To Be Seen and Heard

An IWU Alum’s Journey to Become the Counselor for the Indianapolis Colts

Sometimes it takes alittle trial and error to discover a calling. For Elizabeth White, a 2007 Indiana Wesleyan alumna, that certainly proved to be true.

White found herself in corporate America struggling to feel connected to her work. It didn’t take long for her to realize that she consistently found herself talking to her coworkers about their lives.

“I was finding that I spent more time talking to people about their problems than I actually spent doing my ‘real’ work,” said White. “I just didn’t really know how to transition that skillset into a career.”

It was when White became a foster mom to three boys that she discovered her answer.

“I found that talking to the kids and helping them make a plan to cope with their emotions was actually benefiting them,” said White. “Three boys who might have had very gloomy life expectations were able to make the emotional progress that they needed to be able to show up for themselves.” Realizing that she could make a difference in people’s lives, White enrolled at IWU-National & Global to earn her master’s degree in Counseling.

“Earning a degree at IWU was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” said White. “Its programming was such a great preparation for what I would face in the clinical world. When it was time to practice, I felt really prepared for the type of work that I was doing.”

In 2011, White took the leap to open her own practice called The Well Counseling and Consulting Group. The practice is based on the northwest side of Indianapolis and will be celebrating 10 years of operation this year.

“We’ve been able to serve thousands of people, which we really count as something super important,” said White.“ Each person is a part of a family—every time you’re helping one person, you’re also helping a family, and we love that idea.”

For the last seven years, White has also had the opportunity to be the team counselor for the Indianapolis Colts. “It was such a learning curve for me because I was not a person who was a football fan,” she said. “I had not even been to a Colts game prior to becoming the team counselor, and that’s funny to me.”

White’s goal as the team counselor is to be available, be a resource and reduce barriers. For a well-known athlete, walking into a traditional office preparing to talk about something concerning maybe made even more uncomfortable by the chance that someone would recognize them. White’s role with the team allows the athletes to have a counselor within their very own facility.

“The players are just human,” said White.“ They have the same fears, loves, desires, concerns that all of us do. I'm just helping very normal people with very public jobs get the support they need to live their best lives.”

Both White’s roles as the Colts’ team counselor and an entrepreneur support her own personal mission as a counselor: to reduce the stigma.

“I want to reduce the stigma of seeking counseling in communities of color, especially for African Americans,” she said. “I love that I talk to my clients about the fact that there is no shame in seeking help.”

More than that, White hopes her love for Jesus and her love for others shines through her work.

“I don’t want anyone to leave my presence without knowing how important they are,” said White. “If for 60 minutes they feel like they have been seen and heard, my work is done. It just confirms how important this work is.”

Written by Ashley Witkowski ‘14