New Mental Health Clinicians’ Diverse Specialties Target Student Demand

Mental Health Services’ Director Silvio Weisner says new staff members “make sure students get the attention they need.”

April 6, 2015

Alt Text

By Brittney Dunkins

The George Washington University continues to ramp up support for student mental health services, welcoming five staff clinicians to the Colonial Health Center Mental Health Services staff since December.

The new clinicians specialize in serving law students, students managing addiction and medical and nursing students. They join a robust and growing staff in providing counseling services that target key student demographics, according to Silvio Weisner, director of Mental Health Services.  

“We’ve been experiencing increased demand for clinical services and increasing staff has always been a part of our expansion plan,” Dr. Weisner said. “The new hires were brought on to make sure that all of our students, including specialized student populations seen at Colonial Health Center are getting the attention they need.

GW’s mental health services are located within the centralized Colonial Health Center on the ground floor of the Marvin Center, along with medical and health promotion and prevention services.

The staff includes 16 full-time staff clinicians, two postdoctoral clinical fellows, two pre-doctoral interns, one social work masters intern, and a case manager. Each clinician manages an individual caseload and provides walk-in and urgent care services, Dr. Weisner said.

He said that additional full-time staff would be added in the next academic year.

Specific student populations—especially those who have historically underutilized services, lacked access to services, or faced stigma for seeking help—are often referred to the clinician who specializes in their needs.

For example, lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender (LGBT) students have access to Davin Maijala, staff clinician and LGBT students services coordinator, while students on the Mount Vernon Campus have the opportunity to meet with Marietta Phillips, staff clinician and Mount Vernon Campus services coordinator.

“At the same time, while we have clinicians who specialize in coordinating mental health care for specific populations, all of our clinicians are generalists and are trained to meet the needs of all of our students,” Dr. Weisner said.

Associate Director and Addictions Services Coordinator Missy Rand, who joined the university in December, has been working with Associate Director and Law School Liaison Gillian Barry on streamlining therapy management and other office procedures.

Ms. Rand said the staff has been reviewing how to collaborate across divisions in the Colonial Health Center and the university to manage the increased volume of students seeking help.

“Dr. Weisner, Dr. Berry and myself have undertaken a rigorous review of our existing approach,” Ms. Rand said. “We’ve been getting a sense of the clinical flow, the walk-in demand, and other factors so we best use the space, the staff, and existing campus and community resources.”

Since moving into a full time position in January, Dr. Maijala has watched the opportunities for collaboration grow in the Colonial Health Center and across the university.

“I’m looking forward to creating training opportunities for other clinicians on serving the needs of LGBT students,” said Dr. Maijala, who previously worked at St. Cloud State University. “Since we all offer general care, it is helpful to have a sense of the diverse needs of different students.”

Dr. Weisner added that students could look forward to continued enhancements in student care at the Colonial Health Center. Mental Health Services also will once again support the popular Chalk-In de-stress event April 29.

“It’s a process,” Dr. Weisner said. “We’re excited to explore new opportunities now that we are co-located with Medical Services and Health Promotion and Prevention Services. Students can expect to continue receiving a high quality of care as we expand those collaborations.”

Want to put a face to a name before your next visit to the Colonial Health Center?

Here is a list of new Mental Health Services hires:

Missy Rand, LPC, CSAC
Associate Director and Addictions Services Coordinator

Gillian Berry, Ph.D., LICSW
Associate Director and Liaison to the Law School

Sarah Harte, LICSW
Assistant Director for Outreach and Prevention

Davin Maijala, Psy.D.
Staff Clinician and LGBT Student Services Coordinator

Jehari Jones, LICSW
Staff Clinician and Liaison to the Virginia Science and Technology Campus, the School of Nursing and the School of Medicine and Health Sciences


Linda Walton

Clinical Services Case Manager