The Psychological Counseling Center will be adjusting its policies on students’ 12 guaranteed free therapy sessions to include more group therapy options for students, Senior Associate Director and Clinical Director of the center Dr. Joy von Steiger said in an interview with the Justice.

The PCC will continue to offer students 12 free one-on-one therapy sessions, von Steiger said, noting that what is changing instead is the “language of thinking of therapy as twelve free sessions.” The PCC’s goal is to transform the community’s mentality toward therapy: the 12 sessions should be seen as an evaluative process during which a long-term plan is developed, not as a limit to a student’s access to therapy. In fact, she added, there is now “more thorough of an evaluation, [plus] recommendations for treatment, often individual therapy and a group.”

She added that the free sessions should be used to tailor a treatment that is unique to each person’s needs — these initial sessions are “no longer just a place for individual therapy,” von Steiger said. “The way to think about therapy is [to go in asking yourself] ‘What do I need to accomplish?’”

Von Steiger explained that the rebranding of the 12 free sessions is because “students often have been concerned whether the PCC can offer them what they need — students ought to be concerned that they’re getting services that are relevant to what they need.” Thus, she explained, in response to the perceived and evaluated needs of students, the PCC is “trying to gather more opportunities” and emphasizing that “there are lots of opportunities — the [12 sessions] are not the only opportunity” for the assistance that students seek. As part of the adjusted dynamic of the free therapy sessions, the PCC has increased the number of group therapy options — there are now twenty-two available — in an effort to cater to the wide range of students’ needs.

When responding to a question about changes to the 12 free sessions at Thursday’s Town Hall meeting, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs Sheryl Sousa said, “We have no plans to change our billing model at the counseling center. We will not deny anyone access to counseling because of fiscal constraints. In particular, any [sexual assault] survivors who are looking to gain access to the counseling center, that service is unlimited for you.”

In addition to the PCC’s therapy options is the creation of Wellness Workshops, which are available to all students. According to von Steiger, there is now a “menu of workshops” available, including Noel Coakley’s “Mindfulness and Meditation” workshop and the “Drop-In Meditation” session with Dr. Jennifer Brown.

Other workshop topics range from school stress and self-esteem to sexual assault, von Steiger said.

The workshops are held not only at the PCC, but across campus, including residence halls. Von Steiger added that workshops can also be created “at the request of student clubs” and noted that the University’s Active Minds Club has already taken advantage of this opportunity, co-hosting with the PCC a screening of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” and a subsequent panel discussion on Friday. All in all, von Steiger noted, outreach and progress are at the heart of all the changes coming to the PCC this year.

Von Steiger added that she’s witnessed “people grow in lots of wonderful ways from being therapy. Therapy can also help somebody to learn the skills to stay in school. For some people, it really is a lifeline. We’re committed to offering both of those things.”