BOCA RATON, Fla. – Tess Palmateer, PhD, CMPC, has been named Florida Atlantic University athletics’ director of mental health, announced Brian White, FAU’s vice president and director of athletics, on Tuesday.
“Tess Palmateer‘s experience and expertise in the mental health field will be a tremendous asset to our student-athletes,” White said. “We are proud to be on the forefront of providing mental health resources to our student-athletes. In addition, we are grateful to the Schmidt Family Foundation for their generous gift that allowed us to create this position. Our goal is to provide the highest-quality experience possible for Owl student-athletes. Included in that goal is a first-class, holistic approach to their health and safety, of which mental health is a key component.”
Palmateer began her duties at FAU on Monday (August 15).
“I am thrilled to be stepping into this new role at FAU,” said Palmateer. “Throughout the hiring process, it has been so clear that the FAU athletics department and broader community are committed to supporting the mental health and well-being of their student-athletes. I’m very eager to begin working alongside their outstanding staff in “Paradise.” Go Owls!”
Palmateer recently completed her PhD in counseling psychology with an emphasis in sport psychology at the University of North Texas (UNT). Her dissertation pertained to personality as a predictor of draft selection and performance in professional baseball players. Palmateer has also conducted student-athlete research including: the impact of COVID-19 on well-being, mental health screening policies and practices, and eating disorders/disordered eating.
She worked as a pre-doctoral intern with the Oklahoma Sport Psychology Consortium (OSPC), which includes a rotation with an emphasis on psychological assessment at Commander Counseling and Wellness (CCW). She also worked with the Oklahoma City Ballet to provide mental health and performance psychology for the dancers.
While at the OSPC, Palmateer also worked in the Psychological Resources for OU Student-Athlete (PROS) department and provided mental health, performance psychology and psychological assessment services for student-athletes. Her efforts there were both collaborative and holistic while often working with dieticians, athletic trainers, strength and conditioning coaches, as well as academic advisors. She worked to help provide a teamwide service related to mental health, psychoeducation and mental skills.
Prior to her July 2021-August 2022 position at OU, Palmateer served from August of 2019 through May of 2021 as a sport psychology consultant for UNT’s Center for Sport Psychology and Athlete Mental Health. While there, she helped to provide mental health and performance enhancement services to UNT student-athletes and conducted psychological assessments for UNT student-athletes to assess for ADHD and learning disabilities.
She gained additional experience working at the University of Texas at Dallas Student Counseling Center, August 2019-May 2020, at UNT’s counseling and testing services as a practicum clinician from June 2018 through May 2019, and in UNT’s psychology clinic from August 2017 through May 2019, as well as serving as the senior sport psychology consultant for the Mean Green’s track and field team. Palmateer also had the opportunity to serve as a research assistant for the Kansas City Royals Behavioral Sciences department during her doctoral training.
She completed her M.S in counseling psychology from the University of North Texas in May of 2020. Palmateer earned her Master’s in Exercise Science, with an emphasis in sport psychology, from the University of Toronto, prior to enrolling in the APA-accredited counseling psychology PhD program at UNT.
Palmateer obtained her undergraduate degree in psychology, graduating with honors, from Brock University in Saint Catharines, Ontario, Canada, where she was a member of the volleyball team.
She is certified as a Mental Performance Consultant by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology and has presented or served in a consulting role nearly 30 times, has been involved in research since 2012, and has had eight manuscripts published.
The winner of numerous awards, grants, and scholarships, including the 2021 Distinguished Doctoral student Practice Award Honoree, by the association for Applied Sport Psychology, has taught in various roles since 2014. Palmateer holds professional affiliations with the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (2016-present) and the American Psychological Association, Division 47: Society for Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology (2017-present), She also serves on the advisory board for The Clinical / Counseling Sport Psychology Association (2020-present).
