I am currently an associate professor of Counseling Psychology in the Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). Prior to joining the University of Maryland in 2020, I was an associate professor of Psychology and co-founding director of the Critical Race Collective at the University of Tennessee.
My research is focused on investigating the impact of systemic racism and sexism (i.e., gendered racism) on the mental and physical health of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) women.
Within this line of research, I developed the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale (Lewis & Neville, 2015), a self-report measure to assess subtle gendered racism, which is one of the most widely used measures of intersectional microaggressions. I also investigate protective factors that buffer individuals against the harmful effects of racism and sexism, such as radical healing, collective coping, and resistance strategies. Recently, at the 2022 American Psychological Association (APA) Convention, I was awarded the Early Career Research Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions from the Society of Counseling Psychology (APA Division 17).
I have also engaged in social justice advocacy through my professional leadership roles. I am passionate about training the next generation of counseling psychologists in my role as co-director of training for the Counseling Psychology Doctoral Program at UMD. In this role, I have actively worked to infuse social justice advocacy training throughout the curriculum. I developed a social justice practicum course designed to increase students’ social justice awareness, knowledge, and consultation skills to partner with community-based organizations to better meet the needs of marginalized communities. I also served as the Past-President of the Psychology of Black Women (APA Division 35, Section I), where I was the Lead Coordinator of the Inaugural Psychology of Black Women Conference. As a result of these efforts, I was awarded the 2020 Emerging Leader for Women in Psychology Award from the Committee on Women in Psychology.
I chose the Counseling Psychology Doctoral Program at the University of Illinois based on the program’s strong commitment to social justice, equity, and inclusion. I feel grateful that I was able to receive high quality training and stellar mentorship from renowned scholars in the field, such as Dr. Helen Neville. I look forward to carrying on the legacy instilled in me by my Illinois mentors and nurturing the next generation of social justice advocates.
