Eighteen members of EPC were commended at the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences Faculty and Staff Recognition Ceremony on April 27, 2017.

To see photos from the event, please go to the “EPC at the 2017 CEHHS Faculty & Staff Recognition Ceremony” album on our EPC Facebook page.

Awards

College Senate Departmental Staff Award
Recognizes a departmental-level non-exempt staff person who has provided exceptional contributions to his/her department (going above & beyond job expectations to accommodate students and faculty, contributing to a positive and supportive work culture and environment).

April Phillips
Administrative Coordinator III

Helen B. Watson Faculty/Student Award for Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation
Awarded to a student and the faculty member who directed the outstanding doctoral dissertation within the departments of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies; Educational Psychology and Counseling; Kinesiology, Recreation, and Sport Studies; or Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.

Helen B. Watson Outstanding Faculty Research Award
Awarded to a full-time faculty member or team within the departments of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies; Educational Psychology and Counseling; Kinesiology, Recreation, and Sport Studies; or Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.

Robert L. Williams
Professor in School Psychology

“I deeply appreciate the initiative of close colleagues in transmitting information regarding my work to the College Senate for consideration for the two awards I received.”

John H. Tunstall Outstanding Faculty Award
Awarded to an outstanding faculty member who is involved in the preparation of teachers, administrators, or others entering the field of education. The faculty member shall have a distinguished record in teaching, research, or community service or any combination of the three.

Lauren Moret
Assistant Professor in Evaluation, Statistics & Measurement

John H. Tunstall Outstanding Staff Award
Awarded annually to a staff member who has executed their duties in an exemplary manner in support of those programs which prepare “teacher, administrators, or others entering the field of education.”

Synthia Clark
Administrative Specialist I

“Being part of Let’s Talk QUAL with with Lauren and Duncan has been such a pleasurable and rewarding experience! This initiative has pushed my design, research, and presentation skills.

Louie M. and Betty M. Phillips Faculty Support in Education Award
Awarded to a faculty member in the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences related to the preparation of teachers involved in K-12 education. This award serves to highlight outstanding research and teaching efforts.

Robert L. Williams
Professor in School Psychology

“I deeply appreciate the initiative of close colleagues in transmitting information regarding my work to the College Senate for consideration for the two awards I received.”

Recognition

Casey A. Barrio Minton
Associate Professor in Counselor Education

– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Counselor Leadership & Advocacy
– Recognized under Presidents of National/International Professional Organizations for being President-Elect of Southern Association of Counselor Education & Supervision
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for Arthur A. Hitchcock Distinguished Professional Service Award from American Counseling Association

Synthia Clark
Administrative Specialist I

– Recognized under Support Staff Awards and Certifications for UT Employee and Organizational Development Certificates in Customer Relations and Communications

Gail Cope
Center for Literacy, Education & Employment

– Recognized under 2016-17 Faculty & Staff Retirements (1977-2017)

Lisa Crawford
Associate Director of Center for Literacy, Education & Employment

– Recognized under Grants and Contracts Recipients for the Tennessee Department of Education Regional Educator Summits, SCORE, $281,672

Melinda M. Gibbons
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in Counselor Education

– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Associate Editor of Professional School Counseling Journal

Aaron Kohring
Director of Center for Literacy, Education & Employment

– Recognized under UT Support Staff Service Awards for fifteen years of service

Robert Kronick
Professor in Counselor Education & Director of University-Assisted Community Schools

– Recognized under Chancellor’s Honors Awards for the Excellence in Academic Outreach

R. Steve McCallum
Professor for School Psychology

– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Co-Founder & Consulting Editor of Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment
– Recognized under Authors/Editors of Books and Assessments for Handbook of Nonverbal Intelligence (2^nd ed). New York: Springer.
– Recognized under Recipients of National/International Professional Awards for Distinguished Alumni Award from University of Georgia

