faculty ratio of 10:1.  

Moravian University is a private liberal arts college based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1742, the institution has approximately 2,000 undergraduate students and an acceptance rate of 78%. 

How Independent Colleges Are Leveraging Telehealth

Increasing Mental Health Support on Campus

Fighting with a friend, going through a breakup, arguing with a professor, or dealing with rejection can feel like a life-shattering event for a student. Industry experts will share their expertise in working with higher education leaders to teach students the difference between healthy and healthy relationships, support them on their journeys to mental wellness, and provide them with resources on optimal relationship health.

Industry experts from One Love Foundation and SUNY Oswego will share their expertise and educate higher education leaders about the warning signs of abuse and the 10 Signs of Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships. The goal is to help you expand community awareness and provide the right resources to students so they can learn how to avoid unhealthy relationships and build healthy ones and get the support they need.

In this webinar discussion, we help higher education leaders learn:

How to ensure that students' relationship health positively impacts their mental health

How One Love’s resources and the 10 Signs can be used as a tool on your campus

How to step into prevention education in powerfully positive ways

Under her leadership, the organization has become the nation’s leading educator of young people on the topic of healthy and unhealthy relationships, as both a primary prevention strategy for relationship abuse and as an investment in the relationship health of the next generation. Prior to joining One Love, Katie was Chief Executive Officer at the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. She also worked as a philanthropic consultant and served as a Visiting Lecturer at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy. Before discovering her passion for philanthropy, she held positions at both Goldman Sachs and Bain & Company. Katie received her bachelor’s degree in Public Policy from Duke University and MBA from Harvard Business School. She currently serves on the Dean's Board of Advisors for Harvard Business School and the President's Advisory Council of Concordia College, and has served on the Advisory Board of the National Institutes of Neurological Disease and Stroke (NINDS) at the NIH, and as an advisor to the Institute of Medicine at the National Academies in Washington DC. 

Lisa Evaneski, Title IX Coordinator, State University of New York College at Oswego

She has worked in higher education for over 34 years serving primarily in Title IX, student conduct, new student orientation and residence life. Evaneski has been instrumental in campus wide compliance with Title IX at SUNY Oswego and has presented and consulted at the national and regional level, specifically related to her work with Clery, Title IX and the Violence Against Women Act. She earned a Master of Education in college student development and counseling from Northeastern University and a Bachelor of Science in education from Wheelock College. 

Carla Chugani, PhD, LPC, VP of Clinical Content and Affairs, Mantra Health 

Carla Chugani, Ph.D., LPC is currently the Vice President of Clinical Content and Affairs at Mantra Health. Prior to this role, she served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Health. Her current research is focused on suicide prevention with emerging adults in the higher education setting. She is also interested in tailoring suicide prevention and intervention programs to marginalized populations, including students with disabilities and those identifying as LGBTQ. Dr. Chugani is also a licensed professional counselor specializing in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder. She has worked as a clinician in both college counseling and private practice settings and also offers training and consultation to college counseling centers interested in starting DBT programs. She has published more than 40 articles, reviews, editorials, and chapters and has been recognized for her community-engaged scholarship and as a recipient of the University of Pittsburgh’s Senior Vice Chancellor of Engagement’s 2020 Partnerships of Distinction Award for research-community partnerships

The One Love Foundation was created in 2010 to honor Yeardley Love, a young woman killed by her ex-boyfriend just weeks before graduating from college. After her death, her family recognized the need for prevention education that helped young people and those who support them understand the signs of an unhealthy and dangerous relationship and know what to do when they see them.

Since launching its national educational work in 2015, One Love educational resources have been used by thousands of high schools and colleges to educate more than 2.3M young people.  
One Love’s 10 Signs of Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships have become a critical language that empowers students to advocate for themselves and help each other. In addition to helping them understand unhealthy and abusive dating relationships, students also quickly recognized the relevance of the 10 Signs as a helpful language for navigating other important relationships in their lives. 

CEO of One Love Foundation and Title IX expert from SUNY Oswego discuss the many ways to help students build healthy relationships.

Supporting Students Through Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships

The end of the year sounds exciting, but often it’s full of stress and anxiety! Moving back home, starting an internship, graduating, or moving to a new city… these can be mentally taxing transitions. In this interactive webinar, you’ll learn easy-to-implement tools and strategies for stress reduction, so you can embark on this next chapter with ease.

