Counseling and Substance Abuse Services-
College of Charleston

AGENCY ADDRESS: 175 Calhoun Street, College of Charleston, SC 29424
AGENCY PHONE: (843) 953-5640        AGENCY FAX:  (843) 953-8238
 

CONTACT PERSON:  Brian K. Sullivan, Psy.D. (sullivanb@cofc.edu)

Lindsey Barr, Substance Abuse Services contact (barrl@cofc.edu)

PHONE: (843) 953-5640
 (843) 953-5640
  FAX: (843) 953-8283 

DESCRIPTION OF AGENCY:
 As a component of the Center for Student Wellness (which includes Student Health Services), CAPS/OSAP is an outpatient clinic serving the College of Charleston community.  Both treatment and preventative services are provided towards our goal of high-quality, accessible mental health care.  Our eligible population includes a student body of more than 10,000 students, as well as faculty and staff members (who are accommodated on a limited basis.)

We employ a variety of mental health care providers, all of whom are SC licensed in their respective fields, including professional counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, psychologists, substance abuse treatment professionals, and psychiatrists (the staff composition tends to vary according to our needs).  We work in coordination with medical and affiliated health care providers to achieve a spectrum of care and capabilities.  Our services include assessment/evaluation, treatment, crisis intervention, outreach education, referral, and related services.  Research projects may also be conducted within our services.

We support and promote the preparation and training of mental health care providers, and we believe that supervision of direct experience is paramount in this process.  We utilize both individual and group supervision formats, and we provide a collegial atmosphere for our practitioners.

TRAINING STRENGTHS:
We have a motivated, highly skilled, helpful, and student friendly staff.   The student counselors’ development is a top priority.   We look for students who are willing to learn and grow as therapists.   Our environment is professional and pleasant.  Working with college students offers an array of clinical scenarios.   Even College of Charleston students who are required to attend our services for substance abuse violations show surprising openness and insight when in group therapy.

TYPE OF FACILITY:

TYPE OF CLIENTS: REPRESENTATIVE PRESENTING PROBLEMS: GROUPS AVAILABLE:
 1 - 3+ times per week
(NOTE:  Significant student initiative may be required to establish and maintain groups.  This site does not tend to offer group therapy experiences in the summer.  Students may supplement the individual hours obtained at this site with group hours from a second site).

DESCRIPTION OF GROUPS:
Relating with Self and Others Group (Interpersonal Process group); Eating Disorders Support and Treatment Group; Women's Issues Group; Alcohol and Other Drug Risk Reduction Group; Stress Management Group

SUPERVISORS:

SUPERVISED HOURS AVAILABLE: APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS: NUMBER OF AVAILABLE FIELD PLACEMENT SLOTS: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Agency Philosophy and Type of Experiences Provided through Supervision
Counseling and Substance Abuse Services (CASAS) provides students and interns supervision via individual and group formats.  Individual supervision occurs on a mandatory basis, at a minimum of one hour per week per supervisee.  Each supervisee has a primary supervisor, who maintains responsibility for the student's performance and records. Each supervisee is also advised and encouraged to seek out supervision as needed and desired with any of our staff members.  Students and interns, when two or more are being hosted within the same semester, also partcipate in group supervision with at least one of our staff, often the Training Coordinator.

Supervision is provided according to the developmental preparedness of each intern and student.  Interns and students are encouraged to select their own supervisors after meeting with our staff, in accordance with their preferences and the perceived goodness-of-fit between the experiences and perspectives of the supervisors and supervisees.  These preferences are accommodated to the degree that our staffing patterns will allow, and supervisees most often are granted their top preferences.  The format of a given supervision session may be more or less structured, depending on the agreements made between supervisees and their supervisors.  Each supervisee's chart is reviewed weekly and priority of in-person review of cases is revised on an ongoing basis.

Supervisors at CASAS reflect a variety of training, experience, and philosophical backgrounds. This is most evident at weekly or bi-weekly case conferences, which most, if not all, staff and supervisees routinely attend.