Confidential Care and Counseling
Students seek out chaplains for care and counsel. Students bring to chaplains experiences, concerns, and questions of every kind, whether academic, personal, social, cultural, or spiritual and religious in nature. Chaplains extend the same positive regard to every student and seek to listen attentively and advise carefully. Students of every spiritual, religious, and nonreligious worldview seek out chaplains for support, guidance, or referrals around college programs, policies, and resources.
Designated chaplains offer persons who seek care and counsel the highest level of confidentiality granted personnel at the college. This becomes especially important when students wish to share particularly difficult experiences or disclose sensitive information. Designated chaplains are spiritual and religious life personnel with qualifying education, training, and standing. Designated chaplains and members of the counseling and wellness center with professional licenses have what is called ‘privileged communications’ status (see below from the Trinity College Policy on Sexual Misconduct):
Professional Counselors and Designated Chaplains: Privileged Communications
Members of the Counseling Center with professional licenses, or who are supervised by such a person in a clinical capacity, and designated College chaplains are subject to recognized privileges that ethically prohibit them from disclosing information provided to them in their professional capacities. As such, clinical counselors may not disclose privileged information told to them, in confidence, to anyone unless there is an imminent threat to life or safety. In cases of sexual misconduct involving adults, designated chaplains may not disclose information shared with them in confidence.
The Rev. Marcus Halley, college chaplain and dean of spiritual and religious life, is the designated chaplain currently on campus. To make an appointment with him, reach out via email ([email protected]), or by calling his office number 860-297-2013. Chaplain Halley’s office is located in the Chapel, up the main aisle, and through the gate on the right.
For more information about Title IX at Trinity College, please refer to the webpage and the Your Rights, Your Options handbook.
