Michele Kerulis Ed.D.

Michele Kerulis, Ed.D., is an associate professor in the Master of Arts in Counseling program from The Family Institute at Northwestern University.

Kerulis specializes in sports and exercise, general mental health, and lifestyle and wellness. Her years of experience as an athlete, fitness professional, and therapist have created the foundation for her belief that the skills necessary to achieve success in sport and performance are the same skills necessary to achieve excellence in life.

Through her academic, professional, and clinical roles, she became a content expert in the field. She developed a Chicago-based graduate master's program in counseling with a specialty in sport and health psychology where her students were eligible to become certified through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) and through the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), and eligible for clinical licensure (LCPC) in IL. Several of her graduates present at professional conferences, publish their work and have developed successful businesses of their own.

Kerulis is certified through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) as a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) and is a member of the United States Olympic Committee Sport Psychology Registry. Her involvement in AASP includes Media in Sport Special Interest Group Coordinator. She has worked with high-level elite athletes and coaches in both group and individual settings.

Kerulis has held many elected leadership positions in local, regional, and national associations including Past President, Illinois Counseling Association; Executive Committee, American Counseling Association (ACA); Midwest Representative to the Governing Council (ACA); Governing Council Liaison for the Public Policy and Legislative Committee (ACA); Compensation Committee (ACA); Treasurer, Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD, ACA); Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development Executive Committee (AMCD; ACA). Dr. Kerulis is currently the Chair of the Midwest Region of the American Counseling Association.

Kerulis was a board member of the Illinois Counseling Licensure and Discipline Board, Illinois Counseling Association; Illinois Mental Health Counseling Association, and Illinois Counselor Educators and Supervisors.

Kerulis is an experienced editor in both academic and mainstream arenas. She is currently on the editorial board for the academic journals Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology (CSSEP) and Journal of Mental Health Counseling. She was also an editorial board member Journal of Humanistic Counseling.

Kerulis has been invited to speak to exclusive groups multiple times. Some of her most popular talks include Sport Psychology 101, Mental Health for Athletes, How to Get in the Zone on Demand, Demystifying Mental Health, and Balancing the Dimensions of Wellness.

In her role as Core Faculty and Social Media/Marketing Specialist with Counseling@Northwestern, Dr. Kerulis serves as the content expert in counseling ethics and is faculty editor of the Counseling@Northwestern blog which was named one of the best counseling blogs of 2017.

In addition to her professional and academic appointments, Dr. Kerulis serves as a media expert for sport and exercise, lifestyle and wellness, and general mental health, and has appeared on outlets such as ABC Chicago, CBS New York, Miami, & Chicago, WGN Chicago, and TMZ.

Kerulis has over 15 years of experience as a licensed clinician. She has treated clients with severe chronic and acute mental health issues as a residential treatment counselor and has worked to lead teams of clinicians in foster care, crisis management, and in-home treatment departments. She has specialized training in clinical supervision which she utilizes to enhance the skills of new clinicians and her Northwestern University graduate students. Dr. Kerulis is the Mental Health and Wellness Director with IV Solution-Ketamine Centers of Chicago, the first private facility to offer clinically proven intravenous ketamine therapies for the treatment of depression.

In addition to agency work, Dr. Kerulis specializes in using sport and exercise mental health techniques with elite athletes for a variety of reasons including the desire to get in the zone on demand, increased confidence, emotional regulation, increased focus, teamwork, communication, mental health issues, and much more. Her laser-sharp clinical skills paired with extensive training in sport & exercise have been recognized nationwide and can be found in her publications including 2016's chapter Strengths-Based Practice of Clinical Sport Psychology, in her most recent ebook Demystify Mental Health, and her inspiration address during TEDxChicagoWomen.