Connections in Tampa Bay

Dr. Corolis Solomon is an assistant professor at the Troy University Tampa Bay location. Originally from Puerto Rico, Dr. Solomon has been living in Florida for the past 29 years. She is a licensed mental health counselor specializing in anxiety and trauma.

The transition from counseling to teaching was brought about by the passion for learning that students posses.

"Although I love being a counselor," she says, "the energy that I get from being with a group of students that are willing to learn about mental health counseling feels more fulfilling to me."

Dr. Solomon received her master's from Troy University in Counseling/Psychology. Her great experience here and the relationships she had continued to develop with the faculty over the years brought her back to Troy. She says it felt like going back to a familiar place.

The areas of self-compassion are the focus of her research interests. She has been working with understanding the stressors of educators and implementing interventions with self-compassion practices, to prevent burnout and to increase happiness in their lives. Her passion for this topic stems from practicing self-compassion for herself. She says it has changed her life in many positive ways!

Like many educators, her favorite part of this job is the students.

"Seeing them evolve and gain confidence during their process of learning as counselors in training is very exciting to see," she says.

Her teaching philosophy is to use a constructivist approach.

"I also find that constructivist teaching," she explains, "is in synergy with a contemplative approach.

"If through constructivism thinking we actively promote self-reflection, contemplative practices are the solid platform to enhance emotional well-being and enhance academic performance."

In her time as an educator, the best piece of advice she received was from Dr. Mark Young.

 A former professor and mentor, he once said, "Nobody tells you as you are studying to be a professor that you will end up loving your students.  Also, that our influence as educators to the students is infinite."

Dr. Solomon takes this idea as a big responsibility.

Though she teaches at one of the satellite campuses, Dr. Solomon says Troy has been great about offering opportunities to be engage in committees and providing her with an open door of possibilities to spread the self-compassion practices throughout the College of Education.

Students take classes from Dr. Solomon not only at the Tampa Bay location, but online as well. Brooke Woolery, a junior rehabilitation major and applied behavior analysis minor, is seen here doing course work for an online psychology class.