Clinical Professor Emerita

Research and/or Creative Works

As the Director of the Behavior Therapy and Psychotherapy Center, my responsibilities include managing the clinic and supporting a scientist-practitioner model of training for pre-doctoral clinicians. My clinical work and research is focused on two primary areas: Refugee Mental Health and Interpersonal Violence. Interpersonal Violence topics include: child victimization, sexual abuse, trauma, domestic violence, and criminality. I also conduct forensic evaluations and provide expert testimony for the courts. Two recently developed community programs are Connecting Cultures and the New England Survivors of Torture and Trauma (NESTT):

Connecting Cultures is a mental health program, specifically designed for refugees re-settled in Vermont. This program focuses on the development and dissemination of evidence-based services including:

  • Community-based outreach services
  • Direct clinical services
  • Mental health research
  • Training

New England Survivors of Torture and Trauma (NESTT) program was designed to coordinate and meet the psychological, legal, social, and physical needs of survivors of torture and their families and communities.

Embracing the line between chaos and order | Karen Fondacaro | TEDxMiddlebury

Publications

  • Fondacaro, K. & Mazzulla, C. (2018). The chronic traumatic stress framework: A conceptual model to guide empirical investigation of comprehensive treatments for refugees and survivors of torture. Torture Journal, 28, 58-69.
  • Meyerhoff, J., Rohan, K.J., Fondacaro, K. (2018). Suicide and suicide related behavior among Bhutanese refugees resettled in the United States. Asian American  Journal of Psychology, 9(4), 270-283.
  • Fondacaro, K. M., & Harder, V. S. (2014). Connecting cultures: A training model promoting evidence-based psychological services for refugees. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 8(4), 320.
  • Brassell, A., Rosenberg, E., Parent, J., Rough, J., Fondacaro, K. M., & Seehuus, M. (2016). Parent’s psychological flexibility: Relations with parenting and child psychosocial well- being. Journal of Contextual and Behavioral Science.
  • Fondacaro, K.M. & Zetzer, H. (2018, March). Global trends in psychology. Presentation at the Association of Psychology Training Clinics Annual Conference, Maui, HI.
  • Donovan, L., Fondacaro, K. & Mazzulla, E. (2018, March). Utilizing a mobile mental health intervention for the reduction of trauma symptoms in refugees and torture survivors. Poster presentation at the National Consortium for Torture Treatment Programs (NCTTP), Washington, D.C.
  • Mazzulla, E.C. & Fondacaro, K. (in progress). Significant reduction in trauma symptoms and increase in coping skills after a brief mobile mental health intervention with TherapyTools.

Associations and Affiliations

Director, Behavior Therapy and Psychotherapy Center
Internship Co-Director, Clinical Psychology Internship Program

Karen seated at her desk in her office with booklined shelves in the background

Education

  • B.A. S.U.N.Y. at Stony Brook, 1984
  • Ph.D. University of Vermont, 1988

CV

PDF icon Karen Fondacaro's CV (PDF)

Contact

Email:

karen.fondacaro@uvm.edu

Phone:
  • 802-656-2661
Office Location:

114 Dewey Hall

Office Hours:

By appointment only via email