Laura K. Jones, PhD, MS, MA, is an associate professor at the University of North Carolina Asheville, where she teaches coursework in both health sciences and neuroscience. She also serves as the coordinator of mental health services for the university’s Division I athletics program, helping athletes and coaches to better understand how mental health physiologically influences wellbeing and peak performance.

 

With a PhD in counseling and counselor education (emphasis in public health), an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and an MS in psychology–cognitive neuroscience, she has experience in numerous sectors of health promotion and public health policy, including: clinical mental health counseling; the application of neuroscience to clinical training and practice; the reciprocal influence of mental and physical wellbeing; social determinants of mental health; athlete mental health and performance; interpersonal trauma and trauma-informed practices; and mental health stigma, parity, and policy.

 

Dr. Jones is a national speaker and published author in each of these areas, including books, book chapters, and peer reviewed and popular publications, and has served as an editorial board member, associate editor, and co-editor for national and international journals around counseling and health psychology. Her passion is in helping organizations and teams to build and sustain cultures supportive of the mental and emotional wellbeing of their members.

 

Within the community, she actively engages in initiatives around her areas of expertise, including serving as a: board member and clinical committee member for All Souls Counseling Center; research and program evaluation consultant for HelpMate; regular guest speaker for MAHEC’s Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship program and Lenoir-Rhyne’s graduate program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling; and mental health and wellbeing consultant for local, state, and national businesses. Throughout all her work, she endeavors to help individuals, communities, and organizations create innovative, effective, and sustainable means of living their most well and fulfilled lives.