Jamie Davidson, assistant vice president for student wellness at UNLV, recently was chosen as the 2001 President's Outstanding Professional Staff Member of the Year.

Davidson, who was serving as director of Student Counseling and Psychological Services when he was selected for the award, receives $1,000 and a plaque as part of the honor.

When Davidson came to UNLV in 1994 as a staff psychologist, the director of Student Counseling Center had just left and the possibility existed that the center either would be closed or would be merged with the Student Health Center. He and others in the Student Counseling Center worked to prove how valuable the center could be to the university. Their efforts were successful and Davidson was appointed director of the center in 1996.

The staff of the center attend to the developmental and psychological needs of UNLV students. Under Davidson's guidance, several improvements were made to benefit students. The improvements include:

-- The establishment of a walk-in crisis counseling system to rapidly assess and stabilize students in crises.
-- The development of preventative and educational programming on topics such as relationships, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.
-- The creation of partnerships with the departments of counseling, psychology, and social work to provide clinical training for graduate students.

The center also plays an important role in keeping students in college, according to Davidson.

"We see a lot of students who come to us because they are thinking of dropping out," he said. "We help the students work through their issues and concerns and most decide to remain at the university."

Davidson holds a doctorate in psychology and is a licensed psychologist in Nevada. Before joining the professional staff at UNLV he worked at the University of Georgia and at the University of Notre Dame.