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Professional Overview

Dr. Gloria Aquino Sosa is an Associate Professor and the Department Chair at Saint Mary's College of California. She is also the Program Director of the Higher Education and Student Affairs and Career Specializations in the Counseling Department. Dr. Sosa also serves as the faculty Director of the High Potential program. She has over 20 years experience working as an equity and inclusion specialist in higher education and in clinical mental health settings as an administrator, instructor, counselor, and supervisor focusing on promoting education through intercultural interactions and a commitment to social justice. She holds a license in Professional Counseling (MI). In 2015 she was elected president elect of the American Counseling Association’s Counselors for Social Justice Division. She held the role of Chief Diversity Officer at Saint Mary's from 2017-2019.

Sosa has presented nationally in the areas of strengths based institutional change to support first generation and low income students and on many topics including unearthing the the idea that intergenerational trauma negatively impacts student success and that self-awareness is the foundation for cultural proficiency development. She provides consultation and training for universities and businesses on this topic. She has rooted her scholarship and service in mindful attentiveness to the significance of intentional and active listening to one's inner narratives to develop personal awareness of one's privilege and power. Sosa characterizes social justice as an ongoing process necessary to sustain cultural humility as it unfolds within one’s internal and external experiences and education. Interwoven within that foundation is research including multicultural counseling strategies, and how underrepresented college students navigate their college experience. She holds a Ph.D in Counselor Education and Supervision from Oakland University.

As director of the Center for Multicultural Initiatives (CMI) at Oakland University in Michigan, she was responsible for developing and implementing campus-wide diversity initiatives and co-led in the creation and expansion of a nationally award-winning scholarship program for underrepresented students—The Oakland University Trustee Academic Success program. The CMI was renamed from the Office of Equity under her directorship, and has become the hub for student success initiatives that matter.