Director of Mental Health Services

University of Wisconsin - Madison UHS,

Mental Health Services, University Health Services, UW-Madison
 
Receive a list of new jobs daily:
Last Posted:

Fri, May 9th, '25

Deadline:

6/8/2025

Start Date:

Anticipate start is September 2025. Date is flexible.

Last Updated:

Fri, May 9th, '25

 
POSITION DESCRIPTION
  • |
  • Full Time

Job Summary:

The Director of Mental Health Services (MHS) is a senior leadership position at University Health Services (UHS), reporting to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, who is also the Executive Director of UHS. UHS is part of the Division of Student Affairs, on the UW-Madison campus.

The Director provides leadership and programmatic oversight for administration, budgets, services, and staff related to mental health services in a collaborative integrated health care model. The Director is the mental health leader on campus, providing insight and consultation for campus administrators, leadership, and staff.

The Director leads the UHS Mental Health Services Leadership Team (MHLT), comprised of the MHS Office Manager, Associate Directors and Assistant Directors. The Director has direct supervisory oversight of the Office Manager and the Associate Directors whose areas of focus include Outreach, Training, Satellite and Embedded Clinical Services, Psychiatric Services, Survivor Services, and general Mental Health Clinic Services.

The Director works in partnership with UHS leadership to manage the budget and oversee a growing and varied counseling services staff of 70+ members, full and part time staff, and clinical trainees. The Director may provide direct client care based upon agency demand. This requires the upkeep of clinical skills and proficiency in use of UHS' electronic health record system. The Director provides consultative services within UHS and for the campus on student mental health issues and concerns. The Director will be instrumental in developing, implementing, evaluating, and managing programs supporting individual and population health. The position advances a comprehensive work environment and actively seeks to identify, recruit, and retain a varied work force. The Director will use innovative methods and strategies to address high demand for mental health services on a college campus, addressing the layers of and acuity needed to successfully meet the acuity and service model demands of a campus with more than 50,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students.

The Director shares broad management responsibility for UHS. In collaboration with other UHS Directors, the Director of Mental Health Services will assist in the development of systems that foster optimal outcomes for the college population and promote a successful health care team environment through an integrated model of medical, mental health, public health, and prevention services. The Director will mitigate risk through the adherence to university policies and procedures, laws, including those pertaining to accreditation and staff licensure. The Director will use a data-informed approach to evaluate information and implement timely decisions/recommendations that anticipate the cost/benefits, risks, and organizational impact of decisions.

Individuals applying for the position should have strong leadership, interpersonal, and communication skills. Successful candidates must demonstrate advanced knowledge and skills in the following areas: delivering evidence-based mental health services to a university population; identifying health disparities and developing programs and services to meet the needs of underserved students; working in an integrated care setting; fostering a positive workplace; directing a counseling staff with different social identities and life experiences; and advancing continuous quality improvement practices to improve individual outcomes and advance population health.

The Director must have an acute awareness of unique identities and how these intersect to impact the mental health of both students and MHS staff. The position plays a key role in strengthening connections with other departments in Student Affairs, and the larger campus community through the coordination of services and activities in support of holistic mental health of all students. The Director interfaces with administration and faculty and collaborates and liaises with other internal and external partners including students, student groups, parents, university departments, and community agencies to bridge the various dimensions of mental health. Key internal relationships include Student Affairs, Housing, the UW Police Department, academic schools and colleges, Athletics, and student representatives at the undergraduate colleges, graduate, and professional schools. The Director also plays a pivotal role in ensuring critical incident follow-up for students and parents. Through a mature and supportive approach, the Director engenders trust, fosters a collegial environment, and brings out the best in students and colleagues.

Responsibilities:

Oversees and manages personnel, operations, policy, logistics, and strategic planning. Serves as the primary liaison from Counseling Services to the college and surrounding community. Provides direct counseling and education services to students and consultation to students, faculty, and staff. Ensures staff and programs work collaboratively and effectively with other areas of the college.

