Regent Partners Provide Life-Changing
Mental Health Care To Meet a Growing Global Need
The rapid rise in mental health issues over the past several years, combined with a lack of accessible, quality care, has led to a mental health crisis in America and around the world.
“The mental health crisis has been historically significant with increasing rates of mental health disorders and related challenges over the years,” says Regent School of Psychology dean Dr. Anna Ord. “The pandemic has certainly not helped. It has exacerbated pre-existing mental health challenges and added new ones.”
One of the many ways your generous gifts help Regent University students and alumni respond to this global crisis on both a local and international level is through the university’s Psychological Services Center (PSC). The PSC not only educates and equips future psychologists and psychiatrists; it also provides effective, affordable care to individuals and families from across southeastern Virginia. Donor support for the Center ensures that a person’s lack of financial resources is never a barrier to receiving the help they need.
“The Center has been making a significant impact on both the students at our university and the wider community,” Ord explains. “By offering affordable mental health services to the under-insured and uninsured individuals, the PSC plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between mental health needs and accessibility in Hampton Roads. We are the only training clinic of its kind in our region.”
“It’s a kind of unique setup,” adds Dr. Rachel Stephens, director of the PSC. “We have a training clinic run by Regent’s doctor of psychology program, and it’s specifically to train our students in seeing their first clients, performing their first intakes, performing their first assessments, and helping them gain real-world experience.”
By offering affordable mental health services to under-insured and uninsured individuals, the PSC plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between mental health needs and accessibility in Hampton Roads. We are the only training clinic of its kind in our region.
Dr. Anna Ord, Dean of Regent’s School of Psychology
In addition to providing professional counseling services to the local community, including Regent students and employees, your gifts help PSC offer valuable clinical experience for students enrolled in the American Psychological Association (APA), an accredited doctoral program in clinical psychology.
“One of the things I love about the PSC is our dual mission,” Stephens says. “We have the freedom to offer something really meaningful—and needed—to our community, while also witnessing our students do some really, really amazing work as they learn new skills.”
Thanks to friends like you, future mental healthcare leaders, like fourth-year doctoral student Taylor Lombardo, are gaining valuable experience at the Center. “The PSC is special because of its rigorous training sequence and its ability to offer spiritual and Christian-integrated psychological services to its clients,” insists Lombardo. “I am well-trained, competent, compassionate, and well-equipped to handle a wide spectrum of psychological issues and crises.”
Regent-trained clinicians provide much-needed care in both secular and faith-based settings in the United States and around the world. Your generous donations make it possible to alleviate the impact of the global mental healthcare crisis and foster psychologically healthier societies worldwide.
“We have more than 1,200 students enrolled in various mental health training programs,” Ord explains. “In our residential programs, we train students locally in Hampton Roads, but our online programs are spread around the world. We have students across the United States and in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and Central America.”
