In the thirteenth year of TPC’s Dissertation Excellence Award program, awards were presented to the authors of two winning dissertations, one in qualitative research and one in quantitative research. After an extensive review of submissions from across the United States, the committee selected Drs. Alice Mills Mai and Crystal Socha to receive the 2026 Dissertation Excellence Awards. Dr. Mills Mai received the award in quantitative research for her dissertation entitled The Gift of Counseling: A Quantitative Exploration of Vicarious Resilience and Wellness in Mental Health Counseling, and Dr. Socha received the award in qualitative research for her dissertation entitled Exploring the Experiences of Anti-Fatness Among Fat, Larger-Bodied, and Higher-Weight Clients in Counseling.
Alice Mills Mai (she/her), PhD, NCC, LMHC, LPCC-S, earned a Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling from the City College of New York (CUNY) and a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision from the University of the Cumberlands. She works as a licensed counselor, counselor educator, and resilience researcher. She is the founder of Centering Wholeness LLC, a wellness and resilience consultancy based in Columbus, Ohio, and she holds dual licensure as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor with Supervision designation (LPCC-S) in Ohio and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in New York.
Trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Dr. Alice has practiced on college campuses, in community mental health centers, in correctional settings, and in private practice, with a sustained focus on supporting West African immigrant families and Black women navigating interpersonal, generational, and systemic trauma.
As a Ghanaian immigrant and content creator, she is the founder of Dwoada Nkaakae, a Twi-language psychoeducation initiative delivering evidence-informed mental health content to Ghanaian and diaspora communities on social media. She has presented at the American Counseling Association Annual Conference and has been featured as a mental health expert in the Huffington Post, The Root, and national broadcast media. She also serves as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Lehman College (CUNY) and provides consulting, training, and speaking services to organizations focused on employee well-being and resilience.
Beyond her professional life, Dr. Alice credits her family and community as the foundations of her success. She finds joy in travel, good food, and time with the people she loves. To learn more, visit www.centeringwholeness.com or follow her @dralice.phd.
Crystal Socha (she/her), PhD, NCC, ACS, LPC, CRC, is a Senior Training & Consultation Specialist at Rutgers University in the Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation & Counseling Professions. With over 12 years of experience in the behavioral health field, she holds a master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling track, and a PhD in Psychiatric Rehabilitation Counseling, Counselor Education and Supervision track. Dr. Socha has experience providing rehabilitation and mental health counseling across a variety of clinical, educational, and community-based settings, working with diverse populations throughout her career.
Dr. Socha’s research and professional interests include anti-fat bias among mental health professionals, eating disorders and disordered eating behaviors, fat liberation, and social justice. She is deeply committed to identifying and dismantling anti-fatness within the counseling profession and beyond through clinical practice, counselor education, supervision, research, advocacy, and training.
In addition to her work at Rutgers, Dr. Socha provides virtual counseling services to residents living in New Jersey and Pennsylvania through her private practice, Nourishing Minds Counseling Center, where she uses a weight-inclusive and liberatory approach to support clients with eating disorders, disordered eating, and a range of mental health concerns. She also offers career counseling to help clients pursue meaningful and sustainable employment. Her work is grounded in trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and weight-inclusive care that supports individuals in building meaningful, values-driven lives worth living.
TPC looks forward to recognizing outstanding dissertations like those of Drs. Mills Mai and Socha for many years to come.
Read more about the TPC scholarship awards here
