2012 NARACES Officer Elections - Candidate Statements
Below you will find the candidates for President-Elect and Secretary-Elect of NARACES. Online voting began on January 1, 2012 and will close on February 15, 2012. You should have received an email sent on January 1st with voting instructions; if you did not or experience other difficulty, contact tpoynton@suffolk.edu
Candidates for President-Elect - Patricia Goodspeed-Grant and Tracey Robert
Patricia Goodspeed-Grant
Patricia Goodspeed-Grant, Ed.D., is a Nationally Certified Counselor and licensed Mental Health Counselor in New York. She is an associate professor at the College at Brockport, State University of New York. She has been Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee for the New York Mental Health Counseling Association, served as secretary for the Greater Rochester Region New York Mental Health Counseling Association, and is currently serving her second term as Treasurer of Association for Adult Development and Aging. Research and writing interests focus on problem eating, obesity, the social and cultural foundations of emotional eating, and issues before and after bariatric surgery. She has written a book chapter on the social class in counseling, which is currently being revised (Culturally Alert Counseling, ‘Social Class’, Garrett McAuliffe, Ed.). She has made many presentations in the international arena, and worked as a visiting research fellow at the University of Hertforedshire, UK, conducting a qualitative analysis of a project involving psychotherapy with morbidly obese women. Her current research has been a phenomenological study of students of color in a counselor education program. Her areas of practice have included working with adults in career transition, college counseling, substance abuse counseling, and emotional eating. She maintains a small private practice.
Vision:
I have always felt a close connection with NARACES, and am truly honored to have been nominated for the office of President. I have found this group, more than any other professional organization of which I have been a part, to be warm, welcoming, and inclusive. I envision NARACES offering support and mentorship to supervisors, students, practitioners and faculty around research. In particular, I have found the qualitative research methodologies to be very closely aligned with the training and interests of professional counselors. Further, I believe that practice and research must be closely linked, as one informs the other. My vision is to initiate a research mentorship program at the Master’s level that brings together researchers and practitioners and to recognize this effort by instituting a master’s level research award. I believe the NARACES journal is a very important vehicle for disseminating such practitioner-based knowledge.
___________________________________________
Tracey Robert
Tracey E. Robert, Ph.D., LPC, NCCC is an associate professor in counselor education and director of clinical training, School of Graduate Education & Allied Professions, Fairfield University, Fairfield. CT and a licensed professional counselor and a nationally certified counselor with a designated career specialty. She is past-President of the Association of Spiritual, Ethical and Religious Values in Counseling (ASERVIC). She is a member of ACES, NCDA, NARACES, CACES, CCA. She has served as secretary for NARACES and chair of the program review for the 2010 NARACES conference. Her areas of scholarly research are clinical supervision, spirituality and work. Robert designed and developed a certificate in integrating spirituality and religion into counseling as an outcome of her research. Recent presentations and publications include: Gatekeeping: Three Institutions’ Methods of Establishing Personal and Professional Student Competencies; Spirituality and Professional Collegiality.
Vision:
NARACES has been an important part of my professional and personal life, enhancing my journey as a counselor educator, clinical supervisor and practitioner. During my presidency I would like to continue NARACES’ mission to support quality education and supervision in all specialty areas of counselor education.
Our online journal has been showcasing our members’ scholarly research and practice experience. I strong support this effort and hope to see more members contribute ideas and manuscripts. The integration of practice and research has long been a tradition at NARACES conferences and the journal continues to enhance this effort.
The graduate student participation has been growing under the past leadership and I hope to continue to encourage and welcome new professionals and emerging leaders to join NARACES. The opportunity to engage with leaders in the field and network with other programs is part of the professional development focus that NARACES offers.
The collegiality of NARACES members has always been a support to me in my research, teaching and practice. I hope to continue to foster collaboration, connection and the spirit of NARACES.
Candidates for Secretary-Elect - Megan Krell and Torey Portrie-Bethke
Megan Krell
Megan Krell, Ph.D., NCC is an assistant professor of counseling and human services at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts. Megan received her doctoral degree in counselor education and counseling psychology from the University of Connecticut in May 2011. Megan’s research interests include college and career readiness counseling, equitable counseling for individuals with disabilities, and student internship supervision. Megan was named a center fellow by the Center for School Counseling Outcome Research and Evaluation (CSCORE) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She served as the NARACES graduate student representative for the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 academic years.
Since completing her doctoral degree, Megan has remained connected to NARACES by serving as the communications chair, where her role is to create outreach materials for the current membership and potential new members.
Megan was also named a 2011 Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES) Emerging Leader.
Vision:
The leadership and membership of NARACES have been solid supports and mentors for me as a student and new professional. As the NARACES secretary-elect, my mission will be to extend this support to other members, and establish connections with counselor educators, supervisors, and students in the region who are not active members. My vision is that NARACES will be a leader in member outreach and use new technology initiatives to increase our accessibility. Additionally, I value and seek to continue our commitment to establishing relevant and enriching member resources. My goal is that NARACES will continue as leaders in outcome research and advocates of social justice and equity issues. I am committed to the NARACES mission, and with my previous experience in the organization, the position represents a well-suited match and natural next step for me personally and professionally. Thank you very much for considering me for this position.
___________________________________________
Torey Portrie-Bethke
I am an assistant professor at Antioch University New England in the Department of Applied Psychology in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. I completed my MCoun and Ph.D. degrees from Idaho State University with a focus in Couple, Marriage, and Family Counseling/Mental Health Counseling, and Counselor Education and Counseling.
I have been committed and actively involved in our profession through membership of ACA, multiple ACA divisions, and AMHCA. I have served for several years as an essay evaluator for ACA, proposal evaluator for ACES and ICA, and I currently serve as an editorial board member the Professional Issues in Counseling Journal. I am most proud of my involvement with counseling masters and doctoral students, as I have mentored students in creating presentation proposals and co-presenting with me at ACA, ACES, and AMHCA. In addition to connecting counseling student to our professional organizations, I have co-written with several of my students in ACA professional journals and book chapters.
Vision:
NARACES facilitates professional connections and supports the development of our professional aspirations and goals. I am delighted and honored to be nominated for NARACES secretary as I am grateful for the opportunity to be in a leadership role among dedicated professionals advocating and serving our profession.
As a supervisor and an assistant professor for counseling masters’ students, I am personally and professionally impacted by how counselor educators and supervisors shape the direction of the profession. My goals as NARACES secretary would be to develop initiatives for NARACES to be responsive to the needs of counselor educators, supervisors, and students, identify ways to strengthen our leadership in the realm of scholarship and professional and community service, build collaborative partnerships with other regional divisions of ACES, and continue to create a legacy of leadership that is proactive, inclusive, and innovative. I appreciate your consideration of my nomination.
