Outreach and Prevention is an exercise in compassion that motivates members of the KSU community to:
Help students to find and express their voices by initiating inquiry and expressing ideas.
Comprehend policies, rights, and responsibilities as members of a community.
Identify available options, persons, and resources to address and alleviate impediments to personal and academic success.
Position students to help themselves toward achieving their goals and deriving optimal solutions through challenging circumstances.
Who We Are
Outreach and Prevention is a unit of the Division of Student Affairs, centered in practices that are driven by compassion to cultivate resilience and a sense of belonging for all students.
What We Do (Mission)
Outreach and Prevention promotes mental health and well-being, self-care, and practicing respect, empathy, and support for self and others.
Why We Do It (Vision)
Our goal is to prepare students to effectively address complex situations that may challenge their academic success, personal well-being, and sense of belonging at KSU.
How We Do It
Outreach and Prevention is centered in practices that are driven by compassion to cultivate resilience and a sense of belonging for all students. We achieve this through the promotion of mental health and well-being, self-care, and practicing respect, empathy, and support for self and others. We execute these practices through/by four provisions:
Self and systematic advocacy – building advocacy skills and empowerment for self- and peer-agency
Academic and personal support – empowering students to become academically successful
Building connections and community - partnering to develop the students’ capacity for advocating for self and others.
Campus outreach and education - distributing knowledge and information to cultivate advocacy skills.
Ed.D. - University of Georgia, Athens, GA, Student Affairs Leadership
MS - Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, College Student Personnel Administration
BA - University of California, Irvine, CA, Social Sciences
Bio
Dr. Nicole A. Phillips, a native of Los Angeles, California, began her appointment
as the inaugural director of the Office of Outreach & Prevention in January 2016.
She entered into this role with an extensive history of inclusive leadership of strategic
administration of support services, (including leadership training and development,
advocacy, academic support, mentoring, community outreach, conducting assessment,
and providing qualitative and quantitative report data to the University System of
Georgia) for historically underrepresented student populations at KSU. Her contributions
include starting the KSU African American Male Initiative, coordinating KSU's first
Latino History Month Celebration, and making the affirmation of KSU's Owl Creed a
campus tradition.
Dr. Phillips' doctoral study at the University of Georgia focused on cultivating a sense of belonging. She believes that being an effective advocate requires cultural competency, an awareness ofstudents' needs, and the engagement in effective partnerships within and beyond the campus to best assist students in achieving their goals. Equity and inclusivity sustain the core of her work with all students. Aside from her work, Dr. Phillips enjoys spending her free time writing poetry, prose, and traveling. She is also a published poet and co-author of Eggshells of the Soul, a collection of works from the poetry group Private Poets Unveiled.
Trainings
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA)
Q.uestion, R.efer, P.ersuade (QPR)
Title IX Hearing Officer Training, University System of Georgia
Conflict Dynamic Profile, Eckerd College
Executive Leadership for Women, KSU's Coles College of Business
EXCEL Leadership Program, KSU's Center for University Learning
Ethical Leadership Certificate Program, KSU Center for University Learning
Georgia State University's College of Law Consortium on Negotiation and Conflict Resolution
Training, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
Leadership for Results, Achieve Global, Effective Supervision, Emory University
National Coalition Building Institute, Train the Trainer, Atlanta, GA
Social Justice Training Institute, Train the Trainer, Springfield, MA
Mary MartinStaff Therapist, Peer Counseling Program & Part-Time Instructor of Social Work
Staff Therapist, Peer Counseling Program & Part-Time Instructor of Social Work
MSW - University of Georgia, Master of Social Work
BLA - Auburn University, Bachelor of Liberal Arts with Concentration in Social Sciences
Bio
MK joined the Office of Outreach & Prevention in August of 2021. MK began her career
in higher education at KSU in January of 2017 in Counseling and Psychological Services,
where she served as a therapist assisting students navigating complex mental health
concerns. Through her work as a clinical social worker, she developed an interest
in student leadership and development. MK worked in an array of capacities in the
field of social work before entering higher education. She worked in Pennsylvania
and Arizona as an AmeriCorps volunteer, served as a case manager in psychiatric facilities
leading groups, family sessions, and discharge planning. She also served as a therapist
in a residential facility treating women with complex trauma and substance dependency.
MK takes a collaborative approach when working with students by identifying their
strengths, building trust, using empathy, humor and patience. In utilizing this collaborative
approach in working with students, she hopes to assist you in finding your voice,
resilience, and empower yourself to navigate the collegiate experience successfully.
In her free time MK enjoys eating tamales, reading mystery novels, dancing, arranging
flowers, spending time with her cat, thrift shopping, traveling, musical and cinematic
adventures, and spending time with loved ones.
Trainings
Certified 200 Hour Therapeutic Yoga Certification, Center for Integrative Yoga Studies
Y12SR-Yoga of 12-Step Recovery with Nikki Meyers
Trauma Sensitive Yoga with David Emerson, Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute
Mindful Dance Facilitator with Dr. Jamie Marich
Mindful Based Stress Reduction with the Atlanta Mindfulness Institute
Mindful Self Compassion with the Atlanta Mindfulness Institute
Cognitive Based Compassion Training with Jennifer Finch, LPC-Emory University
Safe Space Training, Kennesaw State University
Dialectical Behavior Therapy Certification Course
Trauma-Informed Expressive Arts, Level One, Trauma-Informed Practices and Expressive
Arts Therapy Institute
