Assistant Director for Outreach and Prevention, Counseling and Mental Health Clinical Instructor/Clinical Assistant of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences (Clinician Educator)

The Department of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences is recruiting a faculty member to serve as the Assistant Director for Outreach and Prevention in Student Counseling and Mental Health (CMH).

Description of Department of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences

The mission of the Department of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences is to care for and protect the mental health of our communities. Our vision is to drive innovative, leading mental health care by being the place to work, receive care, and create future leaders through learning and discovery. The Department of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences is committed to excellence in three equally important areas: clinical care, education, and research. The Department has grown substantially in recent years in its research mission, strengthened by its ongoing collaborations with local, national, and international partners and has expanded the breadth and depth of the education programming, with innovative leaders in curriculum, evaluation, research, and teaching methodology. The Department’s clinical educators and clinical services are a fundamental part of the academic and training missions. The team of mental health professionals offer a range of psychiatric and behavioral health services utilizing the most up-to-date research in the field and state-of-the-art technology. The Department of Psychiatry provides clinical services primarily at the Los Angeles General Medical Center, USC Student Health and student exclusive practices as part of Keck Medicine of USC, and additional ambulatory practices for Keck Medicine of USC, including Keck Hospital of USC, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the USC Care Medical Group.

Description of USC Student Health

USC Student Health, an ambulatory practice of Keck Medicine of USC, provides comprehensive healthcare on both USC’s University Park Campus (UPC) and Health Sciences Campus (HSC). USC Student Health’s team is dedicated to providing student’s basic primary care needs, mental health and counseling services, and a variety of health and well-being activities through campus-wide partnerships. USC Student Health also offers on-site specialty care services such as allergy, immunization clinics, and dermatology.

Description of Student Counseling and Mental Health Services (CMH)

USC’s Student Counseling and Mental Health (CMH) supports students in achieving their academic and personal goals. CMH services include short-term individual therapy; “Let’s Talk” and solution sessions; group therapy; referral to community providers; crisis intervention; psychiatric evaluations and medication follow-up; outreach and prevention; collaboration with campus partners; and training and supervision. Specialty services include Eating Disorders and Body Image Concerns, and Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention and Services. CMH coordinates the university’s mental health response to campus tragedies, and conducts postvention efforts related to student deaths.

Position Description [Purpose and Scope]

The Assistant Director of Outreach and Prevention who will be responsible for high-level development, oversight, and coordination of University-wide outreach and prevention efforts. The ideal candidate will be a licensed clinician (PsyD, PhD, LCSW, LMFT, LPCC) who has experience designing and implementing outreach programming to diverse audiences, including to transitional age youth. Candidates should have excellent clinical, supervisorial, and public speaking skills and demonstrate a commitment to social justice, multicultural competence, and the wellbeing of students.  

This is a full-time faculty position with an academic appointment in the Department of Psychiatry and the Assistant Director of Outreach and Prevention in Counseling and Mental Health (CMH) on USC’s University Park Campus. Salary is competitive and contingent on experience. A generous benefits package includes: Medical, dental, vision, life insurance, long-term care, disability, malpractice coverage and more (information about benefits can be found here); significant retirement benefits (USC makes a 10% contribution when you contribute 5%); tuition assistance for you and your family; paid professional days and parental leave; access to free continuing education credits through our Grand Rounds lecture series; and generous paid time off.

The annual base salary range for this position is $105,000-$145,000.  When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

The position will be comprised approximately of 50% time for leadership, administrative and service-related duties and 50% for clinical/patient care duties. USC is an in-person institution. The position will reflect a blend of onsite and remote work, with a majority of the time being in-person on USC’s University Park Campus.

Specific Duties and Responsibilities:

