Program Mission
The Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program aligns itself with the mission of Franciscan University of Steubenville by training students to embody Franciscan values and charisms as helping professionals. In particular, the CMHC Program's mission is to educate professional counselors who can be instruments of healing for those in need of mental, emotional, relational and spiritual renewal. The program is grounded in a philosophical anthropology informed by a Catholic understanding of the human person. With a commitment to Christian and human values, the most important of which is a value on the dignity and worth of the person, and with a dedication to training professional counselors to contemporary practices informed by research, the program aims to:
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help students reflect on how a well-formed vision of the human person affects clinical counseling practices
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provide a strong background of experiential training in clinical mental health counseling skills required of entry-level practitioners
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advance students' comprehension of counseling theories, models and treatment methods
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develop research and testing skills needed by mental health counselors
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foster multicultural competence
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develop in students ethical decision-making skills
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promote an understanding of the physical, intellectual, social, emotional, and spiritual aspects of human development and behavior needed to competently facilitate human growth.