S. Wayne Mulkey
Clinical Professor & Co-Program Coordinator in Rehabilitation Counseling

– Recognized under Chancellor’s Honors Awards for the Extraordinary Service to the University

April Phillips
Administrative Coordinator III

– Recognized under 2016-17 Faculty & Staff Retirements (1983-2017)

Shawn L. Spurgeon
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

– Recognized under Presidents of National/International Professional Organizations for being Board of Directors of National Board for Certified Counselors
– Recognized under Presidents of National/International Professional Organizations for being Past-President of Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision

Qi Sun
Program Coordinator & Associate Professor in Adult Learning

– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Co-Editor of Journal of Research and Theory

Barbara Thayer-Bacon
Program Coordinator & Professor in Learning Environments & Educational Studies/Cultural Studies of Educational Foundations

– Recognized under Editors/Co-Editors of Peer Reviewed Publications for being Editor-in-Chief of Studies in Philosophy and Education
– Recognized under Authors/Editors of Books and Assessments for Relational Ontologies. New York: Peter Lang Publishers.
– Recognized under Chancellor’s Honors Awards for the Excellence in Advising Award

Laura S. Wheat
Assistant Professor in Counselor Education & Coordinator of Grief Outreach Initiative

– Recognized under Chancellor’s Honors Awards for the Extraordinary Community Service Award

Connie White
Associate Director of School & Family Programs for Center for Literacy, Education & Employment

– Recognized under Grants and Contracts Recipients for the Tennessee State Personnel Development Grant, Tennessee Department of Education, $2,332,268
– Recognized under UT Support Staff Service Awards for twenty-five years of service

The Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling wants to congratulate the graduates from nine of our programs who earned their degrees during the summer 2016 semester.

To see photos of our recent graduates, please go to the “EPC Graduates” album on our EPC Facebook page.

Frederick Lagmay Acosta
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Valerie Karen Ambrose
PhD in Educational Psychology and Research – Adult Learning

Sheri K. Anderson
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Karen Lea Baker
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Breanna Paige Banks
PhD in Counselor Education

Dareen Basma
PhD in Counselor Education

Megan Amber Blonder
PhD in School Psychology

James Call
MS in Education – Instructional Technology

Anthony Lavern Capers Jr.
MS in Educational Psychology – Adult Education

Jamie Michelle Cyphers
MS in Education – Instructional Technology

Andrea McMahan Damewood
PhD in Educational Psychology and Research – Adult Learning

Sherrie Lynn Fairchild-Keyes
MS in Education – Cultural Studies of Educational Foundations

Lynda M. Forrester
MS in Educational Psychology – Applied Educational Psychology

Elizabeth Ann Hays
PhD in School Psychology

Taotao Long
PhD in Education – Instructional Technology

Ashley Rai Roberts
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Joel Eddie Simmons Jr.
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Adam Forrest Stephens
PhD in Counselor Education

Cheryl Ann Tays
MS in Education – Instructional Technology

Eleanore Claire Trant
PhD in School Psychology

Laurie Ann Wade
MS in Counseling – Rehabilitation Counseling

Tiffany Lynn Watson
PhD in School Psychology

Beth Ann White
PhD in Educational Psychology and Research – Adult Learning

Destiny Nichole White
MS in Counseling – Clinical Mental Health Counseling

*If you are one of the graduates listed above and would like to have your photo added to our EPC Graduates Facebook album, then please email your picture to Synthia Clark sclark41@utk.edu.

**If you were an Educational Psychology and Counseling student who graduated during this time frame, yet have unintentionally been omitted from this list, please send your name, degree, and major/concentration to Synthia Clark sclark41@utk.edu. We will add you to the list after receiving this information from you and confirming your graduation status.

University-Assisted Community Schools (UACS) won a three-year $100,000 grant (totaling $300,000) from the United Way of Greater Knoxville.

“The grants were competitive and we got ours through hard work among the collaborative team.” – Bob Kronick, director of UACS

The grant was written by Bob Kronick, professor and director of UACS, Mark Benson, school coordinator of UACS, and Dareen Basma, Counselor Education PhD student. Through Catholic Charities of East Tennessee, United Way will award UACS a total of $300,000 over a three-year period.

