Dr. Chris Brownson, a licensed psychologist, is the Associate Vice President for Health and Well-being in the Division of Student Affairs, Clinical Professor in Counseling Psychology, and former Director of the Counseling and Mental Health Center at The University of Texas at Austin. His portfolio includes University Health Services, the Counseling and Mental Health Center, Disability and Access, the Disability Cultural Center, the Longhorn Wellness Center, the Center for Students in Recovery, and SHIFT. Brownson was appointed as a Chancellor's Health Fellow at the University of Texas System in 2014, and continues to lead numerous projects totaling more than $32 million for mental health, student safety, well-being, and alcohol and drug-related prevention, education, and intervention programs for the 250,00+ students at the 14 academic and health institutions in the UT System.
Dr. Brownson earned his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology and Quantitative Methods and an M.A. in Program Evaluation, both from The University of Texas at Austin. In 2019, Brownson 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. He 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.
Brownson has been the director of the National Research Consortium of Counseling Centers in Higher Education since 2004. The research team that guides Research Consortium projects is comprised of graduate students and faculty from UT, and together they have conducted studies on student distress, suicide, and the intersection of well-being and academic success. His research team is currently studying the national mental health workforce shortage and its implications for higher education. As a part of this effort, Brownson is currently leading an innovative pilot at UT Austin to create a new bachelors level certification pathway within the mental health workforce to help address the provider shortage. The research team supports this project by generating evidence needed to ensure the pilots long-term scalability, sustainability, and impact on expanding access to mental health care.
Higher Education Representative,
Texas Suicide Prevention Council (2020 - Present)
Member,
Committee on Supporting the Whole Student: Mental Health, Substance Abuse, and Well-being in Higher Education, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2019 - 2021)
President,
Texas University Counseling Center Directors Association (2018 - 2019)
Member,
Task Force to Advance Mental Health Best Practices Strategies, NCAA (2017 - 2018)
Co-Chair,
Annual Conference Planning Committee, Association of University and College Counseling Center Directors (2017 - 2019)
Member,
Written Examination Committee, Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists (2016 - Present)
Editorial Board Member,
Editorial Board, Journal of College Student Psychotherapy (2015 - Present)
Project Advisor,
Publication Committee of Postvention: A Guide for Response to Suicide On College Campuses, Higher Education Mental Health Alliance (2013 - 2014)
Collaborator,
Publication Committee for Blanacing Safety and Support on Campus: A Guide for Campus Teams, Higher Education Mental Health Alliance (2011 - 2012)
Chair,
Higher Education Mental Health Alliance (2009 - 2011)
Representative,
Synarachy of Specialists in Counseling Psychology (2009 - 2012)
Chair,
Section of College and University Counseling Centers, Division 17, American Psychological Association (2009 - 2010)
Board Member,
Board of Directors, American College Health Association (2007 - 2009)
Chair,
Mental Health Section, American College Health Association (2006 - 2007)
Chair,
Mental Health Program Planning Committee, American College Health Associations Annual Conference (2005 - 2006)
Treasurer,
Section of Counseling Health Psychology, Division 17, American Psychological Association (2004 - 2006)
Co-chair,
Mental Health Program Planning Committee, American College Health Association Annual Conference (2004 - 2005)
Chair,
Membership Committee, APAs Div 17 Section for Counseling Health Psychology (2003 - 2004)
Consulting Editor,
Journal of American College Health (2003 - 2007)
Caporale-Berkowitz, N., Boyer, B., Muenks, K. & Brownson, C. (2022). Resilience, not Grit, Predicts Retention for Students Following Academic Probation. Journal of Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000721.
Wilson, T., Caporale-Berkowitz, N., Parent, M. & Brownson, C. (2021). Grit is associated with decreased mental health help-seeking among student veterans. Journal of American College Health, 70. doi:.
Blosnich, J., De Luca, S., Lytle, M. & Brownson, C. (2020). Questions of faith: Religious affiliations and suicidal ideation among sexual minority young adult. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 50, 1158-66.
De Luca, S., Lytle, M., Yueqi, Y. & Brownson, C. (2019). Help-seeking Behaviors and Attitudes of Emerging Adults: How College Students Utilize Internet and Traditional Resources During Times of Distress. Journal of American College Health, 68, 250-57.
Lytle, M., Blosnich, J., De Luca, S. & Brownson, C. (2018). Association of religiosity with sexual minority suicide ideation and attempt. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 54, 644-51.
Becker, M., Dong, S., Kronholz, J. & Brownson, C. (2018). Relationships between stress and psychosocial factors with sources of help seeking among international students. Journal of International Students, 8, 1636-61.
Baams, L., De Luca, S. & Brownson, C. (2018). Use of health services among college students by sexual identity. LGBT Health, 5, 1-10.
Drum, D., Brownson, C., Hess, E., Burton Denmark, A. & Talley, A. (2017). College students sense of coherence and connectedness as predictors of suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Archives of Suicide Research, 21, 169-184.
DeLuca, S., Franklin, C., Yueqi, Y., Johnson, S. & Brownson, C. (2016). The relationship between suicide ideation, behavioral health, and college academic performance. Community Mental Health Journal, 52(5), 534-540.
Brownson, C., Drum, D., Becker, M., Saathoff, A. & Hentschel, E. (2016). Distress and Suicidality in Higher Education: Implications for Population-Oriented Prevention Paradigms. Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 30, 98-113.
Tran, K., Wong, J., Cokley, K., Brownson, C., Drum, D., Awad, G. & Wang, M. (2015). Suicidal Asian American college students perceptions of protective factors: A qualitative study. Death Studies, 39, 500-507.
Lytle, M., De Luca, S., Blosnich, J. & Brownson, C. (2015). Associations of religious and racial/ethnic identities with suicidal ideations of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and questioning individuals. Journal of Affective Disorders, 178, 39-45.
Wong, Y., Brownson, C., Rutkowski, L., Nguyen, C. & Becker, M. (2014). A mediation model of professional psychological help seeking for suicide ideation among Asian American and White American college students. Archives of Suicide Research, 18, 259-73.
De Luca, S., Yueqi, Y., Lytle, M. & Brownson, C. (2014). The associations of race/ethnicity and suicidal ideation among college students: A latent class analysis examining precipitating events and disclosure patterns. Suicide and Life Threatening Behaviors, 44, 444-56.
Brownson, C., Becker, M., Shaddick, R., Jaggars, S. & Nitkin-Kaner, Y. (2014). Suicidal behavior and help seeking among diverse college students. Journal of College Counseling, 17, 116-30.
Brownson, C., Drum, D., Smith, S. & Denmark, A. (2011). Differences in suicidal experiences of male and female undergraduate and graduate students. Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 25, 277-94.
Wong, Y., Brownson, C. & Schwing, A. (2011). Risk and protective factors associated with Asian American students suicidal ideation: A multi-campus, national study. Journal of College Student Development, 52, 396-408.
Brownson, C. (2010). Conducting research in college and university counseling centers. Mental Health Care in the College Community (, pp. 325-42): John Wiley and Sons.
Drum, D., Brownson, C., Denmark, A. & Smith, S. (2009). New data on the nature of suicidal crises in college students: Shifting the paradigm. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 40, 213-22.
Morpeth, E., Boyer, B., Pitasky, S. & Brownson, C. (n.d.). Perfectionism typologies among undergraduate and graduate students: prevalence and associations with psychosocial adjustment and academic performance. Journal of American College Health. doi:.
