Our Faculty & Staff

Faculty members in Counselor Education are highly accomplished, experienced and dedicated educators and scholars. All full-time faculty members hold doctorates in clinical psychology or counseling and are licensed to practice by the state of Massachusetts. They are members and leaders in state and national organizations.

In addition to providing a strong general counselor education to students, they collectively have expertise in the areas of multi-cultural counseling/psychology, counseling-enhancing technology, prevention, community counseling, stress management, violence prevention, trauma, medical psychology, children and adolescents, athletes, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender clients.

Acting Chair:   Dr. Ruth Hannon
Professors: Dr. Maxine Rawlins
Dr. Victoria Bacon
Associate Professors: Dr. Louise Graham
Dr. Michael Kocet
Dr. Christy Lyons
Assistant Professors: Dr. Theresa Coogan
Dr. M. Nikki Freeburg
Administrative Assistant: Janice Costello
Adjunct Faculty: Dr. Al Ciri
Ms. Cindy Kane
Mr. David Moran
Ms. Beth Moriarty
Dr. Vicki Putz
Mr. Michael Riley, J.D.
Dr. J. Allen Ward
Dr. Frederick Youngclaus

Dr. Ruth Hannon
Professor
Acting Chair

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 106
(508) 531-2251
rhannon@bridgew.edu

Dr. Hannon has taught numerous courses in the Psychology Department since 1979.  With faculty from Communication Studies and Social Work, she teaches Perspectives of the Holocaust an effort which has won the Presidential Award for Collaboration in Teaching and in 2007, the Action Teaching Award, Honorable Mention from the Social Psychology Network.  Recently, Dr. Hannon designed a course, Service-Learning in Psychology in which BSC students study boys’ development and work with a group of young boys from the Big Sisters/Big Brothers program in Brockton, MA.  In 2001-2002 Dr. Hannon was a Visiting Scholar at the Centers for Women at Wellesley College where she designed a qualitative research program to study working families in Northern Ireland focusing on the effects of ongoing political violence on work-family life there.  She has presented her work at three international conferences and several national and regional conferences.  She has published on work-family issues and recently had a book review published in the Irish Journal of Psychology.  Dr. Hannon has received multiple internal grants and most recently, won a federal Learn and Serve grant to establish service-learning courses at BSC.  She has chaired the Psychology Department for several years and is active on multiple college committees including the Service-Learning Task Force.  She is serving as Acting Chair of the Counselor Education Department for the 2009-2010 academic year.

Rawlins, Dr. Maxine L Dr. Maxine L. Rawlins
Professor

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 101
(508) 531-2526
mrawlins@bridgew.edu

Maxine L. Rawlins has been a full time professor in the BSC Department of Counselor Education, since 1992.  Dr. Rawlins earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Rochester, and additionally completed two multicultural-focused postdoctoral fellowships at the Boston University School of Medicine, as well as at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.  Her professional areas of interest are in community counseling/psychology and prevention; counseling enhancing technology; multicultural counseling/psychology/education; and stress and its management. She teaches Counseling and Development, Multicultural Counseling, and Principles and Methods of Community Counseling and Consultation.  Dr. Rawlins recently developed a web-based national resource for counselors - utechcounseling.com- to facilitate their use of technology in their work.  She additionally is co-developing a training video which gives voice to college students from disenfranchised and underrepresented groups.

Dr. Victoria L. Bacon
Professor

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 103
(508) 531-2561
vbacon@bridgew.edu

Victoria L. Bacon is a professor in the Department of Counselor Education at Bridgewater State College where she prepares school guidance and mental health counselors. She is a member of the Association for Specialists in Group Work (ASGW), the American Group Psychotherapy Association (APGA), and the American Counseling Association (ACA). Dr. Bacon has counseling experience with children and adolescents in schools, colleges, and community mental health settings. Scholarship activities include publications in journals and books as well as presentations at state, national, and international conferences on issues related to adolescent addiction, group interventions, and critical incident acute stress reactions and debriefing for school counselors. More recently she has co-authored two book chapters: A Group Intervention for Athletic Teams (high school aged) and Substance Abuse (for athletes). For the past several years Dr. Bacon has been involved in interdisciplinary education efforts, teaching preventive education to students in the allied health care professions: athletic training, physical therapy, and nutrition.

