Whitney Clarke
Grad Student, Counseling Psychology
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Biography
I completed my undergraduate education at the University of Maryland, College Park where I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a Concentration in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, and a Minor in Black Women's Studies. During my undergraduate career, I began to gain clinical experience as a peer counselor at the university’s crisis hotline and at the Homeless Children’s Playtime Project working with both diverse adults and children who have experienced different traumas. As a McNair Scholar, I explored coping strategies utilized by Black women dealing with discrimination through an individual study. This solidified my call to advocate for Black women and examine healing.
I am in my second year in the Counseling Psychology Ph.D. program working with Dr. Jarrett Lewis and Dr. Helen Neville. My research focuses on Black populations specifically Black women and girls’ mental health issues, our ability to heal and hope radically despite oppression, and how trauma and racial identity uniquely impact us. My work centers Black communities where participants are active in the research project, rewriting what academic research looks like. Throughout the year, you may hear that I have gone home to Jamaica for a little to get away from the cold weather!
In my free time, I love to travel any and everywhere, weight-lift, binge shows, and try new restaurants.