2011 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award

Lisa Camposano


In 2011, the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates (NBCC) published the first volume of TPC. At the behest of TPC’s publisher, Dr. Thomas Clawson, the TPC Outstanding Scholar Award was created to recognize the most outstanding article of the year.

After the close of the first volume, the editorial board committee studied the journal articles and selected the top several fitting the following criteria: elite scholarly style, innovative and inventive material, and the utmost relevance to the counseling profession. The first volume included exceptional material covering a variety of relevant topics, which made it challenging to distinguish one article as outstanding among the collected works. After careful consideration, the 2011 TPC Outstanding Article Award went to Lisa Camposano for her article “Silent Suffering: Children with Selective Mutism” in volume 1, issue 1.

Ms. Camposano’s article brings attention to the lack of research on selective mutism and concerns of misdiagnosis, and provides implications for counselors by covering common disorder-related issues and sound treatment approaches. Ms. Camposano first encountered selective mutism while teaching a few years ago. After she was informed that she would have a student with selective mutism, Ms. Camposano began to research the disorder so that she could provide the student with the support needed for optimum learning and development. During her research, she noticed that many of the available resources did not include implications for teachers or counselors. As she notes in her article, selective mutism came to the public’s attention after the Virginia Tech massacre, when it was revealed that the gunman, Seung-Hui Cho, had been diagnosed with the disorder. However, the lack of consideration within the professional counseling community became apparent as she continued her research into interventions for her student.

After Ms. Camposano began graduate school for school counseling at The College of New Jersey, she continued to research selective mutism using a counseling professional framework. That experience led to a deeper appreciation for research and an increased motivation to fulfill the essential role and responsibility of a counselor to contribute to the research literature that ultimately fuels evidence-based practices. Ms. Camposano now plans to focus on other school counseling topics and advocate for clients by increasing accessibility to community resources. Regardless of the counseling specialty area, she will continue to make her voice heard in the counseling profession.

2011 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award Recipient

Lisa Camposano

In 2011, the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates (NBCC) published the first volume of TPC. At the behest of TPC’s publisher, Dr. Thomas Clawson, the TPC Outstanding Scholar Award was created to recognize the most outstanding article of the year.

After the close of the first volume, the editorial board committee studied the journal articles and selected the top several fitting the following criteria: elite scholarly style, innovative and inventive material, and the utmost relevance to the counseling profession. The first volume included exceptional material covering a variety of relevant topics, which made it challenging to distinguish one article as outstanding among the collected works. After careful consideration, the 2011 TPC Outstanding Article Award went to Lisa Camposano for her article “Silent Suffering: Children with Selective Mutism” in volume 1, issue 1.

Ms. Camposano’s article brings attention to the lack of research on selective mutism and concerns of misdiagnosis, and provides implications for counselors by covering common disorder-related issues and sound treatment approaches. Ms. Camposano first encountered selective mutism while teaching a few years ago. After she was informed that she would have a student with selective mutism, Ms. Camposano began to research the disorder so that she could provide the student with the support needed for optimum learning and development. During her research, she noticed that many of the available resources did not include implications for teachers or counselors. As she notes in her article, selective mutism came to the public’s attention after the Virginia Tech massacre, when it was revealed that the gunman, Seung-Hui Cho, had been diagnosed with the disorder. However, the lack of consideration within the professional counseling community became apparent as she continued her research into interventions for her student.

After Ms. Camposano began graduate school for school counseling at The College of New Jersey, she continued to research selective mutism using a counseling professional framework. That experience led to a deeper appreciation for research and an increased motivation to fulfill the essential role and responsibility of a counselor to contribute to the research literature that ultimately fuels evidence-based practices. Ms. Camposano now plans to focus on other school counseling topics and advocate for clients by increasing accessibility to community resources. Regardless of the counseling specialty area, she will continue to make her voice heard in the counseling profession.

Read more about the TPC scholarship awards here.

