Following a national search, the University of South Carolina School of Medicine Columbia has announced that Dr. Paul Toriello has been selected as the assistant dean for clinical graduate programs. He will also be appointed as a clinical professor in the Department of Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.
Dr. Toriello has served as the Chair of the Department of Addictions and Rehabilitation Studies at East Carolina University since 2012, where he also held an academic appointment at the rank of professor. Prior leadership roles at East Carolina University include five years as Director of the PhD in Rehabilitation Counseling and Administration program and three years as Interim Assistant Dean for Research and Grant Administration in the College of Allied Health Sciences.
As Chair of a department with four degree and four certificate programs, Dr. Toriello led his team through accreditation by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs. He also served as a founding member of his college’s Task Force for Interdisciplinary Education. Dr. Toriello is also the author of over 30 peer-reviewed publications, one edited book, and has chaired 11 dissertations.
In the field of research and patient care, he has started two student-operated, faculty-directed counseling clinics, and has a long history of successful funding for research grants focused on innovative interventions for persons with co-occurring addictions and mental health issues. Dr. Toriello has taught broadly at the undergraduate, master's, and doctoral levels over the past two decades. He is the past president of the American Rehabilitation Counseling Association.
Dr. Toriello received his B.A. in psychology, followed by a Masters of Rehabilitation Counseling, from Wright State University. He received his Doctor of Rehabilitation, with specialization in addictions, from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1998. He holds state licenses as an Addictions Counselor-Supervisor and Professional Counselor, and national certification as a Rehabilitation Counselor.
Dr. Toriello will begin his new role at the USC School of Medicine Columbia on Aug. 1, 2023, working closely with the leaders of our four clinical graduate programs (Physician Assistant, Nurse Anesthesia, Genetic Counseling, and Rehabilitation Counseling) to provide leadership and oversight of these programs.