Alumni Voices

Stephen Flora, LPC
Licensed Professional Counselor, Woodbrook Counseling Services, Harrisonburg VA
I am the CEO of Woodbrook Counseling Services, LLC, my own private practice counseling company providing outpatient services in offices in Harrisonburg, Waynesboro, and Lexington and Intensive In-home counseling in Augusta County, Staunton and Waynesboro through FAPT (Family Assessment and Planning Team). The main office in Harrisonburg was designed with a unique playroom for working with Autism using a special focus on color, texture, and arrangement of toys and labeling throughout the room to promote communication and active manding for the children. The population I serve is children age five through young adults up to age thirty five. Primarily my work has focused on diagnosis and treatment/referral for children with Autism, AD/HD, and trauma. While I continue to see clients who are survivors of physical and sexual trauma, I have seen a growing number of clients in other areas of trauma. Most recently I am experiencing an increase in survivors of natural disasters and violent crimes/accidents, including the Indonesian Tsunami of 2004, the Japanese Tsunami earlier this year, recent tornadoes, survivors of gunshot wounds to the head and body, and survivors of traffic and work related accidents. Another growing area of my practice has included clients seeking counseling in the area of sexual identity, transgender, and lesbian/gay issues. I cannot emphasize how important the educational opportunities in the Master of Arts in Counseling program at EMU were in helping me to formulate my counselor identity and preparing me for the rewarding work that I now do with my clients. EMU continues to be my “go-to” for continuing educational opportunities, as well as a networking resource for collaborating with other practitioners. From the personal attention the faculty and staff give to each person in the program to the meticulous attention to detail in presenting the important elements of the vocation of counseling, the EMU experience has been the perfect foundation and structure for a career in private practice counseling. In addition, because it is important to my daily work with clients and my personal self care, I want to emphasis the spiritual richness and depth that can only be found at Eastern Mennonite; a university with a very unique Christian perspective.

John Jackson
Counselor, Woodrow Wilson Rehab Center, Fishersville VA
I was given the opportunity to explore counseling theories and allowed self-assessment and reflection as it relates to those theories. I also was provided with feedback from my fellow classmates and professors of their observations regarding the counseling theories that best fit me. With the information from these three sources I was able to realize my strengths and my weaknesses which helped to develop my counseling identity. I feel today that my counselor identity is something that is ever evolving, growing, and developing as I increase my experience. I enjoyed smaller class sizes and the support I received from my professors. I feel I benefited from one-on-one guidance from my advisor and the smaller class size made it easy for us to bond and grow together as we prepared to enter the world of counseling. Fortunately for me I attended the Counseling program with students rich in diversity and charisma. I was not only able to learn from the experience of my professors but also from the experiences of my fellow classmates. I feel I gained an enormous amount from practical experiences such as role plays, as these situations took me out of my comfort zone and forced me to think critically about problems in every situation. My overall experience at EMU as a good one and I can honestly say my work experience was developed and fostered during my early years in the MA in Counseling program at EMU.

Wendy Albright Ford, LPC
Supervisor of Clinical Operations and Quality Improvement, Arlington County Department of Human Services, Arlington VA
I spent my first 7 years post-EMU doing Emergency Services, Inpatient Psychiatric, and Intake. I currently work for Arlington County as the Supervisor of Clinical Operations and Quality Improvement. This is an administrative position; I no longer provide direct clinical care. I am the Human Rights liaison for Arlington CSB to the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS). I receive all Incident Reports, and investigate any complaints. In addition, I lead all Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives for the Behavioral Healthcare Division. For example, I am on a committee where we complete a full case review and investigation on each client suicide attempt and death, and provide recommendations for improvements to the quality of care. I also complete qualitative chart reviews, and conduct QI Operational Reviews on various programs within the agency. In addition, I am responsible for all of the CSB’s state reporting (to DBHDS) and for the State Performance Contract. EMU helped me learn my strengths and my weaknesses as a counselor, which allowed me to advance quickly in my career by focusing my work on my strengths. I chose EMU based on the brochure that I received. The pictures showed small groups, lots of smiles, and lots of 1:1 between students/faculty. It just “felt” right; I guess marketing works. When I toured the campus and the MA in Counseling program, I knew that it would be a perfect fit for me. The small class sizes allowed me to cultivate close relationships with my fellow students. Rather than sitting and listening to a professor lecture, I was an active participant in my learning. The professors also took an active interest in us all as individuals, and I felt that they truly cared about each of us. There was no prescribed theoretical orientation that we had to adhere to; rather we were nurtured as individuals to develop our own unique counselor identity.

Helen Nafziger
Career Counselor, ResumesNmore, Harrisonburg VA
The EMU counseling program was an extension of what I was already involved in – career counseling. The program helped me to refine and deepen my skills. It was also a time for personal growth. Since I was employed as Director of EMU’s Career Services Department, I was able to work classes into my schedule over a several years. The faculty took a personal interest in my growth. The small classes created a supportive intimacy among classmates and faculty. The program contents contributed to knowledge required to pass the National Certified Counselor exam, which I needed to do before sitting for and passing the National Certified Career Counselor exam (NCCC – my true goal). NCCC has had a name change and is now called Master Career Counselor, another designation which I now have.

Kristene Wellings
6th and 7th Grade School Counselor, Peter Muhlenberg Middle School, Woodstock VA
I greatly appreciated the opportunity to be a part of EMU’s program while taking school counseling courses at JMU. I feel like I am a stronger counselor as a result of EMU’s program. Also at EMU, I received strong creative, play, and sandplay therapy training that has been invaluable to my work as a school counselor. In the elementary and middle school settings, I have the unique skills of sandplay therapy to offer that most school counselors do not have, and I am greatly appreciative to EMU for offering the in-depth play therapy courses and supervision as I developed that skill. The EMU Counseling Program provided assistance and supported my individual needs while I was there. This led not only to helping me achieve academic success, but also provided the “safe place” needed to explore my personal identity and understanding how that translated into who I am as a counselor. Everyone’s spiritual background was greatly respected and people were encouraged to share their background as way to learn about how spirituality can be incorporated into counseling. The same is true with one’s culture, the program greatly respects each person’s cultural background. The professors were extremely knowledgeable, professional, and amazing at their work, but they also were very approachable and made time for each individual student. I wasn’t just a student, but I “belonged” there. This personal and emotional connection also allowed me to have the courage to develop my counselor identity. If I could sum up the experience with the faculty relationships in one word it would be “grace.” They are so gracious with students. From the relationships I had with the MA in Counseling faculty, I learned that counseling is not just a career, it’s building relationships with real people that deserve genuine care.

Valerie Payne
School Counselor, Shelburne Middle School, Staunton VA
I was very specific in my choice of EMU. I purposely sought out a program that would allow me to connect with my professors. The professors in the program were easily accessible. Another plus was the class size. Particularly for me, these two factors were important because it had been 24 years since I had graduated from college and deciding to attend graduate school filled me with trepidation. The courses addressed many aspects of real world counseling and I felt I was as well prepared as possible to go out into the world when I graduated. It was wonderful discipline and worth every minute. I made some great friends in the program and keep in touch with a few of them still. The program met all my needs. Honestly, whenever I have the opportunity, I am proud to say I obtained my master’s from EMU!