In today’s rapidly evolving educational landscape, the urgency to address mental health needs in underserved communities has never been more critical. The Extending the Trauma-Informed Professional Pipeline (ETIPP) project is not just a program; it’s a transformative initiative that’s changing lives, one trained counselor at a time. Dr. Jennifer Deaton (Principle Investigator) and Dr. L. DiAnne Borders, faculty within the Department of Counseling and Educational Development developed ETIPP to tackle the pressing challenges of mental health care in high-need areas and fostering a new generation of trauma-informed professionals.
Understanding ETIPP: Objectives and Impact
The ETIPP project, which is funded by Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), is designed with a clear vision: to cultivate a robust pipeline of skilled trauma-informed counseling professionals dedicated to serving children, adolescents, and young adults (CAYs) in healthcare professional shortage areas. This initiative has three primary objectives:
- Financial Support for Internships: Providing essential financial assistance to clinical mental health and couple and family therapy students engaged in experiential learning opportunities.
- Training Clinical Supervisors: Equipping clinical supervisors with trauma-informed supervision training to remove barriers that novice counselors often face when entering the field.
- Employment Opportunities: Collaborating with community partners to ensure that students are prioritized for employment interviews within designated healthcare shortage areas.
These strategic goals are not just ambitious—they are a direct response to the acute needs identified in our surrounding communities, where mental health professionals are desperately needed.
Addressing Community Needs: The Gaps We Fill
The counties surrounding the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) are grappling with significant mental health professional shortages. Despite ongoing efforts to improve mental health services, these areas remain underserved, particularly for CAYs affected by adverse childhood experiences. Our ETIPP project directly addresses these critical gaps by:
- Supporting Interns: Many CED students are eager to serve in these high-need areas but face financial burdens during their field placements. ETIPP alleviates this strain by providing stipends, enabling them to focus on their critical work without the added stress of financial limitations.
- Building a Supervision Network: The scarcity of clinical supervisors in these regions complicates the retention of interns post-graduation. By establishing a network of trained clinical supervisors and funding essential training, ETIPP is enhancing supervision capacity in these underserved areas.
Celebrating Milestones: A Year of Success
In just the first year of the ETIPP project, we have already made significant strides:
- Student Support: Seventeen students were supported in their field experiences, with half securing employment in designated healthcare shortage areas shortly after graduation.
- Supervisory Training: We successfully trained 17 clinical supervisors in trauma-informed supervision and supported 13 emerging supervisors in completing the Approved Clinical Supervisor training.
- Community Partnerships: Three key community partners have emerged, committed to prioritizing CED interns for field placements and offering interviews for future job openings.
These achievements reflect not just numbers, but the real-world impact on students and communities alike.
Unexpected Success: A Network of Support
One of the most heartwarming outcomes of the ETIPP project has been the formation of a robust supervision network. This summer, three CED students faced a sudden loss of their internship placements due to unforeseen circumstances. Thanks to our supervision network, all three were successfully relocated to new sites within just a week. Now, they are on track to graduate in May 2025, ready to make a difference in their communities.
Looking Ahead: Expanding Our Reach
The future of ETIPP is bright! We envision expanding our trauma-informed supervision training into online professional development modules by Summer 2025. This transition will enable us to reach professionals beyond the Greensboro area, further amplifying our impact.
In conclusion, the Extending the Trauma-Informed Professional Pipeline is not just a project; it’s a commitment to fostering resilience in our communities and ensuring that every child, adolescent, and young adult has access to the mental health support they deserve. Join us on this journey as we continue to bridge the gaps in mental health care, one trained professional at a time!
