Brief Biographical Sketch
I was born and raised in Chihuahua, Mexico….Wait, no, no, no…I’m not referring to the obnoxious little dog that used to appear in Taco Bell’s advertisements!! I’m talking about Chi-hua-hua, the biggest and most beautiful state in Mexico!

Ok, I was telling you about me…As I was getting my education in Mexico, I had the opportunity to learn from and be challenged by courageous human beings that taught me to appreciate the gift of life: men and women facing life-threatening diseases, such as cancer and AIDS, and children living and/or working in the streets and being exposed to inhuman exploitation. Thanks to all these wonderful people who profoundly touched my heart, I decided to become a marriage and family therapist because I wanted to make a difference. Of course, my family history has played a very important role in choosing this path in life as well as having the blessing of being married to Isela, the most wonderful woman on earth and receiving the divine gift of Leyre, our dearest daughter. All of these experiences have given me the gift of knowing that every day is a new opportunity to become who we really are.

Professional Interests
I come from a background where being able to afford clinical services is a luxury. Although I profoundly enjoy the clinical work in the consultation room, I am extremely passionate about transporting to the community evidence-based interventions that have proven to be effective. Therefore, I am developing a collaborative relationship with the Oregon Social Learning Center with the purpose of adapting the Parenting Management Program to Latino/a populations. I am particularly passionate about the prevention of delinquency and drug abuse by promoting effective parenting.

Another area of interest for me is fatherhood. My dissertation focused on designing, implementing, and evaluating a parenting program for teen fathers and I continue to work on expanding this model in order to transform it into an evidence-based intervention.

Cultural Identity is another area of profound interest for me: learning the different ways in which immigrants structure their experiences and identities as they face the challenges and rewards of coming to the United States.

All my interests are informed by a desire to promote social justice by leaving the Ivory Tower of privilege and comfort and reaching out to the people in their environments and communities. It is exciting for me to learn how to have conversations and join efforts that can create legacies of commitment and solidarity.

Teaching Schedule for 2007-2008
FCE 894 MFT Practicum
FCE 993 MFT Practicum
FCE 830 MFT Theories
FCE 983 Advanced Research Methods in MFT

Powerpoint Presentation from Society for Prevention Research, 2007

PUBLICATIONS

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Sharp, E., & Wampler, R. S. (In Press). Changing for My Kid: Fatherhood experiences of Mexican-origin teen fathers involved in the justice system. Submitted to Journal of Marital and Family Therapy.

Parra-Cardona, J.R., Córdova, D., Holtrop, K., Villarruel, F.A., & Wieling, E. (In Press). Shared ancestry, evolving stories: Similar and contrasting life experiences described by foreign born and U.S. born Latino parents. Submitted to Family Process. 

Behnke, A. O., Taylor, B. A., & Parra-Cardona, J. R. (In Press). “I Hardly Understand English, But…”: Mexican origin fathers describe their commitment as fathers despite the challenges of immigration. Journal of Comparative Family Studies.   

Parra-Cardona, J.R., Meyer, E.M., Schiamberg, L.B., & Post, L.A. (2007). Elder abuse and neglect in Latino families: An ecological and culturally relevant theoretical framework for clinical practice. Family Process, 46, 451-470.

Miller, B.J., Parra-Cardona, J.R., & Hardin, M. (2007).  The use of narrative therapy and internal family systems with survivors of childhood sexual abuse: Examining issues related to loss and oppression. Journal of Feminist Family Therapy, 18, 1-28.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Bulock, L., Imig, D. R., Villarruel, F. A., & Gold, S. (2006). “Trabajando duro todos los días”: Learning from the life experiences of Latino/a migrant families. Family Relations, 55, 361-375.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., & Busby, D. M. (2006). Exploring relationship functioning in premarital Caucasian and Latino/a couples: Recognizing and valuing cultural differences. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 37, 345-361.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Wampler, R. S., & Sharp, E. (2006). “Wanting to be a good father”: Experiences of adolescent fathers of Mexican descent in a teen fathers progam. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 32, 215-232.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Holtrop, K., & Córdova, D. (2005). “We are clinicians committed to cultural diversity and social justice”: Good intentions that can wane over time. Journal Guidance and Counseling, 21, 36-46.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Busby, D. M., & Wampler, R. S. (2004). No soy de aquí ni soy de allá?: Transgenerational cultural identity formation. Hispanic Journal of Higher Education, 3, 322-337.

Parra-Cardona, J.R., Harris, S.M., Brock, A., & Sandberg, J.G. (2002). Sexual attraction and training in the MFT field: Taboo or learning experience? Journal of the Texas Association for Marriage  and Family Therapy, 7, 13-20.

BOOK CHAPTERS

Parra-Cardona, J.R.., Cordova, D., Holtrop, K., Escobar-Chew, A.R., & Horsford, S. (in press). Culturally Informed Emotionally Focused Therapy with Latino/a Immigrant Couples. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Parra-Cardona, J. R., Busby, D. M., & Wampler, R. S. (2004). Acculturation versus cultural identity: The need for new cultural lenses in the mental health professions. In M. Rastogi & E. Wieling (Eds.), The voices of color: First person accounts of ethnic minority therapists (335-359). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Aguirre, C., Bermúdez, J. M., Parra-Cardona, J. R., & Zamora, J. (2004). The process of integrating language, context, and meaning: The voices of bilingual therapists. In M. Rastogi & E. Wieling (Eds.), The voices of color: First person accounts of ethnic minority therapists (189-210). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Curriculum Vitae