Due to a depleted staff, counseling services for students will decrease from 10 to eight sessions per semester.

“This is a great reflection of rising student population and the fact that more students are seeking assistance,” counselor Christopher Stanley-Stevens said. “We want to see as many students as possible, but recruiting experienced and licensed mental health professionals for positions at a rural school is difficult.”

According to the article, “Early Bird gets the Counselor” by student affairs reporter for Inside Higher Education Allie Grasgreen, students are seeking counseling services at the start of the academic year more than ever.

“I began counseling at Tarleton in 1995 and there is less of a stigma to seek help now than before,” Stanley-Stevens said.

As opposed to rumor, the counseling center has gained an increased budget but is simply having difficulty finding counselors to meet the demand of students.

“The most interesting thing about our center is that all our counselors are licensed or have a doctoral degree,” Stanley-Stevens said. “It is challenging to find counselors with doctoral degrees who are willing to leave a large city to work at a smaller university in a more rural area.”

Since the number of sessions has decreased, Stanley-Stevens has noticed that students are using their sessions very carefully.

“Some students may decide to come in less and save their sessions for later,” Stanley-Stevens said. “This will provide more openings for other students to receive services.”

According to Grasgreen, more centers are struggling to meet student demand than ever before, and at a certain point, counselors cannot see any more students.

“Though the session limit may sound grim at first, in the bigger picture, it’s so we can see more students,” Stevens said. “While eight sessions is the general rule, there are always exceptions. For instance, if a student is suffering a sudden loss, crisis or if their or another person’s life is in danger, we will help them without giving a second thought to sessions limits.”