Psychology Professor/Licensed Psychologist/Co-Chair, Social Sciences Department
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24 Strategies to Get the Most Out of Your Educational Experience
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Gavilan College
5055 Santa Teresa Boulevard
Gilroy, California 95020
(408) 852-2808
Office: SS 107
Fall 2013 Office Hours
Monday and Wednesday: 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday: 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.
Thursday: 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. & 4:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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I am a psychology professor and co-chair of the Social Sciences Department at Gavilan College.
I was raised in San Francisco, California, and have been fortunate to amass over 30 years of clinical
and teaching experience (e.g., staff psychologist, clinical supervisor, therapist, consultant, associate
professor of psychology, associate professor of psychology and counseling) in a variety of mental
health and academic settings around the United States.
EDUCATION (ACADEMIC)
Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, University of Cincinnati (OH)
M.Div. Coursework, Andrews University Theological Seminary (Berrien Springs, MI)
M.S., Counseling and Mental Health, California State University, East Bay (Hayward, CA)
B.A., Psychology, San Francisco State University
Diploma, Lowell High School (San Francisco, CA)
EDUCATION (CLINICAL)
Postdoctoral Resident, Department of Psychiatry, Kaiser Permanente Medical Center (Oakland, CA)
Predoctoral Fellow, Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine (New Haven, CT)
LICENSURE/CERTIFICATION
Licensed Psychologist (PSY 20356), State of California
Licensed Psychologist (015719), State of New York
National Health Service Psychologist (50889)
Board Certified Professional Christian Counselor (0079), International Board of Christian Counselors
Doctoral Addictions Counselor (4541), American College of Certified Forensic Counselors
OTHER BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
I have published articles in such journals as Psychotherapy, Social and Behavioral Sciences,
Social Work, and the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, and presented hundreds of
seminars on various mental health, relationship health, physical health, and spiritual health topics
all over the United States, in Toronto, Ontario, and in Guyana, South America.
I decided to become a Psychologist at age 17 while taking a psychology class as a junior in high
school. I have never regretted the decision. I very much enjoy teaching because it provides an
excellent forum to sensitize students to the rich application of psychology to every sphere of life.
During my teaching career, psychology majors have surprised me with such awards as Instructor
of the Year, Most Inspirational Teacher, Most Interesting Class, and Most Christ-like.
For recreation, I run! (especially 5K races), cycle, play Scrabble, try to keep up with the latest holistic
health advances, and travel. I am a strong believer in the adage, “An ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure,” and therefore strive in my own life to practice a lifestyle (i.e., NEWSSTARTT) that
not only prevents disease, but maximizes overall (holistic) health. If you are interested in a career in
psychology or want information on how to achieve optimal overall health, feel free to contact me.
Psychology and Psychology-related Associations to Explore
National Latina/o Psychological Association (NLPA)
California Latina/o Psychological Association (CLPA) (and numerous other valuable Latina/o links)
Asian American Psychological Association (AAPA)
Society of Indian Psychologists (SIP)
Association of Black Psychologists (ABpsi)
American Psychological Association (APA)
American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD)
American Association on Health and Disability (AAHD)
American Counseling Association (ACA)
Society for the Psychology of Women (Division 35 of APA)
Psychology of Religion (Division 36 of APA)
Health Psychology (Division 38 of APA)
California Psychological Association
California Board of Psychology (information on how to become licensed as a Psychologist in California)
Board of Behavioral Sciences (information on how to become licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist,
Social Worker, Professional Clinical Counselor, or Educational Psychologist in California)
American Art Therapy Association (information on how to become an Art Therapist)
National Association of Drama Therapy (information on how to become a Drama Therapist)
American Music Therapy Association (information on how to become a Music Therapist)
National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
NEWSTART—principles to maximize overall health
NEWSTART Magazine (describes the principles to maximize overall health under “Steps to Radiant Living”)
