Clorinda Eileen Velez

Clorinda Vélez is an Associate Professor in the Psychology Department. She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Arizona State University and is a licensed Clinical Psychologist. She joined Quinnipiac University in Fall 2014 after completing post-doctoral clinical, research, and teaching training at the University of Delaware and Swarthmore College. Dr. Vélez's research focuses on the prevention of mental health problems and includes topics such as parenting, stress and coping, and depression prevention. She is currently exploring “diaper need” (i.e., when families do not have adequate diapers to keep their infants and toddlers clean and dry), how it is assessed and addressed in our local communities, and how diaper need relates to maternal mental health. She teaches several courses including Introduction to Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Introduction to Research Methods, and service-learning courses in the Applied Clinical Science Concentration. She also runs a small research group where students learn basic research skills and explore mental health topics. Promoting awareness and understanding of mental health problems, decreasing mental health-related stigma, encouraging students' thoughtful and critical consumption of information in their everyday lives, and using science to understand and address the needs of the community are at the core of all her work.