When
students experience frustrations,
worries, concerns, or other
life events, they typically
turn to their friends, not to
professionals for help. Peers
can be a great source of support.
The Counseling and Career Center
at SUNY College at Old Westbury
offers a peer helping program
to strengthen what friends have
to offer.
The Peer
Counselor Educator Empowerment
Program provides
training in how to be active
listeners, reach out to peers
who are experiencing stresses
and difficulties in their
lives, encourage them to seek
help, and make referrals.
The program has several goals – to
change students’ attitudes
by removing the stigma associated
with counseling; promote the
norm that it’s
okay to seek help; to assist
the efforts of outreach for
the Counseling and Career
Services Center and to help
the peer counselors develop
their leaderships skills.
Training
takes place over approximately
thirteen weeks and involves
role playing and interactive
exercises. After completing
the program, peer counselors/educators
receive a certificate. Peer
counselors continue to meet
regularly after the training
to learn about new issues,
gain support from one another,
and assist the Counseling & Career
Center with the planning, coordination,
and implementation of major
events such as Rape Awareness
Week and Drug & Alcohol
Awareness Week.
For
additional information related
to the Peer Counselor Educator
Empowerment Program, please
call us at (516) 876-3053.
To apply to the program, click here and fill out the application
form.
