Laura K. Jones PhD, MS, NCC, ACS

Laura K. Jones is currently working as an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina Asheville. Laura K. Jones, Ph.D., M.S., has a background in mental health, health promotion, and cognitive neuroscience, having received her Ph.D. in Counseling and Counselor Education (with an emphasis in Public Health) from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, M.A. in Community Agency Counseling from East Tennessee State University, and M.S. in Psychology-Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of Oregon. She has experience in numerous sectors of health promotion and public health policy, including clinical mental health counseling, mental health parity, the prevention of interpersonal violence, trauma-informed practices, comprehensive sexuality education, harm reduction associated with substance use, and athlete mental health. She is an outspoken advocate for promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion at the classroom, university, and community levels, including cultivating an awareness of the influence of oppression and discrimination on physiological functioning and overall wellness. Her primary areas of research include the integration of neurophysiology into conceptualizations of mental health, clinical mental health training programs, and best-practice approaches to mental health; the prevention of interpersonal violence and the holistic recovery and empowerment of survivors; and the reciprocal influence of mental and physical wellbeing. As Director of the Peak Performance Biofeedback Lab, she furthermore devotes considerable time to better understanding how mental health impacts peak performance, particularly among athletes.