JoLene Klumpp, PhD, LPC, MA, BS, Certified Life Coach, aka as dr. j or Jo, is a professor, therapist, lifelong advocate, and unapologetic lover of dogs, especially her four beloved BIG DOGS, the Newfoundlands. With a career spanning over 20 years in human services, over 20 years in higher education, and as many as a therapist. Told in high school that her family was “too poor” and she should consider a job that didn’t require college, dr. j had a few choice words for that guidance counselor and that landed her in BIG trouble. Luckily, her sister Nita (her “Chinese twin,” as they were affectionately called because they were born in the same year) got her out of it by expertly imitating their mom on the phone. And from that moment on, dr. j never let anyone else define her potential. dr. j has worn many hats: therapist, professor, columnist, one of four authors of the Veterans Bill of Rights for the state of Michigan, employment and training manager across four counties, trainer, and mental health professional in private practice, and even inside county jails and state prisons. She cut her teeth in the trenches of service and never lost her deep belief in the power of helping.