Tania Israel is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology. She received a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Arizona State University and a masters degree in Human Sexuality Education and a B.A. in Psychology and Women’s Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Her scholarship focuses on interventions to support the mental health and well-being of sexual and gender minorities (LGBTQ people); bisexuality; privilege and oppression; intersections among gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation; and social justice. She has received honors for her research and advocacy from the American Psychological Association, the California Asian & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, and her local LGBT community.
Israel taught undergraduate courses including Introduction to Helping Skills, a requirement for the Applied Psychology minor, as well as graduate courses, including Pedagogy in Applied Psychology; Sex, Gender, and Related Concepts in Applied Psychology; and a seminar on social justice in counseling psychology. She was affiliated faculty with the Department of Feminist Studies at UCSB.
Her professional organizations and activities included serving as 2010-11 President of the Society of Counseling Psychology (Division 17 of the American Psychological Association), a member of the American Psychological Association’s Committee for Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, and Lead Coordinator for the 2009 National Multicultural Conference and Summit. Her campus leadership includes Chair of Graduate Council, 2014-15 and Chair of Undergraduate Council, 2010-12.
Israel’s scholarship is relevant to policy, practice, and community. She delivered a TED Talk on “Bisexuality and Beyond,” participated in the first White House Bisexual Community Policy Briefing, and presented at a Congressional briefing on the Violence Against Women Act. Dr. Israel is the Director of Project RISE, a research team at UCSB that develops and studies interventions to support the psychological health of LGBTQ individuals and communities.