Dr. Louise Graham Dr. Louise Graham
Associate Professor
Mental Health Counseling Program Director: Mental Health and Dual License (Mental Health & School Adjustment)

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 102
(508) 531-2011
lgraham@bridgew.edu

Louise Graham is an associate professor in the Department of Counselor Education. She earned her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Boston College. Dr. Graham holds clinical hospital privileges at the New England Healthcare Veterans Administration Brockton campus and she has had a Harvard Clinical appointment through the Harvard Medical School since 1990, where she supervises doctoral interns in medical psychology and in the anxiety disorders. The courses she teaches are the following:  Applied Counseling, Advanced Applied Counseling, Psychopharmacology, and Psychopathology. She is a member of the American Counseling Association and has published in Counseling Today and is presenting in October in Ohio at the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision on Adventure Counseling. She has been appointed to the ACA task force on Military Families. She and students have presented at the MA School Counselors Annual Conference for the last five years. She is actively involved in mental health disaster response. She is on the MA Mental Health Disaster Response Team, on a Disaster Assistance Team for the Red Cross and a member of the Terrorism and Disaster Center MA Coalition for Child and Family Disaster Research at Boston College.

Dr. Michael Kocet
Associate Professor
Student Affairs Program Director

Department of Counselor Education
Burrill Office Complex, Room 101M
(508) 531-2721
mkocet@bridgew.edu

Michael M. Kocet is an associate professor in the Department of Counselor Education.  He earned his Ph.D. in Counselor Education from the University of Arkansas. His professional areas of interest include: ethical and legal issues in counseling, counseling gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender clients, grief counseling, student affairs, and qualitative research.  Dr. Kocet has worked in a variety of settings: college counseling, student affairs, psychiatric, and mental health agencies.  Dr. Kocet served on the American Counseling Association Ethics Committee (2001-2007) and chaired the ACA Ethics Code Revision Taskforce (2002-2005). He is a board member of the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Counseling and is the president of that organization. Dr. Kocet is a nationally sought out speaker and consultant on ethical issues in counseling. He has presented at local, state, and national conferences in counseling and student affairs.

 

Dr. Christy Lyons
Associate Professor


Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 116
(508) 531-2197
clyons@bridgew.edu

Christy Lyons is an Associate Professor in the Department of Counselor Education.  Dr. Lyons received her Ph.D. in Counselor Education from Ohio University, a CACREP accredited program.  She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a Licensed Professional Counselor and has experience in both clinical and school settings.  Counseling children and their families is her clinical specialty.  Dr. Lyons has 20 years of clinical experience counseling  individuals and families suffering mental and emotional disorders and/or facing various family crises such as death, domestic violence, divorce, and chemical dependency.  She is a frequent presenter at American Counseling Association (ACA) and the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES) conferences and has several publications in ACA and ACES affiliated journals.  She is the founding Chapter Faculty Advisor for the Beta Sigma Chi chapter of Chi Sigma Iota, an international counseling professional and academic honor society, at Bridgewater State College.  Current writing and research interests include empathy development and measurement, counselor development, relational teaching, and violence prevention.

Dr. Theresa A. Coogan
Assistant Professor
School Counseling Program Director

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 117
(508) 531-2640
Theresa.Coogan@bridgew.edu

Theresa Coogan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Counselor Education.  Dr. Coogan received her Ph.D. in Counselor Education, her Ed.M. in School Counseling, and her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Buffalo, SUNY. Dr. Coogan’s current research agendas focus mainly on the field of school counseling addressing the perspectives of the counselors as well as the school counselors-in-training. Additional research interests include, but are not limited to: role identity, role ambiguity, and role conflict amongst school counselors; professional identity development for school counselors-in-training; counseling program evaluations in primary and secondary schools; crisis planning and interventions in schools; group work in schools; and, exploring pedagogical approaches for graduate learning. Dr. Coogan is a member of the American Counseling Association (ACA), American School Counselors Association (ASCA), Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES), North Atlantic Regional Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (NARACES), and Chi Sigma Iota (CSI). 

Dr. M. Nikki Freeburg
Assistant Professor
Director of Fieldwork

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 110
(508) 531-1490
mfreeburg@bridgew.edu

Dr. Nikki Freeburg is an assistant professor in the Department of Counselor Education at Bridgewater State College. She earned her Ph.D. in Counselor Education from Idaho State University, is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and a nationally certified counselor (NCC). Nikki is a member of Chi Sigma Iota (CSI), the American Counseling Association (ACA), The Association of Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES), and Phi Kappa Phi. Her professional areas of interest include: research, assessment, supervision, wellness and the use of metaphors in the counseling profession. Dr. Freeburg has counseling experience in private agencies, psychiatric hospitals and career development centers. Scholarship activities include publications on HIPAA, over twenty presentations (local, state, and national level), research grant acquisitions, providing supervision training for site supervisors and she has membership status on the CACREP review board team.

 

Ms. Janice L Costello Ms. Janice Costello
Administrative Assistant

Department of Counselor Education
Kelly Gym, Room 104
(508) 531-2836
j1costello@bridgew.edu

Janice Costello has been the Administrative Assistant for the Department of Counselor Education since 2001.  She manages the department office and answers inquiries regarding program information, admissions questions, etc.

