Diversity Statement
The staff members of the URI Counseling Center value awareness and understanding of everyone’s differences and similarities. We recognize that prejudice and discrimination are detrimental to all people and strive to take personal responsibility for educating ourselves about the richness of human diversity. Our intention is to provide an open and trusting environment in which all students feel valued, safe, and respected.
Mission Statement
The Counseling Center is a comprehensive, professionally staffed service which seeks to help students effectively manage developmental tasks, situational crises and personal problems that may interfere with academic, personal and career goals.
Our services are guided by our respect for individuals and their culture and by our commitment to confidentiality and professional excellence. We seek to promote these goals through individual and group counseling, brief psychotherapy, outreach education, psychological assessment, educational testing, consultation, teaching and research.
The Center consults and collaborates with faculty, staff, administration and other University departments to promote student development, build community and enhance the quality of university life. The Center employs evaluation and research to develop more effective services for students, to contribute to our profession, and to create new knowledge.
Our Commitment to Anti-Racism
The URI Counseling Center staff recognize and affirm that Black Lives Matter. It is our responsibility to stand with people of color and to change the systemic oppression and inequality that plagues our nation. We are committed to creating a more inviting and welcoming Counseling Center for people of color. We pledge to continually improve our individual awareness, to take action as outspoken allies against racism, and do all that we can to diversify our staff.
The ignorance and fear behind racism needs to be eradicated through education, engagement, openness, courage, and compassion. The URI Counseling Center Staff commits to increased focus on race and culture. Counselors will attend trainings and professional developments to enhance their work with diverse populations. We renew our commitment to diversifying our staff, and will remain open to feedback and suggested areas of growth from our colleagues and students.
We have also created an anti-racism resources webpage as a part of this process with sections dedicated to providing support for people of color, to helping white people become more effective anti-racism allies, and with additional information for all. We appreciate the support and suggestions from our URI colleagues of color in helping to create this page.
Lastly, we want our students of color to know that we are available to offer a space for your voices to be heard and to process the ongoing pain and fear you may be continuing to experience. Counseling can help provide support in addressing present-day and ongoing traumas resulting from racism and xenophobia, and to help you connect to additional campus and community resources. We are available for therapy and consultation M-F: 8:30 AM -4:30 PM. After hours emergency support is available via our on-call provider, MySSP. All services can be reached via the Center’s phone number, (401) 874-2288.