  • 25% Develops and directs the strategic planning and operations for university counseling services
  • 5% Welcomes and values people of all backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences; and supports and promotes an environment that celebrates diversity in all its forms
  • 20% Provides supervision, clinical consultation, and strategic leadership for counselors and counseling services
  • 20% Develops, evaluates, and ensures compliance with counseling services policies and standards of practice
  • 20% Manages counseling personnel and budget
  • 5% Serves as a liaison to campus and community stakeholders
  • 5% Exercises supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees
ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - MADISON UHS

Mental Health Services at University Health Services: MHS is located at 333 East Campus Mall on the seventh floor of the recently-constructed student services tower in the University Square Complex. We are part of an integrated University Health Services which provides medical and prevention services to UW-Madison students. This multi-use building is also the home for the Bursar’s Office, Financial Aid, the Registrar, the Student Activities Center, and retail stores on the first floor. MHS has inviting provider offices, as well as several large group rooms available for group therapy sessions, case conferences, consultation, staff meetings, and other professional activities. In recent years UHS has been recognized by the Princeton Review as the best college health service in the country.

UHS is part of Student Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, led by the vice chancellor for student affairs. Our staff is dedicated to serving students and to helping them succeed in and out of the classroom in areas including health and well-being, leadership and engagement, and student advocacy. Student Affairs includes departments led by the dean of students; departments that provide student spaces and leadership resources; the Wisconsin Union; University Health Services; and University Recreation and Wellbeing. Successful applicants are responsible for ensuring their eligibility to work in the United States (i.e. a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without need of employer sponsorship) on or before the effective date of appointment. A criminal background check will be conducted prior to hiring.

UW-Madison: The University of Wisconsin-Madison is partially located on an isthmus between Lake Mendota and Lake Monona and occupies ancestral Ho-Chunk land, a place the Ho-Chunk nation has called Teejop (“day-JOPE”) since time immemorial. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is a land-grant institution and the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. UW–Madison has over 40,000 students and is organized into 20 schools. Our comprehensive academic programs offer 136 undergraduate majors, along with 148 master's degrees programs and 120 doctoral programs. The University of Wisconsin Badgers competes in 25 intercollegiate sports in the Big Ten Conference and has won 28 national championships. Go Bucky!

Madison: Madison is the vibrant state capital of Wisconsin and home to the University of Wisconsin-Madison. With a population of 260,000 (650,000 in the metro area), Madison is located in south-central Wisconsin, 80 miles west of Milwaukee, 270 miles from Minneapolis/St. Paul, and 150 miles northwest of Chicago. With its strong economy, unique natural beauty, exciting nightlife and restaurants, and dynamic recreational offerings, Madison consistently ranks as one of the best places in the country to live, work, get an education, play, and raise a family. Wisconsin's beautiful capital city offers both small town charm and a range of leisure and cultural opportunities usually found in much larger communities.

 
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

REQUIRED:
1. Minimum of seven years of experience as a professional providing direct client care.
2. Minimum of five years of experience in a leadership capacity in a mental health clinic.
3. Minimum of five years of experience with direct supervisory responsibilities for professional staff.

LICENSURE:

  • Required licensure in one of the following areas: Psychologist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Professional Counselor, Psychiatrist
  • Licensed or immediately license-eligible in the State of Wisconsin. You can review Wisconsin licensing requirements at https://dsps.wi.gov/
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

PREFERRED:
1. Experience in a college mental health setting strongly preferred.
2. Experience in an integrated practice setting preferred.

 
COMPENSATION

Negotiable
ANNUAL (12 months)

APPLICATION MATERIALS

Applications must be submitted via jobs.wisc.edu. You will be required to log in or create an account to continue. Please upload a cover letter and resume to apply. Include licensure status in your application materials.


Finalists will be asked to provide a list of at least three (3) professional references with titles, emails, phone numbers (including at least one supervisory reference). Note that references will not be contacted without your prior knowledge.