A Belated Welcome to our New Faculty Member

Obviously this past spring was a busy one!  With no time to write blog entries, the department faculty members kept ourselves very busy hiring a new full time faculty member.  If you haven't met her already, please stop by Plummer House and introduce yourself to Professor LeLaina Romero.

Professor Romero, a Counseling Psychologist from Teachers College, Columbia Unversity, is teaching Introductory Psychology and the Internship Seminar this semester.  Her research and practice focus on well-being and thriving, particularly in low-income urban communities. She most recently completed her pre-doctoral internship at the University of Texas at Austin Counseling and Mental Health Center, where she worked extensively with diverse LGBT students, and is beginning post-doctoral training at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design Counseling Services. As a therapist, she comes from a feminist multicultural perspective, informed in part by relational cultural theory out of the Jean Baker Miller Training Institute at Wellesley College. In short, her counseling style centers on building empowering relationships with her clients.


Professor Romero's focus on social justice in enhancing well-being and promoting thriving has led her to engage in participatory action research (PAR). This type of research engages community members or participants throughout the research process, with the belief that they are the experts on their lives and needs. This research is applied in nature and in the best of circumstances leads to actions that community members and researchers take together to enhance the community and address social problems. Her interest in PAR began when she worked as a case manager and program evaluator focusing on developmental delays and child abuse prevention after college. She has co-authored book chapters, scholarly articles, and encyclopedia entries on PAR, poverty and social class, and multicultural counseling. She has also presented at several national conferences on topics such as interdisciplinary community collaborations and mindfulness as self-care.