The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education
-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Intelligence and intense critical thinking are the instant impressions you get when reading the work of Alonzo Carlos DeCarlo. Professor DeCarlo is an academician and practitioner in the fields of psychology and social work. Over time, he has become well acquainted with learning, teaching, research, and experiments. The notion of synthesis and creativity, service, engagement, outreach, and publications are numerous core elements of profound academics and educational pedagogies which is embodied in the life work of Dr. DeCarlo. Teaching has been an essential element of his career as a professor, but research and academic publications have equal importance. Scholarly journals and books allow professors and students to excel in their creative, intellectual, and research abilities. Concisely, academic books, journals, and publications add value, trust, and willingness to professors and students.
But why is there a strong need for universities to engage in research? And most importantly, who authors this academic stuff? Rational and intertwined questions! Let’s get some straightforward answers from the academic journey of Dr. Alonzo Carlos DeCarlo, who has 20 years of extensive experience in academia.
Dr. DeCarlo is an American intellectual and professor of psychology and social work. He admits it is hard to pin down belonging to a specified sub-area of psychology because his experience has taught him that an interdisciplinary approach to understanding human behavior is the most fruitful. Professor DeCarlo’s writings and publications are acutely thoughtful, groundbreaking, and unapologetically discomforting in places. For example, he has diagnosed the United States with an “Attention to Children Deficit Disorder” and notes that excessive use of social media is tantamount to a Digital Drug. No one can dispute either of his assertions. Dr. DeCarlo has introduced various terms and concepts, such as Traumatic Experiential Acute Response State (TEARS) in children and Milieu Incongruence in adolescents. He is also the originator of the idea of Opprejudice, which uniquely combines the dynamics of prejudice and oppression and is applicable to both anti-black racism and white supremacist elements.
Driven by the complexity and profundity of academics, Dr. DeCarlo began his academic career as a part-time faculty member in the graduate Social Work program at Wayne State University. Very soon, he was appointed by Chicago State University to serve as a tenured graduate Associate Professor of Psychology. Dr. DeCarlo’s diligence and hardworking attitude led him to Addis Ababa University (AAU)in Ethiopia, where he was responsible for co-writing the Ph.D. program in psychology and teaching its doctoral-level seminars to students on the campus of AAU. Later, his intelligence and innovative thought processes took him to Cape Coast University, Africa, as a Fulbright scholar and a professor of doctoral coursework in experimental psychology and education. He has also taught graduate courses in social work at The Brown School at Washington University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Dr. DeCarlo has taught in prestigious colleges and universities for the last two decades. His innumerable students are serving worldwide. But what made him do that? Dr. DeCarlo aims to bridge the gap between academics and what he calls everyday folks, especially poor and working-class people in the community. His notion of teaching is to build a better understanding and an enriched relationship between the public and higher education, essential to a brighter future for all parties involved.
Dr. DeCarlo served in the most prominent academic positions. He has served as a tenured faculty member, international scholar, division chair, associate provost of academic affairs, vice-chancellor, and director of graduate and professional programs at various universities. Dr. DeCarlo also serves as an adviser providing senior educational leadership search consultation for colleges and universities throughout the US.
Dr. DeCarlo is not only an experienced and veteran professor but also an author of many notable theoretical and empirical publications. A few are A Reason For Reasonable Doubt In Social Justice: The Weight Of Poverty, Race, And Gender In Lopsided Homicide Case Clearances Outcomes, A Collaborative Control Governance Model To Address The Politics Of Mental Health And Juvenile Justice For Urban Minority Youth, A Developmental Explanatory Model Of Maladaptive Aggressive Dispositions In Urban African American Adolescents, Identity Matters A New Intervention Threshold For Social Work Practitioners Working With African American Adolescents, RAP Therapy: A Group Work Intervention Method For Urban Adolescents and he has more seminal work on the horizon for the year of 2024.
Dr. DeCarlo’s recent book The Culture of Education and Experiential Polemicswasavant-garde in style. Interestingly, the book is nearly 100,000 words intext and is largely about the plight of Black Americans; however, he never uses the word “race” in any of his narratives, yet the text seems clearly in support of relieving Black Americans of systematic structural inequities, implicit bias, and bigotry. He demonstrated intellectual depth with keen insight into psychiatry, psychology, education, sexual orientation, religion, culture, social justice, and identity topics. In the book, he concludes with a powerful analysis of Black American public intellectual and civic leadership.
Dr. DeCarlo is a lover of humanity. Through his books and teaching, he has preached love and care. He is a psychologist and clinical social worker, hence intensely concerned about the mental well-being of unprotected American citizens. He pioneered Rap Therapy to address the potential of maladaptive aggressive behavior in adolescents and young adults in ways that are culturally competent and developmentally appropriate. His groundbreaking technique is applied worldwide, including in Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia, and the US.
Conclusively, Dr. Alonzo Carlos DeCarlo is an eminent humanitarian, psychologist, social worker, professor, intellectual, and author. Through his different ventures, Professor DeCasrlo, directly and indirectly, majorly contributes to society. His publications on various topics compel the reader to deeply self-reflect and take actionable steps to make personal adjustments. Dr. DeCarlo’s interrelated fields amplify his efforts to help mankind.
