Dr. Chris Brownson

Dr. Chris Brownson is the Associate Vice President for Health and Well-being at The University of Texas at Austin. His portfolio includes University Health Services, the Counseling and Mental Health Center, Recreational Sports, the Longhorn Wellness Center, Disability and Access, the Disability Cultural Center, the Center for Students in Recovery, and SHIFT. He is a licensed psychologist and a Clinical Professor in the Counseling Psychology Program in the Department of Educational Psychology at UT. Dr. Brownson is the director of the National Research Consortium of Counseling Centers in Higher Education, and his research interests include systems of mental health care, college student suicide prevention, collaborative care models in primary care, and the intersection of mental health and academic success. Dr. Brownson was appointed as a Chancellor’s Health Fellow at the University of Texas System in 2014, and he has since led projects totaling more than $28M implementing numerous mental health, student safety, well-being, alcohol and drug-related prevention, education, and intervention programs at the 14 academic and health institutions of the UT System. In 2019, he was appointed by the National Academies of Sciences to the Committee on Supporting the Whole Student: Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Well-being in Higher Education. Brownson is the past president of the Texas University and College Counseling Center Director's Association and a past chair of the Higher Education Mental Health Alliance, the Section on College and University Counseling Centers of APA's division of Counseling Psychology, and the Mental Health Section of the American College Health Association (ACHA). He is a past member of the Board of Directors of ACHA. He has been a program evaluator for several SAMHSA/GLS suicide prevention grants, consults with colleges and universities on their counseling and health services, and was the National Mental Health Consultant to Teach for America from 2006-2016.