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Watts Earns 'Distinguished Professor' Title
April 15, 2011
SHSU Media Contact: Jennifer Gauntt
Richard E. Watts, professor and director for SHSU’s Center for Research and Doctoral Studies in Counseling Education, has been recognized for his scholarship and service to the university with the title of Distinguished Professor.
“Distinguished University Professor recognizes faculty members who have made outstanding contributions to their discipline, who have received national recognition for their scholarly contributions and their service contributions to their discipline,” said Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs David Payne.
“Dr. Watts has been recognized by his national organization as an outstanding scholar and an outstanding leader,” Payne said. “He’s a nice guy. You could say he’s a genuinely decent and caring human being who has demonstrated on campus that he cares for his students and models hard work and integrity.”
Watts has taught in the College of Education’s educational leadership and counseling department since 2005.
He has directed the effort to obtain Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs accreditation for the doctoral program in counselor education and was the primary author of the council’s doctoral program self-study. The program received accreditation, without conditions or stipulations, in January 2010.
His accomplishments include 115 professional publications, including 91 refereed journal articles and book chapters, and five books, with two others in progress.
He has also given 152 professional presentations, including 58 national or international presentations; an invited keynote speech to the Turkish Counseling Congress in Istanbul, Turkey; another keynote speech at the North American Society for Adlerian Psychology Conference; and invitations to teach in Romania and Switzerland.
His service at SHSU has also included directing, co-directing or serving as a committee member for 13 doctoral dissertations.
In addition, he currently serves as the chairperson for the American Counseling Association’s Council of Journal Editors and is the editor for “Counseling and Values,” the journal of the Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling, a division of ACA.
For his service, Watts recently has been recognized with the Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling’s “Meritorious Service Award;” the American Counseling Association’s “Fellow Award” and their David K. Brooks, Jr. Distinguished Mentor Award; the Texas Counseling Association’s “Presidential Award;” and was named the College of Education’s 2008 “Outstanding Researcher.”
Watts earned his bachelor’s degree from SHSU, his master’s degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and his doctoral degree from the University of North Texas.
He is licensed as a professional counselor and as a board-approved supervisor by the Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors and certified as a family therapist by the National Academy for Certified Family Therapists, Inc.
“Being recognized as Distinguished University Professor is such an honor and is a humbling experience as well,” Watts said. “Success is a communal endeavor and I am very grateful for the support of my colleagues in the College of Education and in the department of educational leadership and counseling.
“As I look back to the time when I was an undergraduate here, and then look forward to today, I’m continually amazed at how fortunate I’ve been to be both a student and a faculty member at SHSU,” he said. “I am very grateful for this recognition and extremely proud to be a part of the SHSU family.”
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