Google “Vegsource.com” for everything vegan
Weimar Institute of Health and Education (a health treatment center based on NEWSTART; cookbooks/videos)
Sette Publishing (articles/books on health and wellness; info sheets on health; vegetarian cookbooks/recipes)
Morningstar Farms, Cedar Lake Foods, Worthington Loma Linda (vegetarian/vegan products)
Body Mass Index (BMI) Calculator (find out if you are in the weight range best for your health)
The National Weight Control Registry (read how 5000+ individuals have lost weight and kept it off)
Yuck! (then click “for the animals”)—you better have a strong stomach to watch this stuff


Health Links to Explore
The Merck Manual Medical Library
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Healthy Life (health and wellness information)
Uchee Pines Institute, Lifestyle Center of America (alternative/natural health treatment centers using natural
remedies; vegetarian cookbooks/videos; vegetarian restuarant)
Optimal Health Spectrums (alternative/natural health treatment clinic)
NaturalMedicine.com, AlternativeMedicine.com, National Center for Complementary and
Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database
Better Than Greens (an excellent resource on health infromation and health products)
Vitamins, Supplements and Natural Health Products
ConsumerLab.com (find out if the vitmain, supplement or natural health product you’re
taking really works)
DrugWatch.com (features up to date information on drug side effects, prescription and
over-the-counter medications)
Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com
Stress Management and Reduction
Focus Adolesccent Services Drug and Teen Substance Abuse, American Council for Drug
Education, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Parents: The Anti-Drug, Stepping Stone Center
for Recovery (alcohol and other drug resources)
Encyclopedia of Mental Health (information on all types of things related to mental health)
Other Interesting Links to Explore
College.gov (help to reach your dream of going to college)
100 Free College Rides You Don’t Need Daddy (or Momma) to Pay For
FastWeb.com, FinAid.org, mycollegedollars.net (financial aid resources)
FirstCreditCard Resource (information pertaining to credit cards, credit score, and personal finance).
College Altas, 50 States Colleges, College Scholarships/Colleges/Online Degrees (links to college/university
homepages in the U.S. and abroad, and rankings of colleges/universities)
Diverse Issues in Higher Education (a multicultural perspective on education)
Fields/Careers in Psychology, Online Psychology Career Center, Psychology Career Center,
Psychology Careers and Job Search, PsychologyDegreesZone, PsychologyDegree.com,
GoPsychologySchools.com, OnlinePsychologyDegrees.com, Health Careers and Job Search,
Accredited Online Colleges, Counselingdegree.com, MedicalFieldCareersInfo.com
PsychScholar (a collection of psychology links of all kinds, including links to psychology departments
in the USA and around the world)
Free Online Personality Test and Quizzes, Implicit AssociationTest (IAT)
HowStuffWorks.com (explanations on how just about anything works)
Reference Desk.com (a good source for facts of all kinds)
Some Quotes/Sayings to Live by from Me to You
“People can take almost anything from you, including your life, but they can’t
take away your health and education—so get all you can.”
“True joy comes from serving, not being served.”
“What better way to live than give.”
“What makes life worth living is giving.”
“If your happiness comes from giving rather than getting, you have plenty of
opportunity to feel this way.”
“Giving springs from viewing people as more important than my time, my money,
and my things.”
“Love is choosing over and over to say and do the things only for the best
good of another—it’s a principle practiced that should not be based on feelings.”
“It takes more out of you to hate than it does to love.”
“If you truly want to appreciate and enjoy life, live in the present—yesterday has
come and gone, tomorrow isn’t here yet, and neither is breathing like you are now!”
“The best jobs I’ve ever had, had me.”
“Those who don’t take care of business are soon out of business.”
“If you keep busy doing the right things, you'll have no time for the wrong things.”
“Life is a lot about timing: the convergence of readiness and opportunity”—are you
on ready-alert so that when opportunity knocks you’re already at the door?
“Optimism is the life blood of motivation.”
“Dreams without drive turn into nightmares.”
“Dream BIG, and then take the necessary small steps to get there.”
“Wisdom has to come from above if we don’t want to be-low.”
“If I had to do it all over again, I’d start from above.”
“The goal is not to be the best, but to do the best you can.”
“If you don’t think much of yourself, it will be hard to believe that anyone will either.”
“If people don't see it in you, telling them about it won’t make it so.”
