Kelly Emelianchik-Key

Dr. Elizabeth Villares Sacks is Department Chair and Professor of School Counseling in the Department of Counselor Education at Florida Atlantic University. She has worked as a counselor educator, teacher, school counselor, and guidance director at the secondary level. Her area of specialization includes counseling children and adolescents, integrating technology in school counseling programs to improve data-driven practices, and collaborating with school counselors to develop action research, outcome research, and program evaluation projects. Dr. Villares Sacks is also interested in implementing school counselor-led evidence-based programs that lead to improvements in student achievement.

Research Interests:

• Counseling children and adolescents
• Implementing school counseling action and outcome research
• Evidence-based programs that enhance student achievement
• Impact of positive psychology on academic performance and social-emotional wellness

Selected Works and Achievements

• Bowers Parker, H., Villares, E., & Kwok, S. (2025). Elementary special education students’ engagement in the Exceptional Student Success Skills program: A mixed-methods study. Counseling Scholarship & Practice in Educational Communities, 1(1), 1 – 31. https://doi.org/10.7275/cspec.2289
• Villares, E., Bowers, H., Brigman, G., & Bottini, C. (2024). The effects of Student Success Skills on attendance and emotion regulation. Journal of Counseling & Development, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12503
• Villares, E., Miller. A. E., & Chevalier, J. A. (2023). The Impact of Leader in Me on the School Climate and Student Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis. International Journal of Education Policy and Leadership, 19(2), 1-16. https://journals.sfu.ca/ijepl/index.php/ijepl/article/view/1339/351
• Villares, E., Starrett, A., & Limberg, D. (2022). Exploring school counseling during the first wave COVID-19: A latent profile analysis. Journal of Counseling & Development, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12433
• Villares, E., Bowers, H., Mariani, M, & Peluso, P. (2023). Wellness Advocates for Educators and Students. $5,989,554.10. U.S. Department of Education Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant. Principal Investigator.

Awards

• Florida School Counselor Association, School Counselor Advocate: School, Community, Family Award, 2025
• Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, President’s Award, 2022
• Journal for Specialists in Group Work, Al Dye Award for Outstanding Article, 2021
• Association for Assessment in Research and Counseling, Outstanding Outcome Research Article of the Year 2017, 2011