Laetitia Tokplo, a student in the clinical mental health counseling master’s degree program in Mercer University’s College of Professional Advancement, has been selected as a National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) Minority Fellow for the 2022-2023 academic year. Tokplo will attend the organization’s Bridging the Gap Symposium from May 30-June 4 in Atlanta.
The NBCC Minority Fellowship Program for Mental Health Counselors is made possible by a grant awarded to the NBCC Foundation by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Nationally, the foundation will administer up to 30 master’s-level counseling fellowships of $10,000, plus the travel expenses to participate in program-related trainings for mental health counseling students.
The Minority Fellowship Program works to ensure the behavioral health needs of all Americans are met, regardless of language or culture, thereby reducing health disparities and improving overall community health and well-being. Minorities include but are not limited to racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, sexual orientation, rural or military groups. By strategically promoting and providing fellowships to master’s-level counseling students, the NBCC Minority Fellowship Program strengthens the infrastructure that engages diverse individuals in counseling and increases the number of professional counselors.
Recipients of the fellowship demonstrate knowledge of and experience with one or more of the following: underserved minority communities, child/adolescent and geriatric groups, minority communities in inner cities and rural areas, minority persons (including LGBTQ), or those who are veterans or are from military families. Recipients commit to teach, administer services, conduct research and/or provide direct mental health counseling to at least one of the above-listed populations.
The College of Professional Advancement offers master’s degrees in the evening on Mercer’s Atlanta campus in clinical mental health counseling, school counseling and clinical rehabilitation counseling and a Ph.D. degree program in counselor education and supervision. For more information on any of these counseling programs, contact Corey Geer, director of admissions for the College of Professional Advancement, at geer_cw@mercer.edu, or Dr. Tyler Wilkinson, acting chair of the counseling department, at wilkinson_rt@mercer.edu.
About the College of Professional Advancement
Mercer University’s College of Professional Advancement is committed to serving post-traditional learners. Undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs are offered to adult learners seeking professional advancement into leadership roles in and beyond their communities. Programs provide students with distinctive, multidisciplinary experiences that integrate theory and practice. In addition to providing general education and elective courses for various colleges and schools at Mercer, the College of Professional Advancement offers degree programs in areas including technology, public safety, public and human services, leadership and administration, health care and liberal arts. Programs are offered on Mercer’s campuses in Atlanta and Macon, as well as Regional Academic Centers in Douglas County and Henry County, and online. For more information, visit professionaladvancement.mercer.edu.