“It’s not only difficult to give what you don’t have, but to receive what you feel you
don’t deserve.”
“Too often, we make things harder than they have to be.”
“Many continue in a path that seems right to them because they haven’t been informed
of a better way.”
“Everyone can benefit from a check up from the neck up.”
“You can’t lead anybody anywhere they don’t already want to go, so if they’re not
budging, back-off or you’ll push them away.”
“Judge others less, and yourself more.”
“Procrastination is a dagger in the back of academic success (and life success for that
matter), and too many students are hemorrhaging potential as a result.”
“Stay on top of your studies or they will stay on top of you—and crush you.”
“True education encompasses more than just enhancement of the mental faculties—what
about the physical, social and spiritual dimensions?”
“You can do what you wanna do when you wanna do it; you just don’t wanna do it
yet, if at all.”
“It’s not the immensity of a task that makes it difficult, but the smallness of the
motivation brought to it.”
“If you want to succeed in school (and life in general), you must practice self-discipline:
doing what you’ve got to do whether you feel like it or not because it needs to be done.”
“It takes most, if not all your time, energy and effort to be someone else, but little if
any to be yourself.”
“Next time someone does you wrong, do them right.”
“Don’t want anyone to drive you crazy? Then don't get into the car with her or him”—refuse
to let what she or he says or does get to you, push your buttons, or get under your skin.
“Don’t ask me what I think, if you only want to hear yourself.”
“How can you take care of two—that relationship with your boyfriend, girlfriend or
spouse—when you can’t even take care of one—that relationship with yourself?”
“No one made you do it, you chose to.”
“Chose to do the right thing in the vulnerable moment.”
“Three torpedoes sink a person’s life: one from within—low self-esteem, and two from
without—unhealthy relationships with someone or some thing/activity.”
“If the cost of staying is greater than the cost of leaving and there’s no change in sight,
get out!”
“Eat to live, don’t live to eat,” and while you’re at it, “Drink to live, don’t live to drink.”
“We take better care of the cars we ride in than our bodies we reside in.”
“If you neglect your health, you’re casting to the ground most important wealth.”
“When I die, I want it to be because of old age, not because of this age.”
“Overweight? If you want to lose 10+ pounds and keep it off, drop dinner; if you want
to lose 25+ pounds and keep it off, drop dinner and fast food; if you want to lose 40+
pounds and keep it off, drop dinner and fast food, and exercise to the point of perspiration
at least three times a week for 50 minutes”—guaranteed if you stick with it.
“A little exercise every now and then is a lot better than no exercise all the time—so do
whatever you can whenever you can.”
“Most of the time, we have a love-hate relationship with almost everything.”
“Life is about gain and loss, and one has to be able to handle both to survive.”
“Life should be more about growing up (becoming a better and better person), and not
going up (climbing the pay scale).”
“Materialism is an obsessional desire for more and more and better and better
things—and one is never satisfied enough.”
“Once you distinguish between needs (necessary for survival) and wants (not necessary
for survival), and focus much less on striving for wants; stress decreases and contentment
abounds.”
“Addiction to anything is often a time-sucker, academic obstructer, mind messer-upper,
health disrupter, relationship corrupter, lifestyle satisfaction-crusher, and financial abductor.”
“Hooked on alcohol or other drugs?—get help to straighten up before you’re straightened out.”
“Let go the mouse and get out the house.”
“Put down the remote and pick up a life.”
“The United States of America is becoming more and more a technocracy. Now
there’s nothing inherently wrong with technology, but we should control it, it
shouldn’t control us.”
“It's not about how much time you have, but how you use the time you have.”
“The best gift you can give your children is a good marriage.”
“We’re supposed to build our lives around our children, not our children around
our lives.”
“Want to cripple your children for life? Give them everything they want and fight
all their battles.”
“The vast majority of the discriminated against don’t want handouts, just hands-off.”
“Only with representative and mutual input, can representative and mutual benefit more
likely result.”
“If you think you have it bad, take a good look around you—there’s always someone
who would gladly trade places with you.”
Copyright © 2013
Carlton H. Oler, Ph.D.