Join us during your lunch break and learn about the following:

Identifying the root causes of anxiety and stress

Recognizing the impact of stress on your mind and body

Developing coping strategies for challenging situations

This will be a short, meaningful discussion with student mental health expert Carla Chugani, PhD, LPC.

Carla Chugani, Ph.D., LPC is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Health. Her current research is focused on suicide prevention with emerging adults in the higher education setting. She is also interested in tailoring suicide prevention and intervention programs to marginalized populations, including students with disabilities and those identifying as LGBTQ. Dr. Chugani is also a licensed professional counselor specializing in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder.  She has worked as a clinician in both college counseling and private practice settings and also offers training and consultation to college counseling centers interested in starting DBT programs.

The end of the year sounds exciting, but often it’s full of stress and anxiety! In this interactive webinar, you’ll learn easy-to-implement tools and strategies for stress reduction, so you can embark on this next chapter with ease.

Student Webinar: Stress-Free Strategies for End-of-Year

Following the Evolution of Crisis Teams in Higher Education webinar, we’re eager to continue the conversation around crisis management and are shifting our attention to crisis response best practices. When working with students of color, LGBTQ+ students, students with disabilities, and other underserved student populations, it is important to understand how these identities should inform crisis recognition and intervention.

Many institutions lean on off-campus resources, which may include local police, hospitals, community organizations, and third-party providers, all of whom have received a different level of training around crisis and working with diverse, underserved populations. How do you embed cultural awareness into crisis intervention? What best practices should higher education stakeholders prioritize? How do we ensure that every player involved has a basic understanding of an effective approach to crisis care for all students?

In this webinar discussion, you’ll learn:

Why diverse, underserved student populations are hesitant to seek help

How to overcome some of the challenges of working within the local community

The importance of investing in training for responders

How to build better relationships with off-campus stakeholders

Join Sharrika D. Adams, PhD, Dwight Burke, Harry Rockland-Miller, PhD, and Nora Feldpausch, MD, for another lively discussion on crisis response best practices.

Sharrika D. Adams, PhD, Assistant Professor of Practice, Virginia Tech

Dr. Sharrika D. Adams has over 15 years of progressive administrative experience in higher education and student affairs. Dr. Adans previously served as a Title IX Investigator in Virginia Tech’s Office of Equity and Accessibility. Prior to this role, she served for nine years in the Dean of Students Office at Virginia Tech, ultimately serving as the Senior Associate Dean of Students. Dr. Adams's research interests center on case management and crisis management in higher education. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice and the NASPA Journal About Women in Higher Education. She holds memberships in ACPA, NASPA and HECMA (Higher Education Case Managers Association). Dr. Adams earned her PhD from Virginia Tech in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (Higher Education program) with a Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies. She earned both her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Liberal Studies degrees from Wake Forest University (North Carolina). 

Dwight Burke, Director of Support & Safety Assessment, Colorado State University

Dwight has served at Colorado State University for over 37 years including  13 years in his current role. As Director, Dwight oversees threat assessment and management, early intervention strategies, and Title IX and/or related investigations. His previous roles include oversight of the Police and Crime lab's Investigations Division, as well as serving on Colorado State's Police Force. Dwight holds a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Chadron State College, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Mediation and a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management and Policy from Colorado State University.

Harry Rockland-Miller, Former Director of the Center for Counseling and Psychological Health and Executive Director for Wellness, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Dr. Rockland-Miller retired from the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he was the Director of the Center for Counseling and Psychological Health and Executive Director for Wellness and served as a core member of the Student Affairs and Campus Life Leadership team.  For 22 years he led a multidisciplinary university clinic providing short-term psychotherapies, psychopharmacological services, community consultation, training and 24-hour crisis services.  For 16 of those years he also served as Associate Director of the University Health Services. He then went on to join the UMASS Student Affairs Leadership Team, and also supervised Health Promotion.  As a key player in the evolution of a coordinated campus crisis response, he initiated or co-initiated many of the key response structures now in place on campus.  

Moderator: Nora Feldpausch, MD, Medical Director, Mantra Health

How to Support Diverse, Underserved Students in Distress

Following the tragic event at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, higher education institutions recognized the immediate need for campus-wide communication and care coordination. Since then, we’ve seen an eruption of crisis prevention strategies, including the emergence of formalized case management practices and crisis coordination. Whether you’ve implemented a behavioral intervention, students of concern, care, and/or threat assessment team, this webinar will address how crisis management has changed and what it looks like today in a hybrid world.

