About Us
The Center for Rural Behavioral Health empowers collaboration across Minnesota State University, Mankato and with our community partners.
Currently, Minnesota State Mankato has five programs that prepare behavioral healthcare professionals:
- Social Work
- Alcohol and Drug Studies
- Nursing
- Counseling and Student Personnel
- School Psychology Psy.D Program
The Center, with its mission and objectives, will allow faculty and students of these programs to collaborate on scholarly work, clinical work, and curriculum. Additionally, strategic partners and stakeholders from healthcare, rural/agricultural industry, and government officials can form new partnerships within the work of the Center.
In order to increase access to behavioral health services in outstate Minnesota, the Center for Rural Behavioral Health has identified three objectives:
1. Research
Providing a collaborative opportunity for faculty and community partners of a multidisciplinary background to conduct scholarly activity in regard to behavioral healthcare. An emphasis will be placed on solution-orientated research that improves quality and access to care in outstate Minnesota.
2. Workforce Development
Ensuring every Minnesotan has access to behavioral healthcare requires the continued recruitment and development of the behavioral health workforce. An emphasis will be placed on developing partnerships with rural communities and stakeholders to ensure a culturally representative workforce is in place.
Behavioral Health Career Exploration Program
Learn more about our majors that prepare behavioral health professionals
3. Continuing Education and Customized Training
The Center will provide licensure board required trainings in outstate Minnesota. The investment of providing these required trainings has shown to improve retention of providers in rural areas. In addition, the Center will host an annual lectureship at Minnesota State University, Mankato with hopes of inviting a nationally known speaker on the topic of rural healthcare. In the future, a statewide conference on rural behavioral health could be held on campus, or in conjunction with events that already occur such as the Health Summit.
