Name:  Valerie McGaha-Garnett
Position: Assistant Professor of Applied Health and Educational Psychology
Phone: (918) 594-8516
Office Location:Main Hall 2424

Office Mailing Address:
700 North Greenwood Avenue
Tulsa, OK  74106-0700

Email: Valerie.mcgaha@okstate.edu

Academic Degrees:

Texas Tech University, Ph.D in Educational Psychology,
Concentration:  Cognition, Motivation, and Development
Dissertation Title:  Teenage parenting and high school dropout:  Understanding students’ academic, social, and personal influences.

Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy
Concentration:  Relationships, College Adjustment, and Parenting Styles of Ethnic Minority
Thesis Manuscript:  Expanding horizons: Understanding marginality in higher education.

Research Interests:

• Multicultural Counseling
• Child Counseling
• Post-Partum Depression
• Adolescent Development
• Military Adjustment
• Romantic Relationships
• Substance Abuse
• At-Risk Adolescents
• Mandated Intervention

PUBLICATIONS

JOURNAL ARTICLES (REFEREED) 

McGaha, V., & Fitzpatrick, J. (2005).  Personal and social contributors to dropout risk for undergraduate students.  College Student Journal, 39, 287-297. 

JOURNAL ARTICLES (NON REFEREED)

McGaha, V., & Fitzpatrick, J. (2000).  Social adjustment of African-American and Caucasian-American undergraduate students.  McNair Scholars Journal (2000  Edition), 1-4.

MANUSCRIPTS UNDER REVIEW (REFEREED)

McGaha, V., & Fitzpatrick, J. (2007, May).  The role of personal and social factors in peer marginalization among college undergraduates.  Manuscript submitted to The Journal of College Student Development. 

Fitzpatrick, J., & McGaha, V. (2007, June).  The role of social competence and campus disconnectedness in undergraduates’ self-esteem.  Manuscript submitted to The College Student Affairs Journal. 

Courses Taught:

August, 2007 – Present

Assistant Professor of Applied Health and Educational Psychology
Oklahoma State University – Tulsa, OK.

• Multicultural Counseling
• Substance Abuse Counseling

October, 2004 – 2007
Pregnant Post/Partum Intervention - Managed Care Inc., Lubbock, TX.
Full Time Educational Facilitator

• Teach Motivation, Infant Development, and Parenting to adolescent mothers and fathersProvide counseling to individuals with disabilities
• Provide case management, client assessment and service planning to individuals and families with disabilities
• Address neuroscience and the four major developmental areas of newborns and toddlers:  Intellectual, motor, language, and social-emotional
• Responsible for course development and delivery for 96 students per year
• Implement lesson plans from an evidence-based curriculum, and coordinate alternative activities for youth and their identified support person.  Alternative activities are offered  through arts and crafts, picnics, and field trips in effort to address and support individual’s social skills and needs

Licensures

• Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC)
• Department of State and Health Services Substance Abuse Services- #10229
• Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)
• Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists - # 200947
• Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)
• Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors - #61935

Certifications

• Parent as Teachers, Parent Educator
• Parent as Teachers, Parent Educator Supervisor
• Nurturing Parenting Educator

HONORS AND AWARDS

• McNair Graduate Fellowship, The Graduate School, Texas Tech University - Lubbock, TX
• James Douglas and Mary Hazelwood Memorial Fellowship, The Graduate School, TexasTech University
• Excellence in Health and Social Service Endowment Fellowship, The Graduate School, Texas Tech University

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

• American Counseling Association - 2007
• American Educational Research Association (2006 – present)
• American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (2003-2007)
• Delta Sigma Theta Alumni (2000-present)
• National Black Graduate Student Association (1999-2001)
• Phi Upsilon Omnicron Nu (1999-2000)