Nancy Carlson

Core Faculty
College of Social and Behavioral Health
School of Counseling
M.S. School Counseling

Dr. Nancy N. Carlson has worked in educational and school counseling settings for the bulk of her 35+ year career. From 2017-2020 she served as the School Counseling Specialist for the American Counseling Association. Previously, she was an Assistant Professor in graduate counseling at the University of the District of Columbia, where she coordinated the school counseling program. Prior to that, she worked briefly as a college admissions counselor after 30 years with Montgomery County Public Schools in a variety of assignments, including foreign language teacher, secondary school counselor, resource counselor, and finally the K-12 counselor specialist, working from Central Office. She has served on the editorial review boards for both the Journal of Counselor Leadership and Advocacy, as well as Professional School Counseling, and was on the Executive Board for the Maryland School Counselor Association from 2014 – 2017. At Walden University, she has been a Contributing Faculty in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences since 2019.

Passionate about the social and emotional development of children and adolescents, college and career readiness, and expressive arts therapy, Dr. Carlson has published and presented on topics such as partnerships between K-12 school districts and historically black colleges and universities, college and career readiness for Latino learners, and poetry therapy. Her two doctoral dissertations involved research on working with the gifted and talented student population. Her most recent dissertation expanded this topic to counselor advocacy in identifying underrepresented populations for gifted and talented programs in the schools.

Education

PhD, University of Maryland, College Park

PhD, University of Maryland, College Park

Publications

Carlson, N. N., Holcomb-McCoy, C., Miller, T. R. (2017). School counselors' knowledge and involvement concerning gifted and talented students. Journal of Counselor Leadership and Advocacy

Carlson, N. N. (2017). To tell or not to tell: The fine line between minors' privacy and others' right to know. Counseling Today

Presentations

Carlson, N. N. (2017). Counselor Tips for Success: Transitioning to New Positions in Schools. American Counseling Association

Carlson, N. N. (2019). School Counselors Leading the Charge: Social Justice through Advocacy. American Counseling Association

Carlson, N. N. (2018). Post-DACA: Professional Counselors Supporting Undocumented Youth and Their Dreams. American Counseling Association