Sacky Holdiness

Sacky Holdiness, Ph. D., earned a B.S. in Sociology from Mississippi State College for Women, an M.A. in Psychology from the University of West Florida, and a Ph.D. in Counselor Education from Mississippi State University. She has over 45 years of teaching experience, which encompasses kindergarten through college in the United States as well as in Europe. Her clinical experience includes working as a children’s therapist at Weems Community Mental Health Center in Meridian, Mississippi. A Specialist in School Psychology, Dr. Holdiness also administered psychological tests for both children and adults. In addition, she served as a sexual abuse therapist at Wesley House Sexual Assault Crisis Center where she conducted investigative interviews with sexually abused children and served as an expert witness in numerous court cases. She has served as the Director of The Counselor’s Cabin since 2004. Dr. Holdiness joined Walden University as a Contributing Faculty member in 2010 and teaches in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program. A nationally certified counselor, Dr. Holdiness is also a Licensed Professional Counselor in Mississippi. She is a member of the American Counseling Association, the Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling, the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, the Mississippi Counseling Association, and the Mississippi Licensed Professional Counselors Association. Current research interests are in attachment and communication.

Courses Taught

COUN 6100 - Introduction to Mental Health Counseling

COUN 6316 - Techniques of Counseling

RESI 6621 - MS Counseling Residency

RESI 8801C - MS Counseling Residency

RESI 8803C - MS Counseling Residency

CPLB 601L - CMHC Pre-Practicum 1

FPLB 632 L - MCFC Pre-Practicum

RESI 6601 - MS Counseling Residency

RESI 6642 - MS Counseling Residency

Education

BS, Mississippi State College for Women

MA, University of West Florida

PhD, Mississippi State University

Public Service

Campus Link-Americorps/Advisory Board, Board Member - Meridian

Campus Link-Americorps/Community Committee, Committee Member - Meridian

Awards / Honors

Emerging Leader Award, Southern Association for Counselor Educators and Supervisors, 2003

Publications

Sheperis, C. J., Holdiness, S., Doggett, R. A. (2004). Etiology and Epidemiology of Reactive Attachment Disorder.

Sheperis, C. J., Doggett, R. A., Hoda, N. E., Blanchard, T., Renfro-Michel, E., Holdiness, S., Schlagheck, R. (2003). The development of an assessment protocol for reactive attachment disorder. The Journal of Mental Health Counseling

Presentations

Holdiness, S. (2007). Behavior Management: Behavioral Strategies for Working with Three and Four-Year-Old Children. Mississippi Action for Progress, Inc

Belaire, C., Holdiness, S. (2011). Mirror, Mirror on the Wall. Louisiana Counseling Association

Holdiness, S. (2007). Treatment Strategies for Children and Adolescents Who Have Been Sexually Violated. Community Counseling Services

Holdiness, S. (2017). Working with Children. Walden University