Welcome to MCLA, Trailblazers! At MCLA, we believe that in order to do well, you must be well. We have a dedicated team of practitioners – from counselors, to nurses, to health promotion staff – all invested in the wellness of students and our community. In fact, the Inter-association Definition of Well-being (November 2020) outlines that in Higher Education… “we define well-being as an optimal and dynamic state that allows people to achieve their full potential. Our focus is on two interdependent types of well-being: 1) individual and 2) community…” MCLA has made great efforts to support wellness in a holistic way, ensuring that individuals receive the highest quality care in our clinics and therapy rooms, but also focusing on healthy communities, organizations, and respect for sustainability and the planet. The Inter-association Definition of Well-being continues to say “By focusing on the whole — the whole person, the whole educational experience, the whole institution, the whole community — well-being becomes a multifaceted goal and a shared responsibility for the entire institution.” It is our hope that you see and feel wellness across your MCLA experience – in the classroom, in the residence halls, in student activities, and more. By prioritizing your wellness together, students alongside MCLA, we will see profound impacts on your academic, personal, and professional success. We want you to thrive at MCLA, to do well. With our help, you can be well throughout your MCLA experience. Remember, everyone’s trail to wellness is different, and we are here to help you navigate yours.
In wellness,
Ashleigh Hala, LICSW
Associate Dean & Chief Wellness Officer
Interested in exploring more about services and programs? See the dropdown options below.
Ashleigh Hala, MSW, LICSW is the Associate Dean and Chief Wellness Officer at Massachusetts
College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, MA. Within that capacity, Hala has oversight
for counseling, health services, health promotion, prevention, peer education, and
the care team. Previously, Hala was the Director for the Office of Wellbeing at Wake
Forest University and the founding director for Wellness & Prevention Services at
Babson College, leading Babson’s community health, health promotion, and prevention
efforts. Hala previously served as the founding Director of Sexual Assault Prevention
& Response Services at Babson College and as the Title IX Coordinator/Associate Director
of Residence Life at Wheelock College. Hala has also worked in substance use and addiction
services with the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health and in legislative advocacy,
fundraising, and research with the LGBT Aging Project. Hala holds both Master of Social
Work (Boston University) and Bachelor of Social Work (Wheelock College) degrees and
is a licensed independent clinical social worker (LICSW). She is also trained and
certified in rape crisis counseling, motivational interviewing, prevention leadership,
Title IX investigation, and basic restorative practices. Hala is an engaged member
of NASPA – Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education and the American College
Health Association (ACHA). Currently, Hala serves as the Past Co-Chair for the Wellness
and Health Promotion Knowledge Community (NASPA), Faculty for the NASPA Advisors Academy
and Advisors Institute, and an Advisory Board Member for NASPAs Culture of Respect
initiative. Hala is also a member of the Restorative Practices in Higher Education
Learning Collaborative organized by the International Institute of Restorative Practices
(IIRP). Outside of the office, Hala is passionately active in the sexual and relationship
violence prevention community, and is frequently featured as a keynote speaker for
such organizations as The Office of the Attorney General, West Point, and the Massachusetts
Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). Hala was also appointed to the Board of Directors
for local non-profit organization REACH Beyond Domestic Violence.
Susannah is a Medical Assistant who has worked at MCLA Student Health Services since 2018. Before coming to MCLA, Susannah worked in a hospital setting for 26 years, doing various roles from transcription to medical coding. Now, Susannah is the chief administrative support for wellness, including health services, counseling services, and health promotion.
Jonah Bayer is a Staff Counselor at MCLA. He previously worked at The Brien Center in North Adams providing mental health and substance abuse counseling for adults, families and couples. Jonah earned his MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a Trauma Concentration from Antioch University in 2022. His theoretical framework draws interventions informed by Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Prior to becoming a therapist, Jonah was a touring guitarist and music journalist based in Brooklyn, New York. He currently writes about the intersection of music and mental health for national publications such as SPIN and Flood Magazine.
I am an MSW, LICSW staff counselor at the Counseling Center where I have been for
years. I have worked at the Brien Center in Great Barrington, the Bennington, Vt.
School system, and currently part time at Greylock Mental Health. I am interested
in working with students who are either set on pursuing a specific path or questioning
what that might be. I have worked with people from all kinds of backgrounds and value
their expressing their story as they can and how that affects them here at MCLA and
elsewhere.
Jacqueline is the director of MCLA Student Health Services and is a family nurse practitioner board-certified by the American Nurse Credentialing Center. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, a Master of Science as a Family Nurse Practitioner, and a Bachelor of Science, RN. She has worked at MCLA since 2012 and has a background in emergency medicine, gastroenterology, and occupational medicine.
Aimée is a family nurse practitioner board-certified by the American Nurse Credentialing Center. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, a Master of Science as a Family Nurse Practitioner, and a Bachelor of Science, RN. Aimée has worked at MCLA Student Health Services since 2013. She has a background in surgery, pulmonary/sleep medicine, gastroenterology, occupational medicine, and allergy.
Christine is a registered nurse. She has certification in ACLS, TNCC, PALS, and OCN. She has worked at MCLA Student Health Services since 2013. She has a background in emergency medicine and oncology.
Dr. Donvan is a board-certified osteopathic doctor (DO), with forty years of clinical practice. He is certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) with a certificate of added qualification in sports medicine. Dr. Donovan has worked at MCLA Student Health Services and Athletics since 2009. He specializes in non-surgical orthopedic and sports medicine care. His background also includes emergency medicine.
Madeleine is MCLA’s Health Promotion Specialist, educating the campus community on
mental health, suicide prevention, alcohol and other drugs, safer sex, sexual violence
prevention, and other wellness topics. She supervises the new Wellness Peer Educator program
and works with local and national organizations such as Berkshire Harm Reduction,
the Brien Center, New England Health Educators Network, and NASPA. Madeleine is originally
from Southern California and graduated from Smith College in 2023 with a BA in Sociology
and the Study of Women and Gender. Her passion for health promotion work began in
college when she joined Smith's peer health educator group.
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) will lead the way for wellness within the Commonwealth by seamlessly integrating holistic wellness into all aspects of the student experience building an inclusive, thriving, and resilient campus community.
To develop, promote, and support robust opportunities, programs, and resources that enable students to achieve a holistic sense of health and well-being and create a campus culture where holistic wellness is centered within every aspect of our community.
Black Lives Matter. Counseling Services staff stands with our students, staff, faculty, and community members of color during this time of racist violence, grief and protest.
Racism in the United Stated continues to threaten the lives and safety of People of Color, and we each have a responsibility to actively confront and dismantle it. As professionals who oversee the work of healing and empowering students in their struggles, we recognize the importance of taking a stand and offering support by naming and addressing what causes the illness, wounds, and impairment, i.e. systemic racism and white supremacy. We also acknowledge that there is a more sustained and additional need for facilitating the difficult (and often painful) honest examination and self-work around our individual biases in thought and action, and how that impacts our work with students, colleagues, campuses, communities, friends and family. In this way, we affirm our commitment to anti-racism.
MCLA students in need of support during this time are invited to connect to a counselor by calling the office at 413-662-5331, Monday through Friday between 8:30 am-4:30 pm. For more information on Racial Trauma, click HERE.
This brand is a subset of the main MCLA brand. Fonts and colors have pulled from the MCLA brand, while additional colors have been added to create a distinct Wellness brand.