During this webinar, you’ll be invited to ask questions live or via chat. We’ll give you an in-depth look into Mantra Health’s services and more.

How care management has evolved since 2007

What care team structures have proven effective

What challenges do institutions face when establishing crisis teams

The way hybrid care has changed the way we communicate and coordinate care

Learn about the evolution of care coordination and crisis teams, how to adapt your telehealth practices, and how to build a more effective, more seamless care team in a post-COVID world.

John Dunkle, PhD, Senior Clinical Director, Knowledge & Advising, The Jed Foundation

Dr. John Dunkle joined JED in June 2020 after a 25-year career at the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at Northwestern University (NU), 15 years as the Executive Director. For 3 years, he also supervised the NU Center for Awareness, Response, and Education (CARE), which provides confidential advocacy and support services for students affected by sexual violence, relationship violence, and/or stalking. John holds degrees from Corning Community College (AS), SUNY Cortland (BA, MA), and the University at Albany (PhD). He is a licensed psychologist in Illinois and New York and is credentialed by the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology. He is a member of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, the American College Health Association, and an emeritus member of the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors.

What's changed, what needs to change, and what the future of hybrid care looks like

Webinar: The Evolution of Crisis Teams in Higher Education

We are excited to join you in Boston for the 2023 NASPA Annual Conference! This year's program is full of insightful and inspiring sessions to both challenge and support student affairs professionals at every level. 

Where can you find us at the NASPA? Come visit us Mantra Health at booth #1014 and join our raffle for a wellness basket. 

Enjoy a free Mantra-sponsored massage at the Relax and Recharge Lounge on April 3rd and 4th between 11am-3pm. 

Developing Innovative Partnerships with Student Affairs to Support Emotional Wellbeing featuring VP of Clinical Content & Affairs Dr. Chugani – April 3rd at 10:00 am at BCEC - 151A.

Help! I Have a Remote Mental Health Emergency! Best Practices for Emergency Response featuring Mantra Health experts Dino Liverano, MS, LMHC, QS, Farah Gilani, LPC-S, and Liz Jodoin, PhD, LPC, LCMHCS – April 3 at 4:00 pm (virtually) and April 4 at 3:00 pm (on-site, BCEC - 102B).

Learn more about us! Visit us here or contact our Partnerships team to connect with someone in Boston.

This year's program is full of insightful and inspiring sessions to both challenge and support student affairs professionals at every level.

As college campuses continue to see rising rates of stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout among students, the 2023 Depression on College Campuses Conference will explore the benefits and drawbacks of the current hybrid landscape on student well-being. The conference aims to examine how changes in the way students learn and interact can impact connectedness, belonging, and mental health, and how the digital space has influenced treatment delivery while providing new opportunities for innovative prevention programming.

Through expert presentations, panel discussions, workshops, and more, the DoCC helps disseminate new research findings, model programs, and innovative strategies to improve college mental health. The annual conference aims to address important issues on campus, shape service delivery, promote the use of resources to improve college mental health, and, in the process, enhance both educational and mental health objectives.

Full registration with is now open. More info to come about Mantra-related events.

Annual event dedicated to progressing mental health work on campus.

Depression on College Campuses Conference

Hear from your colleagues from across the country and higher education experts about the strategies private, nonprofit colleges and universities are employing to support their students and communities.
You will also receive in-depth analysis of the policy and regulatory challenges and opportunities the sector is facing from Washington, DC insiders, Capitol Hill staff, NAICU and other higher education experts. 

Daniel R. Porterfield, Ph.D., President and CEO, The Aspen Institute, will provide his unique perspective on the role of higher education leaders in strengthening institutions, students and communities.

Lee M. Miringoff, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science and Director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, and one of the nation’s leading political pollsters, will discuss the midterm elections, the issues that most moved the electorate, and how the makeup of the House and Senate might affect legislative priorities.

Hon. Rashad Hussain, J.D., Ambassador At-Large, Office of International Religious Freedom, U.S. Department of State, will discuss the Biden Administration's efforts to monitor religious freedom abuses, persecution, and discrimination worldwide.

NAICU-member presidents will discuss the challenges and opportunities of creating inclusive campus communities.

Join Mantra in Washington, DC, for NAICU's 2023 Annual Meeting & Advocacy Day, a premier event for presidents and other senior higher education leaders discussing the most pressing policy issues affecting private, nonprofit higher education.

