Kalesha D. Jenkins, PhD is a licensed professional counselor and counselor educator who specializes in multiculturalism and social justice. She recently completed her doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision from the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Jenkins has a passion for working with underserved populations, in the community and in the classroom. She promotes inclusion through teaching, scholarship and leadership. She has received multiple awards and achievements including National Board of Certified Counselors Minority Fellowship Award, 2021 College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services Outstanding Doctoral Student Award and Seton Hill University’s 2021 Distinguished Alumna Leadership Award/Young Alumna Achievement.
My teaching philosophy and practices utilizes a multicultural/transcultural theory, relational-cultural framework and emancipatory communitarianism to build connections with students that challenges imbalanced power dynamics in the classrooms. Through my teaching practices and research, I facilitate discourse for understanding diverse ideologies through multicultural competency development, particularly through self-awareness. I believe relational discourse through awareness helps build diverse and inclusive growth-fostering environments. I use strategies that discuss the current multicultural literature such as acknowledging our own biases and prejudices and promoting a culturally sensitive environment for students. Through my research, clinical practice, and counselor education training, I have been trained to use decentralized and critical educational tactics to embrace multiculturalism and address power dynamics within the structured, standardized classroom.
Self-Awareness in Multicultural Competency Development; Multicultural Research Methodologies; Racial, Historical, and Generational Trauma in Clinical Counseling Practices