2024 Outstanding Recent Alumni Honoree Dana Romero

“I saw the need for more mental health counselors and wanted to be a part of the difference,” she said. “I’m someone who runs toward a problem rather than away from it.”

Today, Romero is an emerging leader in the field of clinical mental health counseling and works in private practice as a mental health therapist. She earned top honors for her academic work while earning her master’s degree at Marquette University. At the 2023 Wisconsin Counseling Association Annual Conference, she presented a counselor’s guide to working with clients who experienced a traumatic brain injury – and received first place for a master-level student.

Romero excelled as a child and family counseling intern at Children’s Hospital Wisconsin, facilitating therapy for children, teens and caregivers with a focus on trauma, incarceration, adoption and suicidality.

A first-generation college student, Romero didn’t know how to apply to and pay for an education at a large university. She began taking courses at Harper College the day after graduating from high school in 2017. “I actually started at Harper 8 a.m. the next day for my Intro to Psychology course,” she said.

It was the first step toward her career goal of becoming a mental health therapist.

“I struggled in high school and Harper felt like my redemption round in a way,” Romero said. “What helped me succeed at Harper were my motivation, an idea of what I wanted my future to be, the amazing faculty and staff, and the resources available for support.”

After graduating from Harper in 2019, Romero earned her degree in psychology from Northern Illinois University in 2021, with a minor in sociology and certificate in criminal justice. After graduation, she became a behavioral support specialist at Kenneth Young Center in Elk Grove Village, working with children, adolescents and young adults with severe emotional or behavioral disorders.

Romero has volunteered with Crisis Text Line, Special Olympics Misericordia and Admitted Students Day at Marquette University. She earned additional awards and scholarships at Marquette.

She can’t imagine any other career. “Seeking mental health support can be a hard, scary journey and no one should have to take that journey alone,” she said.