ACCEPT Program

The ACCEPT Program is the Addictions Counseling Certificate Experiential Paraprofessional Training Program at Kent State University. It is an enhancement of the Addictions Counseling Certificate Program (ACCP), providing additional experiential training and financial support to a select number of KSU undergraduate students enrolled in the ACCP.

The ACCEPT Program is a Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA; Grant # 1 M01HP42441‐01‐00), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services administration. (Total HRSA award to KSU for 4 years is $1,598,289; 60% of which is dedicated to student support.)

The ACCEPT Program at KSU began September 2021 and will continue until at least August 2025. A total of 104 KSU undergraduate students will benefit from the ACCEPT Program over its first 4 years. Twenty-six ACCEPT Program Trainees have been selected for its first class, the class of 2021-22. Currently, 18 Trainees are at the Kent campus and 8 Trainees are at the Trumbull campus. The majority of Trainees are Psychology majors. All of the Trainees are preparing to work as addictions counselors.

Each KSU ACCEPT Program Trainee receives the following benefits:

• $3,000 toward tuition/fees
• $5,000 stipend during practicum
• Training in cultural humility, trauma-informed care, and working with families
• Extensive training and certification in telehealth service provision, offered by Telehealth.org, a leader in telehealth training
• Participation in client simulation practice activities/encounters conducted live/on-ground and online/asynchronously, including a simulated case conference
• Career mentoring provided by a graduate student Research Assistant, including resume revision and participating in mock employment interviews
• Placement in a 10- or 15-week addictions counseling practicum at a facility in Northeast Ohio that offers integrated health services (behavioral health and primary care)
• Free life-time subscription to a digital portfolio/software package to track all practicum field hours and progress toward licensure as a chemical dependency counselor in Ohio