Patton College’s Tamarine Foreman named 2021 OACES Counselor Educator of the Year

Tamarine Foreman, assistant professor in The Patton College of Education, was awarded the 2021 Ohio Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (OACES) Counselor Educator of the Year.

Foreman was honored for her consistent excellence in teaching and training in counseling and counselor education. According to OACES, the Counselor Educator of the Year is also someone who is an exceptionally dedicated, knowledgeable, and skilled teacher/trainer in any state-approved or accredited program who is planning to continue in an active teaching status.

Nominated by Christine Suniti Bhat, professor and chair of the Department of Counseling and Higher Education, Foreman was selected from nominees from all over Ohio.

“Dr. Foreman consistently performs at a high level in teaching, scholarship, and service, and she has a strong counselor identity that she effectively imparts to her master's and doctoral students,” said Bhat. “Dr. Foreman’s teaching evaluations are close to 5.0 (the maximum) every semester, and qualitative comments from students are filled with accolades about her teaching and the connections she makes with students. She challenges students to engage in higher-level thinking and explore intersectional identities as they develop their own counseling skills.”

Foreman attended The University of North Carolina at Greensboro where she earned a doctorate in Counseling and Counselor Education and doctoral minors in Educational Research Methodology and Human Development and Family Studies. She earned a MS. Ed. in Community Counseling from the University of Dayton and a BA in Psychology from Otterbein College.

Prior to undertaking her doctoral study, Foreman worked full-time as a counselor. She holds the Professional Clinical Counselor with Supervisory Endorsement, the highest level of licensure in the field of counseling in Ohio.

“Students appreciate the depth of her clinical experience in mental health counseling,” said Bhat. “She shares practical experiences from her clinical practice with students and this helps them with a greater grasp of applying theory to practice.”

Foreman’s research is centered on understanding the impact of working with people who have experienced trauma by examining vicarious traumatization and posttraumatic growth with the goals of illuminating these processes, inspiring wellness, and supporting the developmental journey of counselors and helping professionals. She serves as the faculty adviser for the Alpha Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota (CSI), the counseling academic and professional Honor Society. Over the past three years, Foreman has served in professional leadership capacities with the Ohio Counseling Association (OCA). Currently she serves as parliamentarian on the OCA Executive Board, and she is running for president in the next election cycle.

“I am humbled and honored to receive this award,” said Foreman. “I value the opportunity to help train, teach, and support students in their journey to become future counselors and counselor educators. I strive to create a collaborative learning environment that supports, engages, and enhances their experiences. I learn so much from my students and enjoy spending time with them in the classroom and in consultation. I am grateful to have the honor to teach these students and receive recognition for my services as a counselor educator.”