Azara Santiago-Rivera, PhD

Professor Emerita
Merrimack College

Dr. Santiago Rivera, PhD, NCC is Professor Emerita and formally the Director of the Clinical Mental Health Program at Merrimack College, North Andover, MA.  She has held academic and administrative appointments at Felician University, NJ, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Washington, DC and Chicago, IL, The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, WI and the University at Albany, NY.  Among outcomes of her administrative work were initiatives to advance early career faculty with a focus on publishing, teaching strategies and tenure and promotion processes. Her professional and leadership positions in professional organizations include President of the National Latinx Psychological Association, President of the Latino Mental Health Association of New Jersey. She is the Founding Editor of the Journal of Latinx Psychology and is a Fellow of Divisions 45 and 17 of the American Psychological Association (APA).  In 2014 Dr. Santiago-Rivera received the APA Presidential Citation for outstanding contribution to the profession. She is currently the immediate past-chair of AAHHE. Previous leadership roles in AAHHE include Chair of the Outstanding Dissertation Awards Committee, and Chair-Elect of the Finance Committee. At present, she is serving as a consultant in areas associated with cultural competence in mental health clinical practice as well as teaching at William Paterson University, New Jersey. Her doctorate degree is in Counseling from Wayne State University, Detroit MI.