History of the Counselor Education Program at the University of Southern Maine
Established in 1966, the Counselor Education Program at the University of Southern Maine (USM) has a long and distinguished history of preparing counseling professionals to serve individuals, families, schools, and communities throughout Maine and beyond. What began as a graduate program focused primarily on the preparation of school counselors has evolved into one of the largest and most influential graduate programs at the University, reflecting the changing needs of the counseling profession and the communities it serves.
Throughout its history, the program has demonstrated a strong commitment to academic excellence, professional leadership, and innovation in counselor preparation. During the 1970s, USM expanded its mission by establishing a Rehabilitation Counseling concentration, creating one of the region’s earliest graduate training pathways dedicated to serving individuals with disabilities and supporting workforce participation. This specialization would become a defining feature of the program for more than five decades.
In the 1980s, the program achieved significant national recognition through accreditation. The School Counseling concentration became one of the earliest programs in the nation to receive accreditation from the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP). During the same period, the Rehabilitation Counseling concentration earned accreditation from the Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE), establishing USM as a leader in counselor preparation across multiple specialty areas.
The 1990s marked another important period of growth as Maine established professional counselor licensure. In response, the program developed a Clinical Mental Health Counseling concentration and expanded its curriculum to meet emerging licensure requirements. This concentration quickly became one of the program’s most sought-after areas of study and strengthened the program’s role in preparing licensed professional counselors across the state.
Over time, the Counselor Education Program expanded into two flagship CACREP-accredited concentrations: Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling. The Clinical Mental Health Counseling concentration prepares students to provide counseling services across a wide range of community, outpatient, integrated healthcare, and private practice settings while meeting educational requirements for professional counselor licensure. The School Counseling concentration prepares students to serve as leaders, advocates, and mental health professionals within PreK–12 educational settings, emphasizing academic success, career development, social-emotional wellness, and systems-level collaboration. Together, these concentrations reflect the program’s longstanding commitment to preparing counselors who are responsive to the diverse needs of individuals, families, schools, and communities throughout Maine and beyond.
During the 1990s and 2000s, the program became a pioneer in distance education. Through multiple federal Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) grants, USM developed innovative statewide delivery models using distance learning technologies, making graduate counselor education accessible to students throughout Maine and Northern New England. These initiatives supported the development of the Mental Health Rehabilitation Technician (MHRT) curriculum, expanded access to rehabilitation counseling education, and provided scholarship support to students pursuing careers in behavioral health, rehabilitation, and vocational services.
The program continued to evolve alongside national accreditation standards. Rehabilitation Counseling maintained continuous accreditation through CORE until the organization’s merger with CACREP in 2017. Following this transition, USM successfully developed and accredited a Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling specialty, allowing students to pursue integrated pathways leading to multiple professional credentials, including licensure as professional counselors. Faculty members also contributed nationally to the accreditation transition process, helping support rehabilitation counseling programs across the country as they moved from CORE to CACREP standards.
In 2019, the University of Maine System recognized the program’s innovation through a Program Innovation Grant that supported the implementation and expansion of a hybrid Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling degree. This initiative strengthened partnerships across the University of Maine System and increased access to counselor education for students throughout the region.
In 2024, following more than fifty years of nationally accredited rehabilitation counselor preparation, the Rehabilitation Counseling program was formally sunset. While this marked the conclusion of a significant chapter in the department’s history, the program’s contributions to the counseling profession, disability advocacy, vocational rehabilitation, and behavioral health workforce development continue to be reflected in the accomplishments of its graduates and the communities they serve.
For nearly six decades, the Counselor Education Program has maintained a commitment to national accreditation, professional excellence, innovation, and service. Through evolving professional standards, strategic growth, and sustained partnerships across educational and community settings, the program has prepared thousands of counseling professionals who have gone on to serve as clinical mental health counselors, school counselors, rehabilitation counselors, counselor educators, supervisors, and leaders throughout Maine, New England, and the nation.
Today, the Counselor Education Program continues to build upon this rich legacy through its Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling concentrations, both grounded in national accreditation standards, experiential learning, community engagement, and a commitment to counselor competence and ethical practice. The program remains dedicated to preparing culturally responsive counseling professionals who promote wellness, foster resilience, advocate for social justice, and improve the lives of individuals, families, schools, and communities throughout Maine and beyond.
