Catharina Chang began her master's degree with a clear goal: To become a counselor, where she could directly serve her clients' health and wellness needs.

 

But after teaching a couple of undergraduate and graduate courses, she saw the benefits of becoming a counselor educator at the university level. 

 

"I found that I really loved being in the classroom," said Chang, associate professor in the College of Education's Department of Counseling and Psychological Services. "It was interesting because the goals are the same. As a practitioner, I wanted to make a difference in people's lives and help people work toward their personal health and wellness. As a teacher, I get to do the same thing."

 

She earned her master's and doctoral degrees from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro in 1995 and 1998, respectively, and worked at Clemson University for two years before accepting a job at Georgia State University.

 

As the program coordinator for the Counselor Education and Practice program, Chang teaches, supervises and advises graduate and doctoral students, putting an emphasis on multicultural competence and social justice issues.  

 

"If I'm working with master's students, it's more geared toward direct service. How can they be more culturally competent as counselors? How can they have the skills and knowledge to work with a diverse population?" she explained. "With doctoral students-because the majority of them go on to become faculty members-it's more about how to integrate that component into your research and teaching."

  

For more information about Chang's work in the COE, click here.

 

Photo caption: Catharina Chang served on the planning committee for the COE's Blurring Boundaries international conference earlier this year, which prepared her for her newest role as the college's director of international programs.