Past Members

Edward Rivero received a degree in Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley. He formerly was an academic advisor at Youth Radio in Downtown Oakland, CA and a counseling intern at Boston Latin School. Eddie’s research interests include the disproportionate number of students of color in special education services and the Effects of spiritual healing traditions on Chicano/a Latino/a Mental health

Project: By evaluating long history of career guidance and counseling practices and policies in the US and Finland, my aim is to develop culturally responsive recommendations for China. Products: – Solberg, V., Lillis, J., Zhang, W., & Martin, J. L. (2020). Career Development Policy Strategies for Supporting Transition of Students with Education Needs and Disabilities. In M. Yuen, W. Beamish, & V. S. Solberg (Eds.), Careers for Students with Special Educational Needs: Perspectives on Development and Transitions from the Asia-Pacific Region. (pp. 1-26). Singapore: Singapore: Springer.

Project: Judith conducts evaluation research with Dr. Solberg for the Vocational Rehabilitation Youth Technical Assistance Center (Y-TAC) led by the Institute of Educational Leadership and funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration. This work evaluates training and technical assistance delivered by Y-TAC for vocational rehabilitation agencies in multiple states. She also helps coordinate the State Leaders Career Development Network that meets monthly with leaders from over 30 states to discuss career development topics and the implementation of individualized learning plans (ILPs). Other recent projects include career development research for the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth and a longitudinal research project on high school graduates.

Mason is currently a Counseling Psychology doctoral student specializing in sport and performance psychology. Mason received a Bachelor of Science in Sport Psychology in 2016 from the University of Roehampton in London, England, where his research interests centered around the development of collective efficacy in team-sport athletes. Moving to the United States in 2016, Mason went on to the University of Denver to complete his Master of Arts in Sport and Performance Psychology in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology. At Denver, his research team explored the link between psychological flexibility and stress-related growth following athletic injury. Additionally, Mason has worked as a mental performance consultant at the Centre for Performance Excellence, where he provided performance enhancement services to academic institutions, sporting organizations, and individual clients. Mason is currently a fourth-year Glenn Fellow in the Counseling Psychology and Applied Human Development Program. He currently serves as Sport and Performance Psychology Coordinator for the Boston University Sport Psych Team, a group of graduate students providing mental performance consulting to the Boston University athletic department and College of Fine Arts. His current research is exploring the experiences of academy soccer players in the United Kingdom, and building programs to enhance their future readiness.

Projects: one examines the current state of career advising in higher education (Higher Education Toolkit) and another that focuses on project-based learning/ MakerSpace and its connection to youth career development.

Yanling is a graduate student in the school counseling program at Wheelock College of Education and Human Development, Boston University. She received her MBA degree at Yunnan University, China. Yanling worked for three state-owned enterprises for seven years in China. The latest job was in Kunming Education Investment Co., Ltd, China, as a project manager. During that time, she had an excellent opportunity to get access to the K-12 education area. She noticed the gap in the education system that relates to career development and social and emotional learning. It inspired her to pursue graduate study in counseling. Yanling has followed Dr.Scott Solberg and worked on SEL and career readiness. Her research interests include the impacts of SEL on academic achievement and career readiness, identity development. In her spare time, she is practicing yoga and also enjoys cooking, traveling, and freediving.

Bushra completed a B.S in Neuroscience and a M.A in Clinical Mental Counseling both from the Ohio State University. She has done research on suicide prevention, the career concerns of immigrants and social justice in the counseling profession. Bushra completed a year-long clinical internship at Ohio State’s college counseling center and was inspired by this experience to further her education and clinical training. Bushra’s clinical interests are marginalized college students and emerging adults. Her research interests include career development, coping, academic persistence and racial and ethnic identity development. Bushra is affiliated with the American Psychological Association Division 17 (Vocational Psychology) and Division 9 (Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues). In her spare time, she enjoys reading, watching films, and exploring Boston.

Luis is a doctoral student in Counseling Psychology program in the Department of Counseling Psychology and Applied Human Development at the School of Education, Boston University. Luis entered BU’s doctoral program in 2021 with a M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from New Mexico State University, and a B.S. in Psychology from a liberal arts university in Wisconsin. Luis’s research experience and current interests revolve around the applied practice and evaluation of positive youth development particularly within the context of supporting high needs high opportunity youth.

