University of Texas at Tyler Student Awarded Addictions Counseling Fellowship

April 25, 2017

UT Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications

University of Texas at Tyler Student Awarded Addictions Counseling Fellowship

Follow @UTTyler Tweet

April 25, 2017

Media Contact:  Hannah Buchanan
Editor/Writer–Strategic Communications & Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
903.539.7196 (cell)

Editor's Note: This press release is presented on behalf of the National Board for Certified Counselors.

The NBCC Foundation, an affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), recently selected Juan Olivera, of Tyler, Texas, for the NBCC Minority Fellowship Program-Addictions Counselors (MFP-AC). As an NBCC MFP-AC fellow, Olivera will receive funding and training to support his education and facilitate his addictions counseling service to underserved minority transition-age youth (ages 16–25).

The NBCC MFP-AC is made possible by a grant awarded to NBCC by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in September 2014. The Foundation is contracted by NBCC to administer the NBCC MFP-AC, as well as training and collaboration activities, such as webinars, that are open to all National Certified Counselors (NCCs). The goal of the program is to reduce health disparities and improve behavioral health care outcomes for racially and ethnically diverse populations by increasing the available number of culturally competent behavioral health professionals.

The NBCC MFP will distribute up to $11,000 to Olivera and the 30 other master's-level addictions counseling students selected to receive the fellowship award. Olivera is a graduate of the University of North Texas, in Denton, and is currently a master's student in the clinical mental health counseling program at The University of Texas at Tyler.

Following graduation, Olivera plans to work with transition-age minority youth, especially those who struggle with addiction and eating disorders. His interest in these populations developed early during his undergraduate career. He also wants to educate and advocate for minority populations to help reduce the stigma of mental disorders, especially in areas lacking mental health resources. This fellowship will help Olivera solidify his professional identity as a counselor by attending counseling conferences, learning about current and developing evidence-based practices, and establishing a broader network of other counseling professionals to help mentor him.

The NBCC Foundation has also awarded 23 $20,000 doctoral fellowships through the Minority Fellowship Program and 30 $8,000 master's-level fellowships through the MFP-Youth (MFP-Y). The Foundation plans to open the next NBCC Minority Fellowship Program application period in September 2017. To learn more about the NBCC MFP and its fellows, please visit the foundation website.

ABOUT THE NBCC FOUNDATION
The NBCC Foundation is the nonprofit affiliate of the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), based in Greensboro, North Carolina. NBCC is the nation's premier professional certification board devoted to credentialing counselors who meet standards for the general and specialty practices of professional counseling. Currently, there are more than 60,000 National Certified Counselors in the United States and more than 50 countries. The Foundation's mission is to leverage the power of counseling by strategically focusing resources for positive change.