Kathryn Newton, Ph.D.
Dr. Kathryn Newton is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling and College Student Personnel. She joined the faculty in 2007 and specializes in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Courses taught include Introduction to Helping Services, Professional Orientation to Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Multicultural Counseling, Counseling Strategies and Techniques, and supervision of clinical experiences (practicum and field). In her work as a counselor educator and supervisor, Kathryn takes a holistic and humanistic approach to growth and learning. She values experiential and process-oriented approaches that both challenge and inspire students. Kathryn encourages students to see themselves as an integral part of their communities, and to take an active role in community advocacy and education.
Kathryn’s wide-ranging professional experience is unified by her deep interest in human narratives and transitional processes. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, San Diego, in English and American Literature. She has trained and worked in international environmental exchange programs, remedial/accelerated learning, and has been certified as a yoga instructor and yoga therapy practitioner. She maintained a professional yoga therapy practice in the Berkshires (Massachusetts) for seven years, and continues to integrate this background in her teaching and training. The field of counseling provided Kathryn with an opportunity to integrate these diverse professional experiences with her growing interest in social advocacy. She completed an MS in Professional Counseling (2004) and a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision (2008) at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. During her graduate studies, she provided clinical mental health and substance abuse treatment services at a community mental health center serving low-income children, adults, and families.
Her published works include a textbook chapter on Social Class and Classism (Developing Multicultural Counseling Competence: A Systems Approach, Hays & Erford, 2010, 2014); and co-authorship of Gender, Sexual Orientation and Wellness: Research Implications (Counseling for Wellness: Theory, Research, and Practice, Myers & Sweeney, 2005). Her doctoral research was qualitative in nature and followed an advocacy research model. Her completed study - African American Women's Perceptions of and Experiences with Mandated Substance Abuse Treatment: Implications for Counselors - is available electronically.
Kathryn is continuing to develop her advocacy work with individuals and groups who have been socially and economically marginalized due to race, ethnicity, sexual and gender identity, and social class status. Her service to the profession and community has included national, state, local and university leadership in GLBT advocacy. Kathryn offers diversity competence consultation and supervision to professionals and organizations. She is a sought-after professional trainer on topics that have included Motivational Interviewing, integrating neuroscience with counseling practices, wellness and mindfulness practices, vicarious trauma and professional self-care.
Kathryn resides in Carlisle with her daughter and a collection of cats. She and her daughter share a love for dance, art, reading, and water – swimming and kayaking are favorite summer activities. Her daughter is a budding activist and is often the inspiration for Kathryn’s latest advocacy project. Both have adventurous palates and you may find them at the local sushi bar “tasting new tastes.”