CEHD ALUMNI STORIES
Our graduates touch the lives of many whether as counselors, teachers, as sport administrators or educational leaders. Follow their journey with stories and videos here. Submit your story to us and be sure to sign up for college alumni events and updates.
STORIES & INTERVIEWS
Hannah Jernigan, a Speech-Language Pathology graduate student, discovers joy in her advocacy for individuals with communication disorders.
Malini Laxman, B.S. 19 in biology will graduate with an M.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders in December, 2023 for speech-language pathology.
Lisa Helsel, an educational psychology alumna, is the 2023 recipient of the NCTE Donald H. Graves Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Writing.
Tara Hartman, CSD ’22, is a speech-language pathologist (SLP) at two elementary schools in Fulton County.
Alumni Amila Shake works at Piedmont Eastside Medical Center, Piedmont Rockdale Hospital and Life Care Centers of America.
Janessa Henry (M.S. ’16) and Shekia Morant (M.S. ’16), sport administration alumni who currently work at Nike World Headquarters, came to campus to speak to current students about their work.
Meet Whitney Trapp, alumna of the Applied Behavior Analysis program and working at an autism center in Brookhaven, Ga.
Meet Gennie Hendrick (B.S.Ed. ’12, M.S. ’22), recipient of this year’s Outstanding Clinician in Communication Sciences and Disorders Award.
Gereen Francis, M.S. ABA, has applied what she’s learned to forming her own consulting business to help families understand their child’s challenging behaviors.
Ashley Gibbs is a graduate of the M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis and recently accepted a clinical director position overseas.
Department of Educational Policy Studies alum Lisa Thompson (Ed.D. ’21) is the 2021 recipient of the Georgia Educational Research Association’s Distinguished Paper Award.
Department of Kinesiology and Health alumnus Calvin Cole (Ph.D. ’16) received a five-year, $713,515 grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute to better understand and treat the mechanisms of pancreatic cancer-related muscle wasting.
Caroline Gilling (M.S. ’21) was one of 24 people nationwide selected for the Women in Sports Tech (WiST) 2021 Fellowship.
Sabrina Henry, B.S Ed-Birth Through Five, 2011, joins Project SEED as the director. The program provides an innovative, fully funded teacher preparation experience for professionals interested in earning a degree in Birth-Five.
Olania started college with the excitement any freshman would have.
Hanna Whitehead (M.S. ’20) was named Employee of the Month at the North Decatur Health and Rehabilitation Center a few months after starting her job there.
Chris Parizo (M.A.T. English Education, 2012) is a film writer whose work is highlighted in two publications that came out in December 2020 in Deadline and Vanity Fair.
story by Claire Miller Eunji Kim initially planned to become an elementary school teacher. But after taking a few early […]
story by Claire Miller After her freshman year of college, Anjanette Swift took an opportunity to shadow speech-language pathologists at […]
For Veterans Day, we interviewed exercise science graduate student and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Brandon Brantley about his academic and professional experiences.
Alumna awarded million-dollar grant to train rehabilitation counselors
CEHD alum Bettina Love (Ph.D. ’08) was named the Athletic Association Professor in Education by the University of Georgia Athletic Association.
Originally from Atlanta, Jasmine Johnson graduated with a master’s degree in school counseling in 2019. She recently self-published her first children’s book entitled, “Mikey’s Lost Toy.”
Doctoral alumnus Scott Cohen (Ph.D. ’19) brings his passion for science education to the deaf and hard of hearing community.
Kimberly Duff graduated with a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling in 2005. She now runs a private practice, Overcomers Counseling, LLC
The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders would like to congratulate Erica Johns Freestone ‘20 for successfully defending her master’s thesis.
Congratulations to Virgil Cole, Ed.D. Educational Leadership graduate (Spring 2017). He is now superintendent of the Morgan County Charter School System.
Johari Harris-Ward, an alumna of the College of Education & Human Development (CEHD) in educational psychology, appears on a TV news program regarding the formation of Freedom School.
Chaz Tookes (M.S. ’20) volunteered with several major sporting events in Atlanta while she was a student in the sport administration master’s program.
Amanda Lynch (M.Ed. ’20) graduates this spring and was recently named the new assessment coordinator for Fulton County Schools.
Justina Jackson is graduating this spring with her doctorate in research, measurement and statistics, which she earned while juggling life as a wife, a mother and a co-owner of CrossFit EX, a group fitness business in Smyrna, Ga.
Mathew Dean, who graduates this spring with his master’s degree in English education, discusses how he became interested in teaching, his experiences in the master’s program and his advice for future students.
Darren Clay (B.S.E. ’10, M.Ed. ’11) gained valuable insight from his educational leadership career. Here are his takeaways that he’s learned from his experience.
College of Education & Human Development alumnus Cynthia Kuhlman (M.S. ’74, Ph.D. ’80) has been named one of Georgia State University’s 2019 Distinguished Alumni Award honorees.
Roxanne Russell, Ph.D. 2011, from the College of Education & Human Development was awarded a patent for a computer-based reading comprehension program.
Thaddeus and Natasha Johnson (Ed.D ’19) share a passion for justice. But that’s not all. Married 10 years, the couple also share the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies as their home away from home.
College of Education & Human Development alumnus Ingrid Thompson-Sellers (Ph.D. ’12) has been named the eighth president of South Georgia State College in Douglas, Ga.
Al Taylor completed his master’s in Educational Leadership at Georgia State University and moved forward to receive a doctorate degree in Educational Policy Studies. We caught up with Taylor to see how he’s doing.
Sara McDaniel, Ph.D. is a promising young scholar in emotional and behavioral disorders. Her focus on reducing youth violence, racism and discrimination receives considerable recognition. She is the recipient of the DR 2020 Distinguished Early Career Research Award.
Three graduates from the Department of Kinesiology and Health were part of the inaugural class of a program called 40 Under 40 to honor individuals under the age of 40 who were making a difference for others.
Jacob English, Ph.D. (Educational Psychology) presented his dissertation findings to the NCAA Research Committee.
Ethan Trinh (M.A.T. ’18) discusses teaching with a heart.
Alyssa Marsellos, graduate student in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, was selected for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s (ASHA) Minority Student Leadership Program.
College of Education & Human Development alumnus Vesta Jones (M.Ed. ’73) has been named one of Georgia State University’s 2018 Distinguished Alumni.
Social Foundations M.S. graduates, Lamees Alsami and Lindsey Garland, pose with their advisor and thesis chair, Dr. Deron Boyles at the 2019 spring commencement.
College of Education & Human Development alumnus Michael Pope (B.S.E. ’99) was one of 38 educators to receive the National Education Association (NEA) Foundation’s California Casualty Award for Teaching Excellence.
The Metro Atlanta Conference Division 1 Athletic Director of the Year for 2016-2017 was Georgia State University Sport Administration alumnus, Josh Burr (’08).
Born and raised ten minutes outside of New York City, Michael Sainte (M.S., Sport Administration ’12) landed a dream job working as the Director of Compliance and Membership Services with the BIG EAST Conference in New York.
Deandra Duggans (M.S. Sport Administration’09) is the manager of Advertising and Branding with the Baltimore Ravens.
Dan Sims (B.A. ’95, M.Ed. ’01, Ed.D. ’15) is a lifelong resident of East Point, Ga., who attended the area’s schools from kindergarten through 12th grade.
Reem Faruqi wrote and published a children’s story, Lailah’s Lunchbox,” which mirrors her own experience immigrating to the U.S. as a young child.
CEHD alumni receive Georgia Power grant.
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