CCU Spotlights

Ryan Burkhart

Assistant Professor
Social Sciences and Humanities Division

• Doctoral Candidate, Counselor Education and Supervision (Argosy University)
• M.A. Counseling (Colorado Christian University)
• Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Colorado
• Representative for the Neuroscience Interest Network of the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision
• Governing Council member for the Colorado Counseling Association

Email: rmburkhart@ccu.edu

Phone: 303-963-3145

Professor Ryan Burkhart is a common presenter at national and international conferences on brain-based treatment, adolescent therapy, experiential based treatment methods, clinical supervision, and adolescent development.

Professor Burkhart is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Colorado. He is a consultant for adolescent treatment program development, both nationally and internationally, and provides clinical supervision in the greater Denver area. He has worked with youth in a variety of facets as a Clinical Director of a program for youth with global developmental delays, and as a clinician for the Colorado Division of Youth Corrections with youth in custody, and youth on parole status.

Professor Burkhart works alongside students as they become involved with the field of counseling at a significant level through conference attendance, clinical trainings, guest speakers, clinical workshops, and association membership. Through this focus, students graduate prepared to stay relevant in the field of counseling, practice under the guidance of the ACA Code of Ethics, be culturally responsive, create change in their clients, and make a difference in the counseling community as a whole. Professor Burkhart also enjoys assisting students prepare to enter doctoral programs once leaving CCU through research oversight, co-presenting at conferences, and accepting highly qualified students as teacher’s assistants of graduate courses.

Professor Burkhart is currently doing research on how adventure based treatment programs impact frontal lobe executive function utilization and attachment in adolescents. He is scheduled to present five presentations in 2015: Fostering Empathy in Adventure Therapy at the International Adventure Therapy Conference; Adolescents and Ex-T: How to integrate Experiential Therapy into adolescent treatment and Neurocounseling protocols for clients with frontally mediated executive functioning difficulties at the Colorado Counseling Association Conference; Choice and the Limbic System at the National Challenge Course Symposium. He was nominated for the CCU 2014 College of Adult and Graduate Studies Faculty of the Year Award, and the 2015 Colorado Counseling Association Outstanding Counselor Educator Award. He is currently writing a chapter on REBT for a Marriage and Family Counseling Theories textbook. He is a representative of the Neuroscience Interest Network branch of the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision, and sits on the governing council of the Colorado Counseling Association. He enjoys teaching classes at CCU’s Lakewood campus, and helping students turn clinical theory into clinical practice by focusing on three developmental areas: clinical theory, the administrative aspects of clinical work, and professional development and identity.