Health & wellness
BY COLE GEE
Lone Star College’s chief mental health o cer, Shantha Stokes, discusses her role, new initiatives
addition of the team that I’m hiring, we will be able to triple the amount of counselors that are available to students in our system. What challenges have you faced, if any, and what do you hope to accomplish next semester? I think the challenge is putting infrastructure in that can be systematized, that is also still exible and agile to support the unique needs of each campus. What advice would you give to someone who wants to manage their mental health? I would encourage someone to just make that rst small step, and not worry about the steps that are going to come after they make that small step. Because the rst step is just asking someone for help and then letting the process unfold.
In June, Lone Star College System hired Shantha Stokes as its new chief mental health ocer. In an interview with Community Impact , Stokes reected on the challenges and successes she’s faced during her rst year, as well as plans for next semester. What are your responsibilities as Lone Star College’s chief mental health ocer? Lone Star has functioned with outsourcing its mental health services for the most part. So one of the main goals of my position is to help create in-house mental health services and to enhance our existing services. I am building infrastructure so that we’ll be able to provide those services. What initiatives does Lone Star College have to prioritize faculty and student mental health? Lone Star does provide counseling services to its students. It’s just on a smaller scale. With the
Shantha Stokes is the associate vice chancellor of mental health and wellness and chief mental health o cer.
COURTESY LONE STAR COLLEGE SYSTEM
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit communityimpact.com .
Functional medicine covered by most insurance
PROACTIVE HEALTH IS Happy Health
REQUEST AN APPOINTMENT TODAY
346-646-5627 | Email: thewoodlands@happyhealthwellness.com | 2219 Sawdust Rd #1501, Spring Tx 77380 | Open Mon-Fri 8am-5pm
39
THE WOODLANDS EDITION
Powered by FlippingBook