May 8, 2014 — Katherine Kitchen Andren of Powell, a clinical psychology
Ph.D. student at the University of Wyoming, is one of 85 doctoral students
nationwide selected to receive a $15,000 Scholar Award from the P.E.O.
Sisterhood.
She was sponsored by P.E.O. Chapter P in Powell. The P.E.O.
Scholar Awards (PSA) program was established in 1991 to provide substantial
merit-based awards for women of the United States and Canada who are pursuing
doctoral degrees at accredited colleges or universities.
"The faculty and quality of clinical and research
training in UW’s Clinical Psychology Doctoral program are truly wonderful,”
Kitchen Andren says. “My mentor, Dr. Christine McKibbin, is an extraordinary person,
researcher, professor and clinical supervisor. She has supported me in every
way possible throughout my graduate training, and I feel extremely grateful to
have the opportunity to work with and learn from her. I also immensely
appreciate the P.E.O. organization for selecting me for a Scholar Award.”
McKibbin says Kitchen Andren is interested in working with older
adults, particularly those in rural areas.
“I was impressed with her depth of maturity, understanding
of aging issues, and breadth of knowledge about older adults, as well as her
ability to express her experiences in writing,” she says, adding that Kitchen Andren
assisted her on a Wyoming Community Mental Health Center focus group study. They
traveled throughout the state to learn what rural mental health services providers
and rural residents with serious mental illness thought were important factors
influencing physical health, potential obesity, diabetes and risk for
cardiovascular disease.
Kitchen Andren launched her own research program to understand what
rural older adults know about depression; what factors would help or prevent
them from seeking treatment should they become depressed; and where they
anticipated seeking treatment. She learned that many early older adults intend
to seek services in the primary care sector and view clergy as important
vehicles to treatment.
She received a bachelor of science degree in psychology from
Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Mont., where she graduated in 2009 and
received the college’s prestigious President’s Cup, the college’s highest
graduating senior award.
Kitchen Andren is a fifth-year clinical psychology doctoral student and
will graduate with her Ph.D. in 2015. She is the daughter of Mark and Sandra
Kitchen of Powell, and a third-generation P.E.O. member.
The P.E.O Sisterhood, founded in 1869 at Iowa Wesleyan
College, in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, is a philanthropic educational organization that
provides increased opportunities for higher education to women. There are
approximately 6,000 local chapters in the United States and Canada with nearly
a quarter million active members.
Photo:
Katherine Kitchen Andren received a $15,000 Scholar Award
from the P.E.O. Sisterhood.