Hello!
My name is Dessie Avila, and I am a doctoral candidate at Tennessee Tech University
working on my dissertation. I am inviting you to participate in my research project about Black,
Indigenous, and/or Person of Color (BIPOC) counselors’ experiences working in a rural area. If you
participate in my project, you will need to participate in one in-depth interview and one follow-up
, and you will need to bring an artifact representative of your experience as a BIPOC counselor working in a
rural setting. The interviews will take place over ZOOM. It will take you about 1.75 hours to
participate in the research.
This research study is part of the requirements to obtain my Ph.D. and is connected to
Tennessee Tech University’s Counseling and Psychology program. To participate, you must
meet the following criteria: (a) identify as Black, Indigenous, and a Person of Color; (b)
graduated from a CACREP-accredited counseling program; (c) have a temporary license or full
license to work within the state of Tennessee; (d) currently work in one or more rural counties in
Tennessee; and (e) 18 years or older. Additionally, you must work in a rural area for at least 20
hours a week.
The benefits of participating in this study include having BIPOC voices heard and
helping understand what it is like to work as a counselor in a rural area. Your participation can
help contribute to academic knowledge and society by illuminating experiences from your
perspective. Furthermore, one $50 electronic gift card to Amazon is offered as compensation for participating in the study. The gift card will be distributed after the second follow-up interview.
Participation is voluntary, but I hope you will choose to be part of this project!
For more information or to sign up, contact me at dsavila42@tntech.edu.
Please forward this email to others who might be interested in participating.
Thank you, Dessie Avila
https://tntech.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3rtQQgzT9ok9SbI
