University of North Texas

Four faculty members and four students from the College of Education were honored at the American Counseling Association’s annual conference in Cincinnati. In addition, the UNT chapter of Chi Sigma Iota, the international honor society of professional counseling, also received recognition at the conference.

Delini Fernando and Casey Barrio Minton, right, both associate professors of counseling and higher education, earned the 2013 American Counseling Association’s Best Practices Award.

The award recognizes faculty members whose research added to the base of evidence for a counseling practice or approach. Their project was titled “Relative Significance of Professional Counseling Journals,” which was published in 2011 in ACA's flagship Journal of Counseling and Development. Fernando and Barrio Minton used innovative methodology to establish the relative impact of the primary journals in the counseling field.

Barrio Minton also won the 2012 Publication in Counselor Education and Supervision Award. Her collaborative book is titled “Professional Counseling Excellence through Leadership and Advocacy,” for which she served as second editor. The award honors a significant publishing effort by an ACES member focusing on the education and supervision of counselors within the last two years. The book is the first to address leadership and advocacy competencies for counseling practice, supervision, education and research.

Janice Holden, right, chair of the Department of Counseling and Higher Education and professor in counseling, earned the Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling’s (ASERVIC’s) Research Award.

Award winners are engaged in research that promotes ASERVIC’s values for the counseling profession. They are recognized for their contributions that support spiritual, ethical and religious values in counseling.

Sue Bratton, professor of counseling and higher education and director of the Center for Play Therapy, also received the Best Practices and Humanistic Educator/Supervisor awards.

Rho Kappa, the UNT chapter of Chi Sigma Iota, earned the 2013 Award for Outstanding Chapter from Chi Sigma Iota Counseling Academic & Professional Honor Society International. Barrio Minton serves as the faculty advisor to the Rho Kappa chapter.

The award was given to the chapter for demonstration of excellence through the successful retention and active engagement of members, strong organizational structure and leadership, production of newsletters and other forms of communication and media, and coordination of activities that promote CSI goals.

The following students received awards:

• Jennifer Isabelle Ong Pei Ling of Singapore, a master’s student in the counseling program, received the 2013 Award for Outstanding Entry Level Student. The award recognizes a CSI member who has demonstrated excellence in academics, service to the counseling profession and service to his/her local CSI chapter as evidenced in his/her grade-point average, professional vita and letters of recommendation.
• Doctoral student Hayley Stulmaker of Dallas was selected as Leadership Fellow and Intern for 2013-14. Stulmaker is the president-elect of Rho Kappa, and for the past two years has led committees for the chapter and served as an essay contest reviewer for CSI International. She is one of10 active members selected to participate as Leadership Fellows. The 10 leadership fellows receive recognition, specialized leadership training and financial support to attend CSI activities held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the American Counseling Association. Leadership Fellow nominees must be members of CSI and have the support of their chapter, including endorsement by the chapter faculty advisor, and a commitment for a matching fund award from their chapter.
• Doctoral student Jennifer Ware of Plano was selected as one of 10 Leadership Fellows for 2013-14. Ware has led several committees for the Rho Chapter during her doctoral study at UNT. Throughout this service and scholarship, Ware also maintained an extensive commitment to clinical work and becoming a strong supervisor.
• Doctoral student Kimberly Jayne of Albuquerque received the Association for Humanistic Counseling’s Make A Difference Grant to support her dissertation research: “Congruence, Unconditional Positive Regard and Empathic Understanding in Child-Centered Play Therapy.” She was honored for conducting research founded on humanistic principles and designed to expand the counseling knowledge base. 

“Our UNT counseling program has a long history of national recognition, a history made possible by our dedicated and productive students,” said Minton. “The individuals being honored by CSI have shown sustained dedication to excellence in their academic studies, co-curricular involvement and professional engagements. In all cases, they have committed years to serving our program, students and alumni, and the most recent recognitions reflect this service alongside our collective belief that they have much potential to promote wellness and human dignity at UNT and beyond.”

 - Olmar Vanegas, News Promotions