Carla Adkison-Johnson, Ph.D.

Professor

Dr. Adkison-Johnson is a Professor in the Department of Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education at the University of Kentucky. She served as Professor for 20 years and Department Chair (for two years) in the Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology Department at Western Michigan University (WMU). Dr. Adkison-Johnson has a Ph.D. in Counseling and Human Development from Kent State University. 

Dr. Adkison-Johnson is the current Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, the official journal of the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD), a division of the American Counseling Association. She has published extensively in the areas of culturally competent mental health counseling, recruitment and retention of counseling professionals and African American child rearing practices. Her 2021 book, African American Child Discipline: Culturally Responsive Policies critically examines the child disciplinary practices of African American mothers and fathers with school age children in the home. Dr. Adkison-Johnson has served as a consultant, clinician and collaborator with multiple agencies, juvenile courts and legal organizations to strengthen their abilities to offer culturally responsive services.

She recently was the Principal Investigator and Project Director on a 1.9-million-dollar grant funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which focuses on a culturally competent behavioral health workforce. Dr. Adkison-Johnson is the past chair of the Chi Sigma Iota Leadership & Professional Advocacy Committee. She has also received the WMU College of Education and Human Development Distinguished Scholar Award and is the recipient of the Kent State University Outstanding Alumnus Award. Dr. Adkison-Johnson is a Life Member and past national Treasurer for Chi Sigma Iota. She is a past member of the Board of Directors for the Council for Counseling and Educational Related Programs (CACREP), the accrediting body for the counseling profession. In this capacity, she served as Chair of CACREP’s Training Committee.