Spring 2015

In this Issue: A NOTE FROM THE CLINIC COORDINATOR.…1

ASPIRE SPOTLIGHT: ALLY DEGRAFF….2

ASPIRE Clinic The ASPIRE Clinic, a collaborative unit of the College of Family and Consumer 

Sciences at the University of Georgia, is a unique resource that provides coun‐

seling and education services to UGA and the Athens community, as well as 

innovative educational and research opportunities to UGA students. 

ASPIRE to improve your... SELF RELATIONSHIPS NUTRITION HEALTH FINANCES HOME LEGAL SITUATION

acquiring strategies for personal improvement and relationship enhancement

A  big “thank you” to all of those who support the ASPIRE Clinic in its continued growth and success. The clinic’s services surged in 2014— and more and more I see the 

profound impact that we can have on the lives of clients by working collaboratively. As I celebrate the beginning of my 5th year as the ASPIRE Clinic Coordinator, I am so proud of all that we have accomplished as a clinic. The unique work we do here, and the way we are able to bring this knowledge to budding professionals keeps me energized and excited. Here’s to the 

next five!                      Keep Aspiring!               Megan Ford 

OUTSTANDING SCHOLARS...3

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?: CATCHING UP WITH OUR INTERNS….4

ASPIRE CLINIC HAPPENINGS….5

Volume 3 , Issue 1

Be A Better You! 

From the Clinic Coordinator

Ally De Graff, an ASPIRE marriage & family therapy service provider and HDFS Ph.D. student here at UGA, completed her undergraduate degree at Texas Tech University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Community, Family, & Addiction Services. Ally describes herself as very persona-ble, and loves giving people new per-spectives and experiences. Her goals for the future and her career are to make a positive impact in mili-tary families. Ally hopes to accomplish this by researching clinical interven-tions based around couples and finan-cial readiness. We wanted to help our readers get to know this wonderful la-dy a bit better. ____________________________  How would you describe your thera-py or treatment style? My therapy style is congruent with who I am as a person… I would describe it as direct and experiential. It is my goal to help people experience life in a dif-ferent way.

              

What are your goals for your future career and you future in general? Overall, I hope to make a positive im-pact in military families. I hope to do so by researching clinical interventions based around couples and financial readiness. What’s the biggest misconception about therapy or therapy work? We cannot read your mind… sorry. Also, we don’t know everything. Each individual has their own perceptions, truths, and values; our job is to learn about them, and help you to change your life in a way that aligns with them.

What do you consider the most im-portant aspect of therapy or of a cli-ent-therapist relationship? The relationship itself is the most im-portant aspect of therapy. A good rela-tionship entails trust, respect, genuine interaction, and support—all things that provide the best environment for new experiences and change. What is one piece of general advice you have for students and other pro-spective therapists? Be genuine… We all come to this field for pretty much the same reason: to help people because we have all felt the pain of adversity that is inevitable in the human experience. Own that pain and make it work for you; then, pay it forward and help others in pain.

Who in your life has influenced you the most? How did they do it? My mother; she gave whatever she could to help me be successful—including her awesome personality and genuine mean-look. Without her, I would probably have ten cats and a negative balance in the bank. She taught me patience, assertive-ness, and what it really means to be al-truistic. I have tried, but I can never find words that truly describe the major influ-ence my mom has been in my life. Describe your proudest achieve-ment. Graduating from college and going to grad school. No one in my family ever went to college, so I fumbled around in undergrad until they gave me a diplo-ma… then they asked me to come to grad school! I still pinch myself to see if this is real!

ASPIRE Spotlight

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“It is my goal to help people expe-

rience life in a different way.”

Alycia (Ally) DeGraff By: Madeline Schnuck

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What is the last good book you’ve read? Achilles in Vietnam by Jonathan Shay. Seriously changed all of my perspectives on combat, war, and morality. Dr. Shay compares Homer’s Illiad to give a new perspective on post-traumatic stress and combat trauma; plus, he cites Vietnam vet-erans... Vets are my favorite people.

How do you think the degree you earned helped you in ways other than the most direct obvious ways such as getting a job?