• Report to the Director of CMH
• Serve on the CMH Directors Team, including bi-weekly Directors Team meetings
• Serve as "Director of the Day" one day per week, and participate in a backup call rotation
• Develop strategic vision for, develop, supervise and coordinate University-wide outreach and prevention activities including health communications
• Collaborate with USC Student Health Communications on mental health campaigns and social media presence
• Provide training related to the most effective outreach and prevention practices
• Support the needs of the faculty clinicians when delivering outreach and prevention services to the community
• Supervise CMH’s Multicultural Coordinator
• Supervise faculty in the Student Equity and Inclusion Programs (SEIP), in tandem with the CMH Assistant Director for Academic Embedded Services
• Supervise the clinical activities of generalist faculty clinicians
• Hire and superviseGraduate Assistants of Outreach and Prevention
• Conduct seminars and training new interns and other trainees to conduct outreach and prevention work
• Create and implement programming with a focus on community engagement, social justice, DEI, and wellbeing, including programming in USC’s Student Equity and Inclusion Programs
• Oversee outreach requests from campus partners and students, assign them to the clinical team
• Conduct outreaches on campus
• Serve on university committees and collaborate with campus partners to support the university’s collective impact strategy and wellbeing goals
• Serve as the USC Student Health lead in implementing and utilizing The Jed Foundation’s goals and strategies
• Coordinate the CMH postvention response to campus tragedies
• Serve as the point person and collaborative partner with USC Student Health’s Health Promotion and Strategy Unit
• In collaboration with the RSVP Director, provide oversight to the RSVP Assistant Director for Prevention on RSVP’s outreach and prevention initiatives
• Maintain a clinical schedule seeing clients for initial appointments, crisis counseling, follow ups, and consultations
• Attend leadership meetings within the Department of Psychiatry
• Active participation with the Association for University and College Counseling Center Outreach
• Serve on university, health system, department, and campus committees, as desired and assigned
• Attend Psychiatry Department Grand Rounds, Social Justice Forums, and Department Matters meetings; coordinate periodic service specific Grand Rounds
• Represent CMH, USC Student Health, and the Psychiatry Department on committees and at meetings
• Respond to requests for information from the community and colleagues
• Participate in annual faculty merit review and mid-year performance evaluation processes
• Other projects and duties, as assigned

Minimum Qualifications:

Master’s or higher degree in social work, marriage & family therapy, counseling, psychology, or related field Licensed in the State of California 1-2 years of experience supervising clinicians and trainees 2-3 years overseeing/coordinating college outreach or similar programming Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; and multicultural competency in working with students of color, students from all economic classes, first generation students, LGBTQIA2S+ students, and international students Experience working with issues encountered in early and emerging adulthood, including identity issues (e.g., sexual identity, gender identity, racial/ethnic identity, etc.), sexual trauma, eating disorders, and substance use disorders Must possess excellent written, verbal, and public speaking/communication skills

Preferred Qualifications:

Resilient, self-aware, and can thrive in a fast paced, demanding environment Experience in short term treatment, including stabilization and crisis intervention Experience working with university students and/or transitional age youth Experience in prevention and outreach program evaluation Experience overseeing Quality Improvement & Assurance initiatives An advanced practice clinician possessing well-developed clinical and psychopharmacological skills and the willingness to support the development of evidence-based clinical guidelines Effectively works in a highly diverse, multicultural, and LGBTQIA2S+ affirmative environment Commitment to the highest ethical standards of professional practice and to professional integrity Desire to continue to grow as a professional and committed to excellence and lifelong learning Additional language skills are welcome

Application Deadline: Until position is filled.

Starting Date: Negotiable

The Department of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences is committed to attracting and nurturing a diverse community dedicated to providing culturally informed, high-quality behavioral healthcare to a multicultural population. Both in our work environment and clinical practice, we embrace diversity across multiple dimensions. We aim to provide a safe, inclusive environment for our faculty, staff, residents, fellows, trainees, volunteers, patients, colleagues, and the multitude of stakeholders with whom we work. Through our clinical services, educational programs, research studies, and policy initiatives, we are committed to addressing health care disparities for historically underserved groups; to combating racism and anti-Blackness at all levels; and to promoting and ensuring social justice.

USC strongly values diversity, equity, and inclusion and is committed to equal opportunity in employment. We prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, veteran status, marital status, or any other legally protected status. All genders, BIPOC, LGBTQIA2S+, people with disabilities, veterans, bicultural/multicultural and bilingual/multilingual individuals, and foreign nationals are encouraged to apply. For more information about the work visa types that USC’s Faculty and Staff Visa Services is able to sponsor, please visit the website at https://visaservices.usc.edu/future/work-visa-types/"

The University of Southern California (USC), founded in 1880, is the largest private employer in the City of Los Angeles. As an employee of USC, you will be a part of a world-class research university and a member of the "Trojan Family," which is comprised of the faculty, students and staff that make the university what it is.

Please submit CV/resume, cover letter expressing interest in and fit with the minimum and preferred qualifications, and 3 letters of recommendation.