Barry University PhD student, Lt. Col. Judith Mathewson, recently earned a Notable Achievement Award from the Division of American Counseling Association: Association for Counselors in Education & Government.
Lt. Col. Mathewson has served in the Air Force and Air National Guard for 28 years and is presently Mission Support Group Deputy Commander in the Arkansas Air National Guard. Her background includes being a school counselor/vocational rehabilitation specialist, special education teacher, Sexual Assault Response Coordinator, Victim Advocate, equal employment opportunity director, and Licensed Mental Health Intern.
She is currently completing her Ph.D. in Counseling with a specialization in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling/Therapy from Barry University. Her dissertation is entitled “Post-Deployment Air National Guard Couples: Attachment, Communication, Marital Stress, and Marital Satisfaction”. Judith currently serves as President Elect-Elect (a three year term) on the ACEG Board, a Division of ACA.
Lt. Col. Mathewson has written grants and created fundraising events for two non-profit organizations, Welcome Home Vets, Inc. and Camp Hope for Heroes, providing services for deployed and returning veterans, homeless veterans in Florida, and has advocated for veterans' services at the Vet Center and the V.A. in both Melbourne, Fla. and Fayetteville, Ark.
She has created the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) Good Grief Camp and has served as a volunteer for 20 years as a small group grief facilitator, mental health support, mentored other group leaders and introduced many innovative grief and loss activities for pre-school children through high school age teens. She has been a member of the Critical Incident Stress Management team in Alaska for the Anchorage School District, Air National Guard, and Anchorage Police Department as well as Patrick AFB, and NASA in Cape Canaveral, FL.