UACS is an initiative to address unmet social, economic, and academic needs of Knoxville students and community members. They have two full-service community schools, one at Pond Gap Elementary School and a newer one at Inskip Elementary School. Funds from this grant will largely be used to hire staff to support the efforts at Inskip. The mission of UACS is to “create challenging learning opportunities for students to excel by providing a nurturing environment supported by the family, community, staff, and students.”

Counselor Education

Dareen is currently seeking her PhD in Counselor Education. Originally from Kuwait, she received her BS in Psychology, her MS in Mental Health Counseling, and came to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville for her PhD in 2013. We asked her to reflect on some of her past and current experiences. Read her responses below.

Accomplishments

Service Work

• School-Community Liaison at Inskip Elementary School
  University Assisted Community Schools Program
  • Inskip Elementary is a Title I school that is being transitioned to a full-service community school under the University Assisted Community School Model.
• Volunteer at Bridge Refugee Agency
  • Provide case management services to incoming families that include transportation, finding housing, employment services and applying for social security.

Manuscripts Under Review

• Basma, D., & Gibbons, M. M. An existential approach with Arab American immigrants. Submitted to Journal of Humanistic Counseling. February 2015.
• Basma, D., & Kronick, R. Lead, follow or get out of the way: The movement towards University Assisted Community Schools. Submitted to Universities and Community Schools November 2014.

Presentations

• Burgin, E., Banks, B., Basma, D. & Cochran, J. (March 2015). Avenues to Awareness: Wellness through Mindfulness, Art, and Culture. 90-minute workshop will be presented at 2015 Association for Humanistic Counseling Day of Wellness at American Counseling Association Conference. Orlando, FL: University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
• Basma, D. (February 2015). Plight of the Refugees: Implications For Counselors. 75-minute workshop will be presented at the 2015 Cross-Cultural Counseling and Education Conference for Research, Action, and Change. Savannah, GA: University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
• Basma, D., Banks, B. & Burch, T. (February 2015). A Dialogue Between Frankl and Buddha: Mindfulness Skills in Existential Counseling. 60-minute workshop will be presented at the 2015 Smokey Mountain Counseling Association. Jefferson City, TN: University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Invited Presentations

• Basma, D. (March, 2015). The Forgotten Three: Cross-cultural considerations when working with immigrants, refugees and undocumented youth and adult. 75 minute presentation in PSYCH 577: Multicultural Psychology: Research and Theory. University of Tennessee.
• Basma, D. (December, 2014). Migration Stressors and Trauma in Refugees and Asylum Seekers. 60 minute workshop. Catholic Charities. Nasvhille, Chattanooga and Knoxville, TN.
• Basma, D. (August 2014). Working with refugee populations in a community school setting. 60 minute presentation in COUN 404: Special Topics: Service Learning in the Community. University of Tennessee.

Refer to Curriculum Vita for more details

Personal Interests

My hobbies include reading, writing, painting, photography and eating (mainly eating). I also enjoy anything related to music and film. I have two sisters, an older one and a younger one, and they live in Kuwait with the rest of my family.

Future/Vocational Goals

My future goals involve teaching at a university level and continuing to work with refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented immigrant populations. I want my work and research to focus on immigration policies and the education system, addressing issues that prevent those populations from both assimilating and succeeding in the U.S. Ideally, I’d like to work on the development of community based school settings that target incoming immigrant populations (both youth and adult), providing them with a full range of resources that help ease the migration and acculturation process.

What sold you on this program?

The faculty. I knew I wanted to be a part of this program after the day of my interview, where I had met and spoken to all the faculty members in the department.

What is the best tidbit/find you have about Knoxville?

Knoxville has a lot of hole-in-the-wall type ethnic restaurants that are so much better than the typical restaurants you would run into!