National Association of Independent Colleges and University Annual Meeting

The NASPA Strategies Conferences provide student affairs practitioners with the knowledge and skills to effectively address collegiate alcohol and drug abuse prevention, mental health, sexual violence prevention and response, and well-being through a variety of comprehensive and integrative approaches.

The NASPA Strategies Conference provides student affairs practitioners with the knowledge and skills to effectively address collegiate alcohol and drug abuse prevention, mental health, sexual violence prevention and response, and well-being through a variety of comprehensive and integrative approaches.

In order to best serve student-athletes and increase access to mental health care, faculty, staff, and administrators must come together to implement campus-wide solutions. In this webinar, we cover the ways in which counseling centers and athletics departments can collaborate more effectively, how to build more natural referral pathways, and how to engage in more meaningful conversations around student-athlete mental health.

Considerations for building effective partnerships between athletic programs and counseling centers

The unique needs of college athletes as well as the barriers they face in accessing care

Challenges faced by the campus counseling center to meet the needs of all students

Existing models of care that best support college athletes

Best practices in building referral pathways

We know student-athletes are in need of more comprehensive support and greater access to mental health resources and services, but this is only made possible when we equip campus leaders with the right tools, resources, and programs to be able to identify mental health needs, respond appropriately, and connect student-athletes to the right type of care at the right time.

Access the recording – and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook to learn about our next webinar.

Ari Miller, M.A., LPC, Assistant Director, Student-Athlete Mental Health & Performance, Johns Hopkins University

Ari Miller joined the Johns Hopkins staff in August 2021 as a licensed mental health therapist at the Counseling Center and the Assistant Director, Student-Athlete Mental Health and Performance within Athletics. Miller is the first person to fill the newly-created position; he works directly with all 24 Blue Jay teams and more than 600 varsity athletes. Since 2017, Miller has served as the Assistant Director of Athletics for Sport Psychology and Counseling at Vermont; he previously had spent two years working with the Catamount men’s basketball team as a sport/performance psychology consultant. In the second of those years, Vermont posted a perfect regular season record in the America East and won the conference tournament before falling to Purdue in the NCAA Tournament.

Jennifer M. Whitney, Ph.D., LPC, Counseling Center Director, UNC Greensboro

Dr. Jennifer M. Whitney joined UNC Greensboro in July 2007. She is originally from Ohio and was previously working at the college counseling center at The Ohio State University. She comes with a background in adolescent and adult mental health in a number of diverse settings. Jennifer has a strong personal and professional interest in diversity and multiculturalism, GLBT-QQI concerns, and women’s issues. She currently facilitates an Eating Disorders and Body Image Group for women and is a member of the Eating Disorders Treatment Team.

Timothy Silvestri, Ph.D., Director of Counseling Services, Muhlenberg College

Dr. Timothy Silvestri holds a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Lehigh University and completed his psychology residency at the University of Pennsylvania. Tim is a highly competitive athlete who works with college athletes as well as top amateurs, elites, and professionals. His primary approach is to apply neurophysiological principles to practical applications to improve performance, increase resilience, and create healthy, emotionally centered, and joyful athletes.

In this webinar, we cover the ways in which counseling centers and athletics departments can collaborate more effectively and how to engage in more meaningful conversations around student-athlete mental health.

Supporting Student-Athletes: Care Collaboration Across the Campus

College counseling centers are gearing up for another busy academic year in which demand for services will undoubtedly increase. Directors are eager to hire more providers and as they consider expanding their team to include telehealth providers, they are challenged with assessing the quality of a telehealth provider group. In order to prioritize clinical outcomes, mental health care should be grounded in sound clinical judgment and use evidence-based practices.

How do you know if the provider is qualified to work with college students? How can you assess their clinical expertise and training? What questions should you ask to properly vet a telehealth provider group?

In this webinar, we address:

Considerations for building telehealth quality control within a third party system

Evaluating the expertise of clinical mental health providers in a telehealth setting

Reasons to diversify your service offerings and provider group

Karen Singleton, Ph.D. Associate Medical Director and Chief of Student Mental Health and Counseling at MIT

Nora Feldpausch, MD, Medical Director at Mantra Health

As college counseling centers consider expanding their team to include telehealth providers, they are challenged with assessing the quality of a telehealth provider group. What questions should you ask to properly vet a telehealth provider group?

