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About Judith Harrington
Dr. Harrington has spent most of her career in three settings-private practice counseling, college teaching, and community mental health agencies. She began serving at undergraduate liberal arts colleges assisting students in residence life and student services. She broadened her professional interest in serving consumers across the lifespan by establishing her full-time private practice with individuals, couples, families, and groups while also providing clinical supervision and consultation. While in practice, she provided adjunct counselor education to graduate programs in Alabama, and became a full time tenured professor at the University of Montevallo where she was Program Coordinator and Coordinator of the Couples and Family Counseling Concentration. She served for thirty years as a volunteer and clinical director at a regional crisis center, where she learned that she could no longer not become a suicide prevention advocate. She is an ardent advocate for suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention by serving on national committees and providing training, standards development, and publications to the mental health field. In addition to extensive service to the profession in national and state professional associations, she has been fortunate to have her service and advocacy recognized with several national and state awards for distinctive contributions to the field.
Research Interests and Specialties
Couples & Family Counseling
Clinical Supervision
Group Counseling
Suicidology, Grief, Crisis, and Trauma
Distinctions & Associations
- American Association of Marriage & Family Therapy (AAMFT), Alabama Association of Marriage & Family Therapy (ALAMFT)
- American Counseling Association (ACA); Alabama Counseling Association (ALCA)
- Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES), Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (SACES), Alabama Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ALACES)
- National Association of Multicultural Education (NAME)
- International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors (IAMFC); Alabama Association of Marriage and Family Counselors (ALAMFC)
- Alabama Suicide Prevention and Resources Coalition (ASPARC)
- Alabama Chapter of the Society of Sexual, Affectional, Intersex, and Gender Expansive Identities (ALSAIGE)
- Alabama Association of Specialists in Group Work (ALSGW)
- Alabama Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (ALAMCD)
- American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA)
Selected Publications and Presentations
Tyson, L., Culbreth, J. & Harrington, J. A. (Eds.). (2008). Critical incidents in clinical supervision. American Counseling Association.
Harrington, J. A. (2023). Risk assessment and intervention: Suicide and homicide assessment. In Jackson-Cherry, L. & Erford, B. (Eds.), Crisis assessment, intervention, and prevention. (4th Ed.). Pearson.
Harrington, J. A., & Parker, L. (2022). Crisis intervention. In Erford, B. Orientation to the counseling profession: Advocacy, ethics, and essential foundations (4th Ed.). Pearson.
Harrington, J. A. (2019). Critical incident-Notifying mom or dad: Who ya’ gonna call? In Critical incidents in school counseling (3rd ed.). Portman, T. A., Wood, C., & Fye, H. (Eds.). American Counseling Association.
Harrington, J. A., & Daughhetee, C. (2017). Crisis intervention. In B. Erford Orientation to the counseling profession: Advocacy, ethics, and essential foundations (3rd Ed.). Pearson.
Harrington, J. A. & Daughhetee, C. (2017). Risk assessment and intervention: Suicide and homicide assessment. In Jackson-Cherry, L. & Erford, B. Crisis assessment, intervention, and prevention. (3rd Ed.). Pearson.
Jackson, J., Parker, L., & Harrington, J. (2017). Counselor professional self-care. In Jackson-Cherry, L. & Erford, B. Crisis assessment, intervention, and prevention. (3rd Ed.) Pearson
Harrington, J. A., & Daughhetee, C. (2013). Suicide and homicide. In L. Jackson-Cherry & B. Erford (Eds.), Crisis: Intervention and prevention 2nd Edition (Chapter 5). Pearson.
Harrington, J. A. (2004). Response to leader confrontation. In Critical incidents in group counseling (pp. 247-253) Tyson, L.E., Perusse, R. & Whitledge, J. (Eds.). American Counseling Association.
Harrington, J. A. (2013). Contemporary issues in private practice: Spotlight on the self-employed mental health counselor. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 35, 3, 189-195.
Pearson, Q. M. & Harrington, J. A. (2013). Special edition: Contemporary issues in private practice. Journal of Mental Health Counseling. Guest Editor.
Tyson, L. E. & Harrington, J. A. (2012). Special edition: Suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention with Youth, Adults and the Elderly. Alabama Counseling Association (ALCA) Journal. Guest Editor.
Coombs, D., Harrington, J. A. & Talbott, L.L. (2010). Youth suicides in Alabama: A focus on gun safety. Alabama State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance Journal 31(1)31-35.
Harrington, J. A., (2023). Suicide bereavement and postvention care. The Advocate Magazine. American Mental Health Counselors Association
Harrington, J. A. (2018). AMHCA Standards bridge professional expectations with clinical practice. AMHCA The Advocate Magazine, 41, 4.
Harrington, J. A. (2017). New AMHCA standards strengthen mental health professionals’ care. AMHCA The Advocate Magazine, 40, 4 (6-7).
Harrington, J.A. (2013). Understanding suicide prevention. American Mental Health Counselors Association, Professional Development Committee.
Educational Background
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL (CACREP)
Ph.D., 1994, Counselor Education and Supervision
University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL
M.S., 1982, Counselor Education
North Central College, Naperville, IL
B.A., 1979, Psychology, Education