Get to Know Leslie Cochrane

The old saying about 'it's not really work if you enjoy what you do' used to seem like a fantasy to me. But when you love your work as much as I do, it is truth.   

Becoming a professional counselor wasn’t something I planned for when I was younger. I followed my husband as his career advanced and we moved around this country and even the country of Mexico. After our daughter was born we settled down a bit and stayed in the US. In all of the cities, we were involved at a local church and I made my gifts and talents available, including to help plant an inner-city church in St. Louis. When my husband retired we returned home to Marshall County and I began working on staff at a local church, where once again I found myself filling the role of an advisor.
Back then, I wasn’t trained as a professional counselor. All I had was life experiences and the guidance of God. But people who needed someone to just listen to them were coming to me for advice. Maybe they were going through premarital counseling, making decisions about school or a career, becoming a parent, or dealing with some of the tougher stuff in life like saving a marriage, beating an addiction, losing a family member, or a child just out of control. They needed someone they could trust to confide in.
Seeing such a big need, feeling that God had called me to this work, I enrolled in a master’s program to become a licensed counselor. I thought that getting professional skills would allow me to give people the help they need to live a joyful and balanced life. I was certainly not the first to realize that people perish for lack of knowledge. The Lord showed me that people need what I call 'wise science with a big heart'. Wise Science - Big Heart brings together four corners of building positive change to build a better life. Wisdom of our founders, cutting-edge psychology, love of our neighbors, and most importantly love of something greater than ourselves, these are the four corners of Wise Science - Big Heart.
Becoming a professional counselor takes a lot of time and effort. It involves 6 years of college and at least 2 years of hands-on learning under the supervision of a licensed professional counselor (LPC).
I graduated from the University of Alabama (Roll Tide) with a B.A. in Art History. Later, after several years, I went to Alabama A&M and graduated with my Masters of Science in Counseling Psychology in May 2019. I started my counseling career by providing Geriatric Therapy for Mountain Lakes Behavioral Health Care. The Covid Pandemic caused many changes to the geriatric environment, and an opportunity to join the Dayspring team opened up. 
During the ALC training phase, I did weekly one-on-one training with a LPC supervisor for two years and I counseled a large number of diverse clients. This experience provided me with additional skills in family, individual and trauma counseling. I documented 3,000 hours of supervised counseling at Dayspring and then passed the state exam to become a Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it.
On January 1, 2025, I became the Executive Director of Dayspring Center for Christian Counseling. It’s been a great journey, and I’m excited to continue helping people to find hope and healing.