Simone Collins, PhD, Associate Director for Outreach Services in Mental Health Services (MHS) at UHS, received the 2021 Association for University College Counseling Center Directors (AUCCCD) Harriet Copher Haynes Diversity Leadership Mentoring Award, which honors “talented mental health professionals of diverse identities who aspire to become counseling center directors.”
Collins joined MHS as a staff psychologist in 2015 and was quickly identified as a strong leader. She was promoted to Associate Director for Outreach in 2016. Her purview oversees coordinating Let’s Talk, drop-in programming and processing spaces, THRiVE workshops, the campus health ambassadors program, the Badger Support Network, Hearts and Crafts, and responding to dozens of requests to speak to campus partners.
Sarah Nolan, PhD, Director of Mental Health Services, nominated Collins. “Simone is a powerful leader who is guided by compassion, kindness, and a deep understanding of the way the system can impact the individual and vice versa. Simone’s personal and professional values align strongly with social justice and inclusion,” says Nolan.
The award is named after Harriett Copher Haynes, BSN, MS, PhD, worked at the University of Minnesota Counseling & Consulting Services for 40 years (1971-2011) and served as Director for 15 of those years (1992-2007). Haynes served as a leader, mentor, role model and consultant for the university community, addressing issues of diversity, sexism, racism, responding to students in crisis, gender-based violence, mediation, crisis response, multicultural curriculum development, and managing organizational change.
“Simone’s work for students and the UW-Madison community has long been acknowledged as thoughtful, vital, and impactful,” says Jake Baggott, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, and Executive Director of UHS. “Her dedication to her work and creating an inclusive environment for others has contributed to multiple safe spaces, many feeling a sense of inclusion that was not previously felt, and has truly set the stage for innovation in the ways we think about diversity, equity and inclusion. UHS, and UW-Madison, are fortunate to have Simone’s leadership and practice.”
To learn more about the Harriet Copher Haynes Diversity Leadership Mentoring Award, visit aucccd.org/diversity-and-inclusion. For more information about MHS’s Outreach Services, visit uhs.wisc.edu/mental-health/outreach-services/.