Jennifer Foster

Dr. Foster is an associate professor and coordinator of the school counseling program. She is a licensed counselor and professional school counselor. Current research foci include prevention of abuse and neglect, trauma-informed practices, and anti-racist school counseling. Dr. Foster has made significant contributions to the field in the area of childhood trauma and has shared her research findings through multiple publications and presentations in the United States and abroad. Her over 25 publications have been featured in book chapters and journals as: Counselor Education and Supervision, Journal of Mental Health Counseling, Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision, and Journal for Specialist in Group Work. Dr. Foster has been featured in Counseling Today as a content expert in two cover stories on childhood trauma (2014; 2018) and was invited to publish a special topics article on how clinicians can address fear in victims of child sexual abuse (2016). She has received four internal grants totaling over $15,000 to support her research in the U.S. and India. Additionally, Dr. Foster lends her expertise as a consultant in the community, specializing in the areas of trauma recovery and trauma informed schools. 

Dr. Foster has held a number of leadership roles including Counselor Education Representative on the Michigan School Counselor Association (MSCA) Board (2012-2014) and Secretary for the North Central Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (2016-2017). Dr. Foster currently serves as a member of the WMU Institutional Review Board and editorial review board member for Counseling and Values. She is the recipient of multiple awards, including: Outstanding Service, Chi Sigma Iota Mu Beta Chapter (2022), College of Education Multicultural Advocate Award for Global Engagement (2019), Journal for Specialist in Group Work Research Article of the Year (2019), and College of Education Esprit De Corps, which recognizes respectful civility, collegiality and academic citizenship (2018). Her dissertation, An Analysis of Trauma Narratives: Perceptions of Children on the Experience of Sexual Abuse, was awarded University of Central Florida’s College of Education Outstanding Dissertation Award.