My educational experiences have helped me grow and experience life in ways that I cannot even fathom. Without my experienc-es, I would not be the person I am today; I would not have the knowledge and wisdom to fuel the grief that motivates me to make a difference in the world.

What would you do with 1 million dol-lars?

First, seek out a financial counselor to help me justify a trip to Mexico. Then, I would start my farm/pet rescue… and, last but not least, donate the rest to my credit card bal-ance. Oh—I would probably get Scuba certified too!

Where is your favorite place to travel?

Viva Mexico! I am auditing a Spanish class this Spring so I can go back in the Summer and order a margarita en el hielo!

Did you ever consider other career paths or did you ever have a different major or pathway?

I started off as pre-pharmacy—I was going to ‘fix’ addiction with a pill. Then, I changed to nutrition because my advisor

told me to… Then I took an addiction class and the professor changed my entire way of thinking.. it was history at that point!

Her piece of advice for everyone: “Whatever you’re doing, have fun doing it!”

Outstanding Scholars

ASPIRE students, Shaquinta Rich-ardson (left) and Lorien Jordan

(right) received prestigious schol-arships and awards this Spring.

Shaquinta Richardson, a doctoral student at ASPIRE, has been se-lected as a scholar for the Frances Degen Horowitz Millennium Scholars Program by the Society for Research in Child Develop-ment. This scholarship supports scholars from under-represented ethnic and racial groups engaged in graduate work in developmental science. Her thoughts on receiving the award, “I'm really thankful for this opportunity. I love the work that my mentor is doing and I look forward to working with her and networking with other schol-ars in the field.”

Millennium Scholars have the opportunity to grow professionally by being paired with early career scholars in their field. These mentors provide guidance and support in their pursuit of educational and professional goals. Shaquinta’s pairing is with Dr. Aerika Brittian, a faculty member at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Shaquinta received her bachelor’s degree in marketing from Claflin University and proceeded to earn a master’s in marriage and family therapy from Converse College before studying at UGA.

Lorien Jordan, another doctoral student at ASPIRE, was named the recipient of the Feldman Outstanding Research Proposal for Re-search in Family Policy award. This is awarded to a graduate student demonstrating excellence in research and potential. The paper that Lorien wrote is titled, “The Policy Participation of Marriage and Family Therapists: A Modified Replication Study.” She is interested in the HDFS Marriage and family therapy program and already has her license as an associate marriage and family therapist. Her thoughts on receiving the Honorable award, "For a marriage and family therapist to receive the Feldman Award means a lot, as I see a strong connection between policy, mental health, and social justice. This honor encourages me to continue to find ways in which thera-pists can be involved in the policies which impact the lives of our clients and ourselves, as well as, the life of the profession." Jordan received her master’s of family therapy from the Mercer Uni-versity School of Medicine in 2012. Her research focuses on the interplay of legislation and family policy discourse and the way it affects access to mental health services.

What is your favorite aspect of ASPIRE? “My favorite thing about ASPIRE is the holistic perspective we take and the integrated resources we provide. As a therapist and a finan-cial counselor, the ability to practice both in one place really makes

me happy, and I feel privileged to be at ASPIRE and UGA.”

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Where are they now? Checking in with previous interns on where they

are headed and how ASPIRE has inspired them to follow their career dreams.

nalee Phang (pictured above) is cur-rently a senior at UGA, graduating in May 2015. She will graduate with a bachelor's degree in human

development and family science with a minor in sociology. Lee informs us that she will be at-tending her number one choice for grad-uate school, San Diego State University, starting in the summer of 2015, hoping to complete a Master’s degree in mar-riage and family therapy and in 2017. Her later plans include potentially get-ting another Master’s degree in business or financial planning so that she might eventually open a holistic clinic similar to ASPIRE. When asked what she has been in-volved in since her time at ASPIRE she responded, “Over the past few months I have been working with two fellow UGA students at Georgia United Credit Union working on a new student loan product, and I've found through this process that understanding people and the different stages of life they move through can be beneficial in various professions. I have been able to apply knowledge from my HDFS courses to this project and create a more dynamic product than originally intended.” Her thoughts on what she learned from her internship and how ASPIRE has affected her future plans—“ASPIRE truly opened my eyes to the benefits of holistic therapy. Before working at AS-PIRE, I wanted to focus my career just on therapy, but I now know that I could utilize my love of math and business to create an environment that is conducive to more than just a potential client's mental health. I want to be able to better their financial well-being as well.”

