Though she has now been part of the Utah Law community for nearly four years, Cierra Collum, a licensed marriage and family therapist, started her career in community mental health in Michigan. She then took a job with a nonprofit prevention program that partnered with the Department of Juvenile Justice in Orlando, Florida, offering systemic therapy for and supporting individuals and families, before working in private practice for a few years.
“I worked primarily with people who were in high-stress, high-demand careers—quite a few attorneys, some physicians and healthcare providers—who weren’t prioritizing their own mental health and the demands the career had on them,” Collum recalls. “That experience, along with some of my other background experiences, really helped me understand the law student population. I saw attorneys who were really struggling from not doing some proactive mental health work, and that helped lay the foundation for working with students today.”
Connecting with clients, staff and faculty at Utah Law
In 2021, Collum’s partner got a job with the University of Utah and also began a PhD program. She relocated to Utah with him and began interviewing for jobs. When she saw the embedded role within the College of Law, she knew her background would make her a good fit.
“I appreciate how the law school has prioritized getting a therapist. It was one of the first colleges at the university to advocate for one,” she recalls. “I so enjoy this population and love working with law students. I realize I’m in a unique and privileged position to see the depths of these students, the grit and resiliency they show.”
Because law students are already doing really hard things, Collum notes that she’s also impressed with her clients’ willingness to face discomfort and to be vulnerable.
“A lot of students are willing to do this emotional, hard work to hopefully provide some relief for them. Think about the ways human beings move toward strategies to help us survive or thrive in life. For a lot of law students, that strategy could look like intellect or achievement, things that were expected of them and ways that they were noticed or special. They excelled in that, and it’s gotten them to where they’re at now,” she says. “I love being part of the process where I see my clients work to expand their views of self beyond what they can do for others and what they can provide others.”
Collum also appreciates Utah Law’s willingness to innovate and make changes based on her feedback.
“The faculty and staff are collaborative. They include me in conversations, and—while obviously maintaining client confidentiality—I’m able to comment on vague trends that I’m seeing, times of the year that are really stressful for students, ways that we might be able to approach things differently,” she says. “I’ve had several faculty members approach me to discuss ways that they can increase wellness in the classroom. Being a part of solutions and collaborations with the staff and faculty has been really rewarding.”
Providing free support throughout law school
While Collum works in the University of Utah Counseling Center on Mondays, she is available in the College of Law the rest of the week and encourages students to make an appointment.
“I can’t think of other situations or circumstances where therapy is free, so take advantage of this resource. There’s no problem that’s too small. Sometimes I hear that as a barrier: ‘Well, I’m not in crisis,'” she says. “I talk about anything and everything with clients. Very rarely is it only about academics. It’s more about the life someone’s living that they need support with, whether it’s from the past or present, or stress about the future as well.”
Mental health impacts everything we do, Collum says, including the decisions we make and our capacity.
“When we have lower capacity, we’re not showing up in ways we want to—and then we might judge and be cruel to ourselves because of that, which just keeps us stuck in that place,” she says. “Mental health also affects how we relate to others. If you have a lower capacity, it can be really isolating because of the competitive nature of this environment. The metacognition piece of therapy—being aware of what our thoughts are and how that influences our views of ourself, our future, other people, and our decision-making—is an interesting thing to explore in therapy.”
Students often tell Collum they waited to go to therapy because they thought of it as another thing they had to put on their plate. She wants to reframe this way of thinking.
“Therapy and counseling can help us manage what’s on our plate better. Rather than thinking about putting something on, think about taking something off. It’s like realizing you were wearing a weighted vest and had no idea. You didn’t have to be living that way,” she says. “Therapy shouldn’t be overwhelming. It’s important to me that I go at each person’s pace within their capacity.”
Since she is not an attorney or part of the legal field—which she believes is a strength in her profession—Collum can also help clients adopt a different perspective of themselves.
“I want to see people as human beings rather than roles and expectations and law students. I think it’s helpful to zoom out from what they’re working on and what they’re consumed by and remember that they’re a human being at the end of the day and deserving of that support,” she says.
And that support continues if students need counseling after leaving Utah Law as well.
“I’ve had clients from two years ago who reached out and asked about resources and referrals,” she says. “I’m always happy to help even after graduation, connecting you with someone.”
Increasing availability for Utah Law students
Cierra Collum is available in person at the College of Law from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays and online on Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“Utah Law was the first college within the university to expand and extend availability to their students,” she says. “This last school year, I doubled my time at the law school, so I’m much more accessible and available to the students. It’s been cool to see Dean Kronk Warner and Dean Burton advocating for more availability here.”
To make an appointment, email Collum or call the counseling center at 801-581-6826 to schedule an initial consultation.