Amber Samuels

Biography

Amber M. Samuels, PhD, LPC (DC), NCC, CCC is an Assistant Professor at Hood College. Dr. Samuels is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in the District of Columbia, a National Certified Counselor (NCC), a Certified Career Counselor (CCC), and an MBTI® Certified Practitioner. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Counseling from The George Washington University, a Master of Science degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Radford University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Randolph-Macon College. 

Prior to Hood, she served as the Assistant Director of Training of the Community Counseling Services Center (CCSC), Staff Clinical Supervisor, and Professional Lecturer in Counseling at The George Washington University. Dr. Samuels has presented at local, regional and national counseling conferences, and her counseling experiences include post-secondary, community mental health, intensive in-home and private practice settings. 

Dr. Samuels is passionate about working with people belonging to historically marginalized communities and centers her teaching, research and practice around the mental health needs of people in the margins. She is currently a member of the American Counseling Association (ACA), the Association for Counselor Education & Supervision (ACES), the National Career Development Association (NCDA), Counselors for Social Justice (CSJ), and other ACA divisions. As a SACES 2020-2022 Emerging Leader, Dr. Samuels was also involved in the SACES Multicultural Interest Network and Social Justice + Human Rights Interest Network initiatives. Dr. Samuels aims to train professional counselors who are culturally responsive, socially just, and compassionate. 

Students who are interested in joining Dr. Samuels’s research lab, Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Research Lab, are encouraged to send her an email for more information. The lab’s current focus is to use research as a tool for advocacy through engaging in qualitative research projects focused on multicultural and social justice issues in counseling and psychology. Potential benefits of conducting research alongside Dr. Samuels include: (a) Gain supervised research experience; (b) advance your knowledge of research methodology and multicultural and social justice issues in counseling and psychology; and (c) submit for publications or presentations in counseling and psychology.

Graduate and undergraduate students who are interested in pursuing research opportunities are welcome!