BY PRESCOTT COLLEGE COUNSELING FACULTY
Sustainability and bilateral, nature-based healing are the values of Prescott College’s counseling program, something that can be practiced regularly rather than just taught. This idea is frequently summed up in academic terms:” The way we care for ourselves is the way we care for the Earth.” Our bodies reflect what we consume, just as our land and interactions with healthy systems reflect how we live and work. Our work is guided by the interdependence of life on every level, from personal and family systems to communities and ecosystems. Both the interior and the outer worlds are constantly being exchanged, and Prescott’s counseling program teaches students how to listen to that wisdom in a meaningful way.
Prescott College honors Nature as a co-therapist in the counseling process as a long-standing member of the EcoLeague, a group of mission-driven liberal arts colleges that are committed to sustainability, environmental stewardship, and social responsibility through interactive, place-based education. Students are invited to use organic metaphor, rhythm, and relationship to deepen their understanding of both the ancient “talking cure” and the changing field of counseling. We advocate a systematic outlook on the individual, grounded in the natural, psychological, and cultural systems to which we all belong.
This integration is constantly perceived as traditional and lived by students. One student, Liberty, comments,” What I love about Prescott College is that it is woven with a defined sense of passion and care. In our community, caring for the environment and caring for the well-being of humanity are intrinsically linked.
Prevention and emotional health are viewed as essential components of sustainability. Earth justice and social justice are woven throughout the curriculum, and both animal and planetary well-being are intertwined. Students are taught to view clients, communities, and the planet as living entities that require mutual care in order to prosper. In this context, counseling is not just about reducing symptoms; it also involves restoring a relationship.
One of the few counseling programs in the United States that offers extra nature-based and adventure-based fieldwork intensives that take place “out there,” in various locations around the world, is Prescott College. Experiences from new intensives have been held in Tampa, Florida and Kino Bay. Along with their counseling degree, students may also pursue certificates in nature-based counseling, emotive arts therapy, and adventure-based counseling. The program’s uniqueness comes from the particular elected coursework that is grounded in bodily approaches, individual sexuality, and other emerging evidence-based practices.
Students quickly take notice of the integrity of this approach. There is integrity at Prescott College because they walk the talk, says Aedin Vlessis. People here are connected to and care greatly about Earth, our only home, thanks to staff’s individual passions and research, the precise infrastructure and orchards on campus, and the culture of students they draw.
The Counseling Program emphasizes how regular embodied practices reflect larger biological processes in order to bring this ecological philosophy to life. In order to understand prevention, regulation, and resilience, students must examine the connections between gut health, mental health, and regular rhythms. The program’s emphasis on circadian patterns, grounding, and bodily awareness reflects its belief that stable cognitive health results from consistent behavior patterns and environments. These foundations help students as they transition into the expressive, interpersonal, and creative facets of counseling practice.
Prescott College offers flexibility while still maintaining a strong sense of community because it is recognized that students enter the program at various stages of life. Students are matched with advisors and success staff from the beginning who offer specialized guidance on licensure, skilled identity development, and individual growth. Faculty are incredibly dedicated to assisting each student in their journey.
Prescott College has long been a center for social justice and social exchange. We think that all voices are entitled to be heard, and that sharing wisdom is necessary in a world where everything is connected. We all have a shared soil, and how well we take care of it affects both our bodies and the health of future generations. This understanding calls for social responsibility and transcends boundaries.
We invite you to take a tour of our counseling program, visit our campus, find out about continued initiatives, and get a firsthand experience of the Prescott community. All are pleasant, I suppose. Students from a variety of backgrounds collaborate on projects in a setting that values inquiry, honesty, healing, and giving up. We sincerely hope you’ll join us.
More information is available at www. .prescott. edu
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