CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — When it comes to mental health in Hispanic communities, stigma and silence can stand in the way of getting help. Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is working to change that with a new program designed to expand culturally tailored resources.
The university launched a new online program this fall: the Master of Science in Professional Counseling: Hispanic Mental Health Counseling. Its goal is to break down social barriers and address what many call stigma in Hispanic communities.
"We found overwhelmingly that there aren't a lot of services tailored to their needs," said Michelle Hollenbaugh, department chair of the Counseling and Educational Psychology Department at TAMUCC.
Hollenbaugh said the biggest challenge is in the home, where many are still unwilling to even address mental health concerns.
"People are worried about being ostracized or others thinking they are crazy," Hollenbaugh said.
"Sometimes things can come into play like machismo or they might think they might be seen as weak," she said.
It's something sophomore Max Rangel said he's seen his whole life.
"I'm from a Hispanic heritage so yes it's definitely you keep it to yourself and stuff like that," Rangel said.
He admits he's never sought counseling before coming to Corpus Christi.
"I definitely have dealt with that myself, everything from emotional passing to family members and having to deal with that on campus is a struggle to us students," Rangel said.
When told about the program being offered, it gave him a sense of university pride.
"Being here, there's not too many people like us and its an opportunity when we get to go to somebody who is like minded like us," Rangel said.
So far, five students are in the program, training with Hispanic individuals, couples and children while also learning Spanish terminology and Latin cultural history.
"There's lots of different backgrounds who are considered Hispanic and so because of that, we are wanting to be aware of that and learning that each individual client will come in with their own level of culturation and needs," Hollenbaugh said.
In fact, Hollenbaugh said most of the students are people who already live in the area looking to give back — something Rangel said he now realizes can make a big difference.
"Having those opportunities is key for us. It keeps us going, keeps us working and keeps our heads straight within our work and not so much on our daily struggles," Rangel said.
TAMUCC offers free and low-cost counseling to all community members at their Natural Resources Center. You can schedule a face-to-face or virtual appointment by calling 361-825-3988.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
Catch all the KRIS 6 News stories and more on our YouTube page. Subscribe today!