Expanding Care with Telehealth: How to Assess Provider Quality

The nature of sport is competitive and pressure-filled. For coaches and athletes alike the stakes are high, the expectations even higher. In both team and solo sports, the coach-athlete relationship plays an essential role in enhancing athletes’ performance and protecting their health and well-being. The problem is that coaches aren’t always equipped with the knowledge, skills, or resources needed to properly care for their athletes’ mental health. How do we change this?

In this webinar, we discuss the dynamics of the coach-athlete relationship, why it’s so impactful on college athletes, and what it takes to improve the culture so student-athletes feel protected, reassured, and supported, no matter what barriers they face.

How to change traditional mindsets to meet the needs of Gen Z

What tools, resources, and training needs to be provided to coaches

How to identify signs of stress, anxiety, and depression

We know student-athletes are in need of more comprehensive support and greater access to mental health resources and services, but this is only made possible when we equip athletic leaders with the right tools, resources, and programs to be able to identify mental health needs, respond appropriately, and connect student-athletes to the right type of care at the right time.

Stephen Hebard, Chief Innovation Officer at Prevention Strategies

Dr. Hebard earned his Ph.D. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of North Carolina Greensboro in 2015 and worked as an assistant professor of Counselor Education at The University of Alabama at Birmingham before joining the Prevention Strategies team. He is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT) whose clinical background in substance abuse and mental health intervention brings a unique perspective to prevention research. Dr. Hebard has provided Motivational Interviewing training and consultation for professionals in the fields of general medicine, oncology, psychiatry, nursing, pharmacy, education, and school, mental health, and addictions counseling.

Deborah Wardlaw, Director of Athletics at Columbia College

Debbie earned a Bachelor of Arts in Physical Education from Columbia College and a Master of Science in Sport Management from Southern New Hampshire University. Inducted into the South Carolina Athletic Coaches Association, South Carolina Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, she was most recently into the Columbia College Athletics’ Hall of Fame in April 2019. Debbie was a dual-sport athlete in basketball and volleyball, while at Columbia College, earning All-American honors in both sports.  She served on the South Carolina Athletic Coaches Association Board of Directors for 4A and coached girls’ basketball for 24 years, earning 7 state championships and several coach of the year honors. She has a career basketball coaching record of 482-117 and earned South Carolina Track and Filed state 4-AAAA runner-up as a track coach. She was honored with the “Key to the City” in Columbia, SC by Mayor Steve Benjamin and is recipient of the Wil Lou Gray Educators Award from Columbia College, SC. 

Joe Valerio, Former NFL Athlete; Senior Director and Regional Client Service Operations Officer at Willis Towers Watson

As an integral part of one of the NFL's most successful teams in the 90s, Joe Valerio learned that it takes more than talent to play at the professional level and contribute to a winning team. When he retired from the Kansas City Chiefs and joined the "real world", Joe drew from his football experiences to improve performance and team dynamics in his "new" work environment. Today, Joe shares these valuable lessons with diverse audiences through his speaking and consulting program. Joe's program, "Lessons from the Gridiron," provides "playbook" strategies for creating effective team players, building great teams, and beating the competition. Joe's keynote speeches, team building seminars, and in-depth workplace consulting focus on his unique approach to self and team assessment, and address important topics like dealing with adversity, setting goals, focusing on priorities, creating chemistry, defining roles, and finding leadership.

Moderator: Carla D. Chugani, PhD, LPC, VP Clinical Content & Affairs at Mantra Health

Carla Chugani, Ph.D., LPC is currently the Vice President of Clinical Content and Affairs at Mantra Health. Prior to this role, she served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Health. Her current research is focused on suicide prevention with emerging adults in the higher education setting. She is also interested in tailoring suicide prevention and intervention programs to marginalized populations, including students with disabilities and those identifying as LGBTQ. Dr. Chugani is also a licensed professional counselor specializing in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for the treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder. She has worked as a clinician in both college counseling and private practice settings and also offers training and consultation to college counseling centers interested in starting DBT programs. She has published more than 40 articles, reviews, editorials, and chapters and has been recognized for her community-engaged scholarship and as a recipient of the University of Pittsburgh’s Senior Vice Chancellor of Engagement’s 2020 Partnerships of Distinction Award for research-community partnerships.

Strengthening the Player-Coach Relationship to Improve Mental Health

Tackling High-Acuity Cases in Higher Education with Telepsychiatry

Upcoming Events

More events coming soon, stay tuned.

Past Events

Tackling High-Acuity Cases in Higher Education with Telepsychiatry

Increasing Mental Health Support on Campus

Supporting Students Through Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships