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CURRICULUM VITAE
Elena Mustakova-Possardt, Ed.D.
Office Address: Department of Psychology University of West Georgia 105 Melson Hall Carrollton, GA 30118 Phone: 678-839-0602 E-mail: elenam@westga.edu
CURRENT POSITION
Associate Professor: Psychology Department, University of West Georgia
EDUCATION
1996 Ed.D. (Human Development), University of Massachusetts, Amherst
1983 M.A., English, Sofia University, Bulgaria
1982 B.A., English, Sofia University, Bulgaria
GRANTS, AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONSCarter Campus Community Partnership Award 2003 - $10 000. Awarded for founding the Latino Initiative of State University of West Georgia, aimed at applying the insights of critical and community psychology theory and praxis to assisting the new Latino immigrant population of rural Carroll County in its empowerment, in improving its quality of life, and integrating into the life of the larger community.
Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, 2003-2004.
Fund for Southern Communities Grant 2003 for developing community programs at the Latino Community Center in Carrollton, Georgia - $ 2500.
Mott Grant 2002 for Emerging Community Initiatives of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) - $7500, awarded for the consolidation and psycho-social strengthening of a Latino immigrant grassroots organization in Carroll County, established through Mott Grant 2001.
Mott Grant 2001 for Emerging Community Initiatives of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) - $9000, awarded for founding an immigrant Latino community development and action research project in West Georgia.
1998 Outstanding Dissertation Award of the Association for Moral Education, awarded for study entitled The Ontogeny of Critical Consciousness. The association is the leading international forum that focuses on moral development and moral education.
Henry A. Murray Dissertation Award, Radcliffe College, Harvard University, 1995. Granted to support cross-cultural research project on "Social Responsibility and Critical Consciousness in Bulgarian Midlifers", which explored adult social consciousness and citizenship in the context of economic, political, and social transformation.
First Prize in the Annual Faculty Survey of Scholarly Student Research, Sofia University, Bulgaria, 1984. Granted for Masters Thesis "The Fall of Selfhood: A Comparative Study of Renaissance and Romanticism", a study of modern consciousness.
ADDITIONAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Georgia Licensed Professional Counselor since December 2000 - Health Realization Cross-Cultural Individual and Community Counselor and Consultant Founder of Academic Service Learning Latino Initiative at School of Arts and Sciences, State University of West Georgia
EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
2004- Associate Professor: Psychology Department, State University of West Georgia
1997- 2003 Assistant Professor: Psychology Department, State University of West Georgia. Courses Taught: Community Psychology and Prevention (graduate), Cross-Cultural Community Development (graduate), Cross-Cultural Communication (senior/graduate), Lifespan Development (graduate), Health Realization Counseling and Psychotherapy (graduate), Counseling and Psychotherapy Process (graduate), Psychology of Mindfulness and Spiritual Development (senior/graduate), Moral and Social Development (senior/graduate), Eastern and Transpersonal Psychologies (senior/graduate), Human Growth and Development (undergraduate), Global Citizenship (undergraduate), Global Studies Capstone seminar (senior), XIDS: What Do You Know About the European Union, Personal Relationships (undergraduate).
2002- 2003 Associate Professor: Landegg International University, Wienacht, AR, Switzerland. MA Level Courses Taught: Principles of Spiritual Psychology (MA level), Qualitative Research, Psychopathology.
Theses and Dissertation Supervision
1999 Ph.D. Dissertation, Union Institute, Cincinnati, OH. The experience of participants after health realization training: a one- year follow up phenomenological study.
2001 M.A. Thesis, State University of West Georgia. Sujatha Venkatraman: Rethinking Participatory Approach to Social Change and Empowerment.
2003 M.A. Thesis, State University of West Georgia. Amy Bailey: Psychology and Global Change.
2003 M.A. Thesis, Landegg International University, Wienacht, Switzerland. Shalona Chandler-Merz: Chaos Theory and Psychology: The Dynamics of Chaos, its Similarity to the Psyche, and How it Can Be Applied in Psychological Therapy.
2005 M.A. Thesis, State University of West Georgia, Karen Lakes, The Role of Spirituality and Mindfulness Training for Chronic Healthcare Workers.
40998- Consultant and Trainer: Georgia Health Realization Center. Offered intensive continuing education credit workshops for helping professionals (counselors, marriage and family therapists, social workers, educators) in the greater Atlanta area and out of state. Workshops Taught: - The Nature of Human Resiliency: Towards an Understanding of Health Realization: Community and Prevention Services of Charleston Center, Charleston County, South Carolina, May 15-17, 2000. - The Essence of Well-Being: Improving Understanding in Work and Family: co-taught with Ken Manning, Ph.D., Douglas County Satellite Campus of Carroll Tech, Douglasville, GA, January 6-8, 2000. - Human Resiliency: The Power of a Secure Mind: Douglas County Satellite Campus of Carroll Tech, Douglasville, GA, November 19-20, 1999. - Psychology Of Mind: Foundations I: co-taught with Keith Blevens, Ph.D., Douglas County Public Library, Douglasville, GA , June 10, 11,12, 1999. - Beyond Coping: The Phenomenology of Mental Health and Well-Being: co-taught with Keith Blevens, Ph.D., Ridgeview Institute, Smyrna, GA , October 8-10, 1998.
1998-99 Consultant: The Union Institute, Graduate School, Doctoral Program.
1995-96 Research Associate: Radcliffe College, Harvard University. Conducted in-depth qualitative interviews of cross-section of US urban and suburban adults in midlife, and participated in data analysis, as part of Social Responsibility project, sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation Research Program on Successful Midlife Development.
1991-95 Teaching Associate: English Department University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Designed and conducted experiential writing courses oriented toward first-year college students self-discovery and empowerment. Developed techniques of process-oriented developmental writing with intensive feedback, collaborative exploratory writing, deep listening, peer response, and relating through written communication.
1993 Lecturer: Education Department, Smith College, Northampton. Course Taught: Educational Psychology.
1992 Instructor: Psychology Department, Smith College, Northampton, MA. Courses Taught: Developmental Psychobiology and Experimental Psychology.
1990-91 Teaching Associate: American Culture and Language Program for Foreign Fellows and spouses, UMASS, Amherst. (Developed communicative methods of ESL in working with culturally diverse adult population).
1991 Research Assistant: Cognitive Psychology Laboratory, UMASS, Amherst, MA. Conducted computer experiments on memory.
1990 Lecturer: English Department, Hillside Teacher Training College, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Courses Taught: Psycholinguistics and Theory of Literature (involved developing culture- and context-specific approaches to the pre-service training of first-generation liberated Zimbabwean rural and urban teachers; integrating issues of social and economic development in the study of language and literature for teachers; provided in-service training to rural school teachers to transform inherited Rhodesian racially-biased and oppressive teaching practices).
1985-1989 Instructor: Foreign Language Center, Sofia, Bulgaria. Communicative ESL (English as a Second Language) intensive teaching of adult professionals, and in-service teacher training with emphasis on psycholinguistics and educational psychology.
1981 Instructor: Foreign Language Center, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Intensive teaching of adult professionals.
REFERREE FOR PEER REVIEWED PROFESSIONAL JOURNALS
Journal of Moral Education, Oxford, UK: Carfax.
PUBLICATIONS
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (September, 2004). Education for critical consciousness. Journal of Moral Education, 33 (3), 245-269, Oxford, UK: Carfax.
Psychologists for Social Responsibility (Member of editorial team) (2004). The psychology of enemy images: An educational resource manual on dismantling the mask of enmity. Revised Edition.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (2003). Critical Consciousness: A study of morality in global historical context. Westport, CT: Greenwood.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (2000). The construct of critical consciousness and its ontogeny in the life-span. In Miller, M. & West, A. (Eds.) Spirituality, ethics, and relationships: The emotional and philosophical challenges of the adulthood years. Madison, CT: Psychosocial Press/International Universities Press.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (1998). Critical consciousness: an alternative pathway for positive personal and social development. Journal of Adult Development, 5 (1), 13-30. New York: Plenum.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (1997). Consciousness and human development: Book review of Wade’s Changes of Mind: A Holonomic Theory of the Evolution of Consciousness. The Humanistic Psychologist, 25, (3), 323-327.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (1996). Ontogeny of critical consciousness. Doctoral dissertation, University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (1995). Building critical consciousness in the context of an ever-advancing human civilization. Dialectics, Cosmos, and Society, 8, pp. 9-20.
Mustakova, E. (contributor) (Spring 1996). Teaching in process: multimedia resources for writing teachers (CD RAM). Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Mustakova, E. (1990). Aspects of Intrinsic Motivation in Foreign Language Teaching to Adults. Bulgarian Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 4.
Mustakova, E. (1988). Review of "Language and Literature Teaching", C. Brumfit, 1985. Bulgarian Journal of Foreign Language Teaching,3.
Mustakova, E. (1987). Report on the 8th Conference in Applied Linguistics and Foreign Language Teaching. Bulgarian Journal of Contrastive Linguistics.
PUBLICATIONS IN PROGRESS
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (under revision for publication) Clash or marriage of East and West: Implications of 9/11 for global community psychology. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (in preparation). Health Realization: A holistic approach to individual and community psycho-social interventions.
Mustakova-Possardt, E. (in preparation). A case study of action research on fostering empowerment and resilience in a marginalized Hispanic immigrant population in rural Georgia.
PRESENTATIONS
Interconnections between Moral Development, Mental Health, and Prevention. Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, GA, January 26, 2005.
Critical consciousness – motivation for service to humanity. Keynote plennary address, Baha’i Conference on Social and Economic Development for the Americas, Orlando, FL, December 16-19, 2004.
Cultivating optimal consciousness in the lifespan and in the micro moment. Third International Positive Psychology Summit, Washington, D.C., Sept. 30 – October 3, 2004.
Education for optimal moral consciousness. 28th Annual Conference of Association for Baha’i Studies, September 3-6, 2004, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Education for optimal moral consciousness. Series of talks given at Green Acre Baha’i School, Eliot, Maine, August, 2004.
The moral and spiritual challenges of our times. Series of talks given at Green Acre Baha’i School, Eliot, Maine, December 26-31, 2003.
Clash or marriage of East and West: Analysis of the post-9/11 challenges. Paper presented at the Symposium on Diabolical Enemy Images and Fundamentalism: The New East-West Conflict, Sponsored by Division 48, American Psychological Association 11th Annual Convention, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, August 7-10, 2003.
Applied spiritual psychology and understanding fear. Series of talks given at Green Acre Baha’i School, Eliot, Maine, August 25-27, 2003.
Tapping into health, resiliency and empowerment: Avoiding burnout and doing short-term therapy. Workshop (3 CE credit hours) offered at the 15th Annual Convention of Licensed Professional Counselors Association, May 15-18, 2003, Atlanta, GA.
Empowerment: How to overcome internalized oppression. Talk to the Baha’i International Community Office, New York, March 2003.Lifting the veils: Discovering our health – Discovering who we are. Paper presented at the 3rd Annual Conference of Baha’i Association of Mental Health Professionals (BAMHP), Nov. 14-17, 2002, Louhelen Baha’i School, Flint, MI.
Education for critical moral consciousness. Paper presented at the 28th Annual Conference of the Association for Moral Education (AME), November 7-10, 2002 Chicago, Illinois.
The Spirit of love and the practice of fostering resilience. Paper presented at the 26th Annual Conference of the Association for Baha’i Studies (ABS), August 30-September 2, 2002, Toronto, Canada.
Beyond nationalism: The European Union & formation of larger identities. Talk given to West Georgia Current Events Forum, April 2002.
Fostering equanimity: Principles of psycho-spiritual healing. Paper presented at the Fourth Annual Counseling and Spirituality Conference, Sept. 22, 2001, Erie, PA.
Baha’i spiritual psychology: A comparative analysis. Paper presented at the 25th Annual Conference of the Association for Baha’i Studies – North America, August 31- September 3, 2001, Seattle, WA.
Addressing racism as a psycho-spiritual disorder. Paper presented at the 108th annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, August 4-8, 2000, Washington, D.C.
Depression. Talk given to the West Georgia Honors Society, Nov. 1999
A new health-oriented paradigm in the helping profession. A half-day workshop presented at the LPCA 11th Annual Spring Convention, May-13-16, 1999 on Jekyll Island, GA.
The role of faith in the evolving of critical consciousness. Paper presented at 24th annual Conference of the Association For Moral Education, November 18-22, 1998, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH.
Spiritual integration at the turn of the century. Talk given to the C.G. Jung Society of Atlanta, May, 1998.
Psychology of Mind/Health Realization. Full-day workshop taught at the Atlanta District Winter Conference of Licensed Professional Counselors Association of Georgia, February, 1998, Ridgeview Institute, Smyrna, GA.
The construct of critical consciousness: an integrated account of the ontogeny of self in a socio-historical context. Paper presented at 2nd Conference for Socio-Cultural Research, September 11-15, 1996, Geneva, Switzerland.
Critical consciousness: an alternative pathway for positive personal and social development. Paper presented at the 11th Annual Adult Development Symposium, June 28-30, 1996, Boston, MA.
Ontogeny of critical consciousness. Paper presented at 10th Annual Adult Development Symposium, June 16-18, 1995, Montreal, Canada.
World peace begins with me. Keynote address at 21st Annual International Sunday Interfaith Service, February, 1995, First Congregational Church, Amherst, MA.
Evolving of critical social consciousness. Paper presented at 8th Annual Adult Development Symposium, June 25-27, 1993, Amherst, MA.
CURRENT PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
American Psychological Association Division 32 - Humanistic Psychology Division 48 - Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict and Violence: Peace Psychology Division 9 - Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Association for Moral Education Association for Baha’i Studies Psychologists for Social Responsibility Baha’i Association of Mental Health Professionals
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Founder of Latinos United of Carroll County, Inc., a grass-root Latino community organization committed to helping the 3-4000 immigrant low-income Latinos in rural Carroll County, Georgia, to overcome their social marginalization, invisibility, voiceless ness and disempowerment, and to develop the processes and resources to become a self-reliant and respected minority community.
Weekly pro-bono Spanish counseling services for low-income Latino individuals, couples and families in Carroll County. Work with issues of addiction, family violence, abuse, cross-cultural parenting and adolescent adjustment, cross-cultural relational adjustments, etc.
Psycho-social educational groups for Latino immigrants on issues of successful cross-cultural transition, parenting, spousal and child abuse, depression and addictions.
Invited member of a twenty-five-person expert Interfaith panel on Finding the Missing Zero, an initiative of Emory’s Rollings School of Public Health Interfaith Health Program and The Carter Center, geared at mobilizing Interfaith resources to address on an unprecedented scale the current crisis with African AIDS orphans – October 20-21, 2003, Carter Center, Atlanta.
UN Commission on the Status of Women, 47th Session, Panel Discussion on violence against women, New York, March 2003.
INSTITUTIONAL SERVICE AT STATE UNIVERSITY OF WEST GEORGIA
Founder of Academic Service Learning Latino Initiative at School of Arts and Sciences, State University of West Georgia, a Partnership between UWG and Latinos United of Carroll County Inc.
Service on committees, such as Student Services, Faculty Senate, European Union Certificate Committee, Global Studies Committee, Psychology Department Doctoral Program Committee, Psychology Department Graduate Clinical Coordination Committee, etc.
Founder and Faculty Supervisor of Current Events Students Forum, involving individuals and clubs across campus in regular dialogue regarding local, national, international, and global dimensions of current events since September 11th 2001.
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