Counseling Center welcomes new director

Courtesy Ernesto Escoto
Ernesto Escoto assumed his new role as director of the UM Counseling Center this July.

“I’m very much looking forward to working with the staff at the Counseling Center as well as the faculty and staff of the University of Miami, and to have an opportunity to serve students,” he said, before starting the job.

A native of El Salvador, Escoto has a Ph.D. in counseling psychology and last served as the associate director of clinical services at Ohio State University.

He is considered an expert in mental health issues within the Hispanic community, and often works closely with international students. At Ohio State, Escoto co-chaired the International Student Life Task Force and served as an advisor to the Hispanic Student Services Council.

This summer, Escoto’s first steps will be to get to know his new staff.

“The first thing I want to do is to get to know the staff at the center and throughout the university,” he said. “I want to work together with them to strengthen the relationships and collaboration between the units at the university so they can better serve the needs of the students and other departments.”

Escoto then hopes to have the Counseling Center accredited by the International Association of Counseling Services and to create an accredited internship program for psychology students through the Counseling Center.

“I would like to understand the experience of all students, and then take that information and turn it into strategies to meet their needs,” he said.