WVU Health Sciences BeWell team welcomes clinical trainee
A satellite office of the West Virginia University Carruth Center, BeWell provides support to students enrolled in Health Sciences programs, and the team recently welcomed a new clinical trainee.
Mara Vogel, a master’s student in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program at the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky., joined the BeWell team in January 2022 to complete her clinical training.
To request an appointmet with Mara, or any of the BeWell clinicans, or to access additional resources, visit the BeWell website.
Meet Mara
What does your clinical training entail?
I will provide personal counseling, outreach and mental health education and advocacy, like the BeWell clinicians, but under their supervision.
How do you hope to help students?
I want to be able to help students by walking with them on their collegiate journey, supporting them in difficult times and empowering them to be who they want to be and confident in themselves. My goal is their goal, and sometimes I help them identify those goals!
How has your work in pastoral ministry helped prepare you for this role and your master’s degree?
Before returning to school for my master’s, I spent over 10 years working in pastoral ministry. Pastoral ministry is grounded in service of others and teaches how to meet a person where they are, recognize their innate dignity and potential, and then humbly walk with them throughout all different stages of life. Counseling, very similarly, meets people where they are, sometimes in the hardest moments their lives, and then puts the counselor into a humble helping role. The transition between the two has seemed very natural.
Why did you choose to go into the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program?
I have always been a helper and have been drawn to service to others for as long as I can remember. I also have often found myself loving to learn the stories of others, finding and seeing those who feel lost or unseen, and wanting to know and understand the best way to help. The Clinical Mental Health Counseling program took my love for others, my spirit of service, and my thirst for knowledge and combined it all to give me a foundation of knowledge and evidence-based practice so that I could support others in a meaningful way.
How long is your clinical training?
My training lasts three semesters, approximately one calendar year. If all goes as planned, I will complete my training with BeWell and graduate in December 2022.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I love spending time with my family! I have been married for 11 years and we have two boys, 3 and 8 years old, that keep us very busy. I also have lots of siblings, nieces and nephews that I love getting to spend time with. I enjoy being outside, bonfires and curling up with my two dogs to be lazy.
What is one thing you practice for your own well-being, and how do you think others could benefit from incorporating it into their routine?
One thing I have learned in recent years is the importance of creating balance and boundaries. I love to be able to help others and give of myself, but in order to do that I have learned the power of saying, “No.” I am aware of my schedule and try to balance my obligations to others and my family with making time for myself to rest and recover. It is not always easy, but it has been very fruitful to recognize that I have the power to make these changes for my own betterment.