 

Dr. Al Ciri Dr. Al Ciri
Visiting Professor

(508) 531-2836
aciri@bridgew.edu

Albert Ciri has been a part-time faculty member at Bridgewater State College since 1984. Dr. Ciri earned his doctorate in educational psychology from Heed University.  In addition, Dr. Ciri has completed graduate studies in counseling at Boston University. His professional experience has included :twelve years as a certified secondary education classroom teacher, five years as a Director of Guidance and Counseling, four years as an Administrator, and five years as the Chairperson of the Education Department at Stonehill College. Dr. Ciri teaches the following counseling courses: The Counseling Function in School, Agency/Community and Higher Education Settings, and The School Guidance Counselor: Psychopathology and Developmental Issues, and Internship Supervision and Seminar.

Ms. Cindy Kane
Visiting Lecturer

508-531-1273
c1kane@bridgew.edu

Cindy Kane is a visiting lecturer for the Department of Counselor Education.  She earned a Master’s Degree in Student Personnel Administration in Higher Education from New York University in 1994.  Cindy has served in positions of varying responsibility in student affairs at St. Peter’s College, Seton Hall University, and Bridgewater State College.  She has worked at Bridgewater State College for the past ten years and has served as Director of Student Involvement & Leadership since July of 2001.  An active volunteer and leader within the National Association for Campus Activities, she is a regular consultant and presenter on topics relating to leadership education.

Mr. David Moran
Visiting Associate Professor

(508) 531-2836

David Moran, M.Ed., is a faculty member of the William Glasser Institute as well as a visiting associate professor at Bridgewater State College.  Mr. Moran is a retired school principal with thirty-eight years of experience in education.  Mr. Moran has worked with Dr. William Glasser for over twenty-five years and has trained professionals in the ideas of Choice Theory and Reality Therapy throughout the world.  Mr. Moran is recognized and highly respected as a facilitator and trainer.

Ms. Beth Moriarty
Visiting Lecturer

(508) 531-1277
bmoriarty@bridgew.edu

Beth Moriarty is a visiting lecturer for the Department of Counselor Education.  She earned her Master's of Science Degree in Human Development, Counseling and Family Studies from the University of Rhode Island.  Ms. Moriarty has held positions within the field of residence life and housing for the past eighteen years.  She has been employed at Bridgewater State College since July 1993, and has been the Director of Residence Life and Housing since July 2001.

  Dr. Vicki Putz
Visiting Lecturer

(508) 531-2836
vickiputz@gmail.com

Vicki Putz, PsyD, is a visiting lecturer for the Department of Counselor Education. She was awarded a doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology in 2001. She received a Masters in counseling from Lesley College Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences. Dr. Putz is a clinical psychologist in private practice and a staff member of the Counseling Center at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. She specializes in working with men and couples, and facilitates a long-running interpersonal group for men. Dr. Putz has several years experience supervising and training doctoral students in a variety of settings. She is a second-year fellow at the Massachusetts Institute for Psychoanalysis, and a practicing artist. 

Mr. Michael Riley, J.D.
Visiting Lecturer

(508) 531-2836
m1riley@bridgew.edu

Michael Riley earned his Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, as well as his Juris Doctorate from the Massachusetts School of Law. His previous teaching experience includes teaching Psychology and the Law at Curry College. Mr. Riley has extensive experience working at a variety of college campuses in the areas of Residence Life and Campus Judicial Programs. He has conducted presentations in Alcohol Awareness, Gender Communication, Diversity Workshops, and Sexual Assault/Date Rape Awareness. Mr. Riley has been a visiting lecturer in the Department of Counselor Education since 2001 where he teaches Counseling Function in School, Agency/Community, and Higher Education Settings; Counseling and Development; and Legal and Ethical Issues for the School Guidance Counselor.

Dr. J. Allen Ward
Visiting Lecturer

(508) 531-2836
Jonah.ward@bridgew.edu

Allen Ward is a visiting lecturer in the Department of Counselor Education and is the Senior Associate Dean for Student Life at Brown University.  He earned the Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration from the University of Miami and the Master of Arts in Counselor Education from Tennessee Tech University.  Dr. Ward has served as a student affairs practitioner for twenty years at institutions in the South, Mid-West, and New England.  In 2004, he served as president of the Massachusetts College Personnel Association and is an active member of the American College Personnel Association. 

  Dr. Frederick Youngclaus
Visiting Lecturer

(508) 531-2836
fyoungclaus@bridgew.edu

Fred Youngclaus is a visiting lecturer for the Department of Counselor Education.  He earned his Master's of Education at the University of Massachusetts - Boston, as well as a CAGS and a Doctorate of Education from Boston University.  Dr. Youngclaus is a retired School Psychologist, having spent time working for the Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe, and retiring from the Randolph Public School System in 2004.  Dr. Youngclaus has taught the Advanced Applied course and also supervises School Counseling interns.

Last Modified: September 14, 2009