indsey Hutchins (pictured below) interned at the ASPIRE Clinic in 2014 and we caught up with her as

her first year in graduate school is com-ing to an end. She is working towards a Master’s in professional counseling and marriage and family therapy and is ex-pected to graduate in the summer of 2016. Lindsey received her undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia in Human Development and Family Sci-ence. Her ultimate career goal is to get a doctorate and become a professor. Lind-sey is excited currently about starting to see her own clients in May. When asked how ASPIRE has af-fected her future plans, Lindsey told us, “ASPIRE was by far the best experience I received before I went to graduate school. Attending practicum and observ-ing sessions was an invaluable experi-ence! ASPIRE confirmed that I wanted to be a therapist, and also that I wanted to pursue a Ph.D.”

eyi Amosu, an undergraduate at the University of Georgia and former

ASPIRE intern, is currently a about to receive her Bachelor’s degree in psy-chology. She is graduating this May and will be attending Southern Illinois Uni-versity where she will work towards her Ph.D. in counseling psychology. Eventually, Seyi plans to be a thera-pist at her own private practice. She ex-plained to us how ASPIRE has had a positive influence on her undergraduate career and future plans. “ASPIRE really inspired me to write my thesis which examined the demographic characteris-tics of the clients at the clinic. This gave me valuable experience in the research field and made me feel very prepared to continue research in my graduate stud-ies.” Seyi recently participated in the UGA CURO Symposium, where she pre-sented her thesis research on the holistic nature of the ASPIRE Clinic. Dr. Maria Bermudez (picture above), associate pro-fessor of marriage and family therapy, supported Seyi’s clinical research efforts.

ASPIRE Clinic McPhaul Center 

University of Georgia 

706‐542‐4486 

aspire@uga.edu 

www.aspireclinic.org 

ASPIRE Clinic Happenings

© 2015 ASPIRE Clinic 

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The ASPIRE Clinic welcomes a new fac-

ulty and marriage & family therapy super-visor to the clinic, Dr. Desiree Seponski. Desiree has come back to UGA after re-ceiving both her Master’s and Ph.D. in

Child and Family Development from the College of Family & Consumer Sciences.

She teaches and mentors both undergrad-uate and graduate students at UGA. Read more here about Desiree’s interests and

publications: http://www.fcs.uga.edu/people/bio/dmpaulin

Noteworthy

Congratulations to The College of Family and Consumer Sciences’ financial planning pro-

gram for being named one of the best in the country, according to Investopedia.

Find more at: http://www.fcs.uga.edu/news/story/financial-

planning-program-named-best-in-country

This spring, the ASPIRE Clinic has continued its part-nership with The Ark and piloted a new program that offers education and information on “making the most out of your tax refund.” Two financial planning gradu-ate students & ASPIRE service providers, Kevin Val-entino & Michelle Kruger, designed, marketed, and facilitated the Tax Savings workshops and received

positive feedback from participants. The workshop was open to any interested member in the community at no cost and was hosted by the ARK. Content was focused on understanding ways to save (especially during tax time), improving financial circumstances (reducing

debt, improving credit, and avoiding pay day lending & other high-interest loans). The students hope the

workshops can continue in future years.

Recently, with nutrition and health being on the forefront of many minds, ASPIRE is offering more guidance in this area. Coming from our holistic

approach, we understand that it is even more important to take a “big-picture” look at nutrition, as it is impacted by other stressors, such as

budget, lifestyle, relationships, and many other factors. Rachel Laudel (above left) and Courtney Spillane (above right), are nutrition service pro-

viders at the ASPIRE Clinic and are both pursuing a Master’s of Science degree in Foods and Nutrition. Their work here at ASPIRE was featured

earlier this spring on UGA’s homepage!