Bain and Schaff Join CVM Office of Psychological Services
Though vet school is immensely rewarding, it doesn’t come without difficulties. That’s where the CVM’s Office of Psychological Services steps in, making MSU one of the only vet schools in the nation with multiple psychologists on staff.
The third-floor Maggie Freeman-Bishop Office for Wellness, led by director Dr. Pauline Prince and staff psychologist Dr. Kristin Tew, provides on-sight mental health services to those in need of extra support. This office was created through a gift from Dr. Emily C. Freeman and Ms. Sara J. Bishop in memory of their late pug, Maggie, and it has grown to include more resources, including a funded graduate assistantship program.
In July, Brett Bain joined the office as the Maggie Freeman-Bishop Graduate Assistant – a position that allows him to grow his expertise and provides extra counseling resources to the CVM. After receiving his associate’s degree from Northeast Mississippi Community College and a bachelor’s degree from Mississippi State, Bain has remained with the university as he pursues a master’s and PhD.
Though he’s only been with the CVM for a few weeks, Bain has already developed a greater appreciation for the work that goes on in the hallways. He works to apply a solution-based approach to the unique challenges that those in the profession face and offers reassurance to students who might be facing unexpected difficulties.
“It’s interesting because clients come to my room, and they say, ‘I’m struggling with all of these problems,” Bain said. “It’s unique as a therapist because I get to identify all of these strength factors and resiliency factors that these patients present with, and that’s a good feeling too. It increases the way they think about themselves.”
Being named the Maggie Freeman-Bishop Graduate Assistant is not something that Bain takes lightly.
“I’m honored to be the recipient of it,” Bain said. “It means that someone sees a need.”
He also adds that he’s excited for the unique opportunities that await him in that position.
“I can be there during sophomore surgery, helping students by talking them through their anxiety and helping reduce anxiety as it occurs, which is a unique thing that psychologists don’t get to do often,” Bain said.
Bain isn’t the only new face in the Office of Psychological Services: Branden Schaff is working within the CVM on an external practicum.
Schaff completed his undergraduate degree at Truman State University in Missouri and received his master’s from the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. He’s now pursuing his PhD at MSU with an emphasis on neuropsychology – a specialization that Dr. Prince holds.
“The vet school happens to have some factors that are particularly important for me as someone who wants to centralize my focus in neuropsychology,” Schaff explained. “It’s not common that you get the luxury of finding a supervisor that has a neuropsychology specialty.”
Like Bain, Schaff’s main goal at the CVM is to provide the utmost care and support to aspiring veterinarians.
“If I can just step in there and support them in their journey, either through therapy or assessment, then I’ll be playing a small role in making people’s larger missions possible.”