Jamison Jouno

Jamison Jouno, School Psychology ’23, is a Portland native who has always wanted to work with children. Having grown up in Portland, Jouno says Lewis & Clark Graduate School of Education and Counseling was the obvious choice for pursuing his masters degree in school psychology, yet he admits it was not initially his first pick.

“When I began considering where to attend graduate school, I was actually living in another city that also had a program and I thought that I would just end up going there,” says Jouno. “But I was struck by how serious the graduate school took its commitment to preparing practitioners to be socially just and culturally responsive educators, and also how much the school and program cared about me from the moment I submitted my application. When the pandemic shut everything down, Lewis & Clark was the only institution to reach out and ask if there was any way they could assist me. This culture of care is something that is important in my life and has been a prominent part of my Lewis & Clark experience.”

Ultimately, it was that social justice emphasis and culture of care that solidified the graduate school as Jouno’s top choice.

This culture of care has continued to permeate Jouno’s graduate school experience, and he has developed invaluable relationships with cohort members and faculty members alike.

“The faculty truly care about your success professionally and personally. Feedback on almost all assignments is extensive, and faculty members model the concepts learned and share their firsthand experience working with youth.”

Jouno also describes the small cohort experience as “amazing,” and credits it with enabling him to have meaningful discussions that have prepared him for work in the field, as well as with developing supportive relationships with his faculty and classmates outside of the program.

“It has been great grabbing meals, having people to study with, and to just generally have fun with the people who are also going through the program,” Jouno shares.

His cohort even started an annual tradition of camping out at a classmate’s farm.

“Almost our whole cohort comes, and we have a potluck, go swimming, and just hang out. We all bring tents and stay the night. It is an awesome way to celebrate the beginning of summer and the end of our academic year, and it has allowed us all to become friends and grow our relationships beyond just being classmates.”

After graduation, Jouno plans to serve families in both primary and secondary educational settings as a school psychologist, leveraging the critical multi-cultural lens he has honed throughout the program to better understand the systems he will be working with and within.

Jouno encourages prospective students to reach out to past professors or supervisors for both support and letters of recommendation, and to reach out to them early. Most importantly, he would encourage them “to really pay attention to the experiences and feedback given, and less about that letter grade,” and emphasizes that “since making the decision to attend Lewis & Clark, I have not looked back!”