Ms. Jaques has her B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Communication from Texas A&M University at College Station, and Ed.M. in Education Policy and Management from Harvard Graduate School of Education. She began her journey in education in San Antonio as a Teach For America corps member, where she gained experience as a middle school special education teacher in both public and charter school settings. In these roles, she created leadership programming opportunities for students focused on developing their sense of purpose and deep connection to the school community through volunteering across the campus. Her recent work includes collaboration with Boston Public School’s Office of Strategy and Innovation in developing the BPS Transformative Mentorship Initiative, a system that provides social emotional and mentorship support to students, in a way which response to their individual needs and identities. This initiative served 15 schools and nearly 1,000 students in its first year. Prior to this role, Ms. Jaques served as the Research Assistant for the Urban Education Institute at UTSA, founder and Executive Chair of San Antonio Prism – a regional branch of Teach For America’s initiative to support LBGTQ+ students and teachers, and mentor and trainer for Teach For America special education corps members.

Yajing is a graduate student in the school counseling program at Wheelock College of Education and Human Development, Boston University. She earned a Master’s degree in Education at Pepperdine University and a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Psychology at Tianjin University of Commerce in China. She had several volunteer experiences in tutoring high school students. As an international student, she noticed lots of challenges for students, who are faced with various study and work choices. Her research interests are career development among senior high school students and college students, psychological scale designing, and trauma intervention. Currently, she is working with Dr. Scott Solberg on the project of higher education toolkit.

Aidan Kraus is a Master of Education student at Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, earning a degree in Counseling with a Specialization in Sport Psychology. Aidan graduated from Smith College and earned a degree in American Studies with a focus in the Psychology of Sport. Aidan is particularly interested in how the mental health of student-athletes is influenced by collegiate athletics which stemmed from their interests in diversity and access among this population of college students. For the past two years, Aidan has worked as a strength and conditioning coach and social-emotional learning motivator for inner city youth through the Get Ready: Life Fitness Program at the Boston English High School under Dr. John McCarthy of Boston University. Currently, Aidan spends their time working with collegiate student-athletes as a mental performance consultant within the Boston area and is involved in multiple research projects within BU Wheelock College focusing on sport, youth advocacy, and inclusion and diversity. Aidan has been a member of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) for the past couple years and is a Student Delegate for the Social Justice Initiative and Co-Chair of the LGBTQ+ Topics in Sport and Performance Special Interest Group within the organization. Aidan also serves as a student representative on the American Psychological Association (APA) Division 17 Special Task Group: Making Room at the Table: Trans and Non-binary pipeline into Counseling Psychology and is an advocate and member of the LGBTQ+ community. They are also affiliated with APA Division 44 (Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity) and APA Division 47 (Sport, Exercise & Performance Psychology). Aidan plans to obtain their doctorate in the future and work within a collegiate athletic department as a mental health counselor and mental performance consultant for student-athletes, coaches, and administrators.

Turner is currently earning her Master of Education in Counseling with a specialization in sport psychology at Boston University. She completed a B.S. in Psychology at Fordham University, where she was also a member of the women’s soccer team. At Fordham, Turner worked as a research assistant on various studies looking at burnout in childcare providers, as well as longitudinal research on social and literacy development. After graduation, Turner earned a Fulbright Research Scholarship to travel to The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia and look at athletic identity development of Para swimmers with cerebral palsy who have high support needs. After the completion of that research, she worked as an Employment Specialist for adults with disabilities at Job Path NYC. Currently, Turner works as a mental performance coach with collegiate athletes and is involved in numerous research projects at Boston University focusing on career development.

Ritika is a third-year undergraduate student at Boston University (BU) studying Human Physiology. At BU, she is currently the president and co-captain of BU Dheem (an Indian classical dance group), she has participated in Model UN conferences and is a part of the Automotive club as well as the Premed Society. Over the past year, Ritika has been an active volunteer in organizations that tutor underprivileged students and elementary school students across the world. As a passionate dance who has been learning dance since the age of 4, over the summer Ritika is trying to teach younger kids the invaluable skills that dance has taught her. As an aspiring pediatrician, she is always trying to spend more time with children and learn more about the field of medicine. In her free time, Ritika loves to read, bake, binge watch tv shows, explore new places and eat some yummy food.

Nupur is a second-year undergraduate student at Boston University (BU) majoring in Human Physiology with a minor in Public Health. At BU she is a part of Beta Psi Omega, the pre-professional biology fraternity, Sargent Student Government, SASA (South asian student association), and Sigma Kappa sorority. Over the summer she is shadowing a dentist and physician to both get more involved and understand the different careers that are available in the medical field. Nupur has always had an interest in medicine and hopes to pursue medical school in the near future. She is passionate for advocating for minority groups and is very adaptable with any obstacles that are presented to her. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, surfing, and laying in a hammock with a good book.