2012 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award

Sonya Lorelle, Rebekah Byrd, and Stephanie Crockett


At the close of the second volume, the TPC editorial board committee studied the published articles from 2012 to identify the most outstanding article of the year. They selected the articles fitting the following criteria: elite scholarly style, innovative and inventive material, and the utmost relevance to the counseling profession. A number of articles surfaced; however, there was a clear leader among the committee’s selection. The recipient of the 2012 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award was “Globalization and Counseling: Professional Issues for Counselors,” written by Sonya Lorelle, Rebekah Byrd, and Stephanie Crockett. The article highlights the need for the counseling profession to go beyond the current practices of multiculturalism “toward a global vision for the field.” The award was announced at the 2013 American Counseling Association conference and included a certificate. In an interview, Dr. Lorelle was both appreciative of the honor and grateful that the topic of globalization was acknowledged. She went on to recount the experiences that motivated the authors to write the article. Several years ago, they attended a noncounseling course on gender and globalization that profoundly broadened their worldview. The shift in perspective led Dr. Lorelle to travel Italy and Bhutan to learn more about counseling and globalization firsthand. Similarly, Dr. Byrd and Dr. Crockett attended a counseling institute in Ireland while at Old Dominion University.

During the interview, Dr. Lorelle reflected on her counseling experiences in a Bhutanese school. The students were exposed to the individualistic culture of the United States through television and the Internet, which created curiosity among the adolescents. The traditional Bhutanese culture and the Western culture collide and create an intense internal struggle affecting the process of personal identity development. Dr. Lorelle pointed out the utility of the counseling profession in providing a space for individuals to manage this internal struggle. She also noted that this is an important awareness for counselors in the United States because many individuals living here are faced with reconciling the interaction of multiple cultural influences. Dr. Lorelle will begin as an assistant professor in counseling at Governors State University in the fall of 2013. Dr. Byrd is assistant professor of counseling at East Tennessee State University. Dr. Crockett is assistant professor of counseling and the director of the Adult Career Counseling Center at Oakland University. These authors have made a lasting contribution to the literature of the counseling profession.

2012 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award Recipients

Sonya Lorelle, Rebekah Byrd, and Stephanie Crockett


At the close of the second volume, the TPC editorial board committee studied the published articles from 2012 to identify the most outstanding article of the year. They selected the articles fitting the following criteria: elite scholarly style, innovative and inventive material, and the utmost relevance to the counseling profession. A number of articles surfaced; however, there was a clear leader among the committee’s selection. The recipient of the 2012 TPC Outstanding Scholar Award was “Globalization and Counseling: Professional Issues for Counselors,” written by Sonya Lorelle, Rebekah Byrd, and Stephanie Crockett. The article highlights the need for the counseling profession to go beyond the current practices of multiculturalism “toward a global vision for the field.” The award was announced at the 2013 American Counseling Association conference and included a certificate. In an interview, Dr. Lorelle was both appreciative of the honor and grateful that the topic of globalization was acknowledged. She went on to recount the experiences that motivated the authors to write the article. Several years ago, they attended a noncounseling course on gender and globalization that profoundly broadened their worldview. The shift in perspective led Dr. Lorelle to travel Italy and Bhutan to learn more about counseling and globalization firsthand. Similarly, Dr. Byrd and Dr. Crockett attended a counseling institute in Ireland while at Old Dominion University.

During the interview, Dr. Lorelle reflected on her counseling experiences in a Bhutanese school. The students were exposed to the individualistic culture of the United States through television and the Internet, which created curiosity among the adolescents. The traditional Bhutanese culture and the Western culture collide and create an intense internal struggle affecting the process of personal identity development. Dr. Lorelle pointed out the utility of the counseling profession in providing a space for individuals to manage this internal struggle. She also noted that this is an important awareness for counselors in the United States because many individuals living here are faced with reconciling the interaction of multiple cultural influences. Dr. Lorelle will begin as an assistant professor in counseling at Governors State University in the fall of 2013. Dr. Byrd is assistant professor of counseling at East Tennessee State University. Dr. Crockett is assistant professor of counseling and the director of the Adult Career Counseling Center at Oakland University. These authors have made a lasting contribution to the literature of the counseling profession.

Read more about the TPC scholarship awards here.