By Esther Hoffman, junior

Casado Campus Center has many untapped resources, and one of them is tucked into the corner of the lower level.

Andrea Taylor, the new director of counseling and international adviser, has a small office in the student affairs suite next to the nurse’s office.

She’s been at Friends University since July 6 and has already played a part in student life events. Students may have noticed international flags flying in the Rose Window Plaza for international education week; Taylor helped design a contest for how many of those flags students can name.

A Wichita native, Taylor has a great appreciation for Friends. She took classes here during her first year of college. She went to Wichita State University for her bachelor’s degree in clinical psychology, Emporia State for her master’s, and interned at WSU’s counseling center, where she worked with students and faculty on mental health issues.

When Taylor saw the job on Friends’ Web site, she jumped at it. And she’s glad she got the job.

“It was a nice transition to go from a larger university to one a little bit smaller,” Taylor said.

She also enjoys the variety of her new job.

“I wear two different hats,” she said.

As an international adviser, she works with international students who are here on student visas and helps them comply with government rules so they can continue to study in the U.S.

“She keeps in contact with those students enrolled in the three colleges and at all locations,” said Carole Obermeyer, vice president of student affairs. “This is no small task and a very important support service.”

As the school’s first counselor in student affairs, she provides free, confidential counseling services to students who need someone to talk to. Many students, she said, “are dealing with a lot of things: depression, anxiety, school issues, relationship issues.”

Taylor hopes to expand the counseling office to benefit more students.

“It’s such a great resource and a lot of students don’t know about it,” she said.

“A lot of times people are nervous about it, but it’s really just sitting down and talking with someone.”

This idea is supported by the setup of her office. It is simple but comforting. There is art on the wall, and there is no dramatic fainting couch, just two amply cushioned chairs in front of her desk.

During a counseling session, she sits at one of the chairs, providing an element of comfort to students, seeing that she is readily accessible instead of behind the desk.

Obermeyer said she is excited to have Taylor on the student affairs team.

“Her counseling services will support those already provided by the Marriage and Family Therapy graduate program along with adding other programs to help students in their transition,” Obermeyer said.