Entering into counseling is a very personal decision and the SCC staff recognize that the information you choose to share with your counselor is both private and sensitive. Depending on the clinician's license, he or she subscribes to the Ethical Standards of the American Counseling Association or the American Psychological Association. As such you can be assured that the information you share will be held in the strictest confidence. With very few exceptions, the information you share with your counselor cannot be shared with any other person (e.g., parents, professors, administrators, etc.) without your expressed written permission. The only exceptions to this practice include:

• situations in which there is a threat to one's physical safety, 
• threat to the physical safety of another identified individual(s),
• cases involving elderly or child abuse; or,
• required by a court of law. 

While in such cases the rules of confidentiality may be broken in order to protect an individual's and/or individuals' safety, the Counseling Center staff is committed to making every effort to notify you prior to any action being taken.