Kelly N. Clark, Assistant Professor
Office: 219 Audubon Hall
Department of Psychology
Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, LA 70803
Email: kellyclark@lsu.edu
Dr. Clark will be accepting students in Fall 2026.
Education
Research Interests
- School mental health
- School belonging and climate
- Academic engagement and achievement
Dr. Clark’s research is centered on promoting student mental health and academic functioning within school settings and beyond. Specifically, she is interested in students’ perception of school climate and their sense of school belonging, as well as academic engagement (affective, behavioral, cognitive) and achievement. Dr. Clark’s conceptualization of mental health considers not only psychological risk factors and symptomatology, but also the presence of protective factors and subjective well-being (i.e., dual-factor model of mental health). Dr. Clark’s research on school mental health includes a focus on school-based suicide prevention through universal screening, risk assessment, and educator trainings.
Dr. Clark is particularly interested in the developmental transition from late childhood to early adolescence (i.e., transition from elementary to middle school). She is committed to utilizing empirically-validated universal screening tools and school-based mental health interventions that align within a multitiered system of support (i.e., response to intervention).
Students in Dr. Clark’s lab can expect individualized advising and mentorship, as well as peer mentorship and collaborative experiences across the School Psychology Program and Department of Psychology. Dr. Clark collaborates with students to hone their individual research interests and develop a program of research. Students may become involved in all
aspects of the research process, including literature reviews, study conceptualization, data collection and analysis, and disseminating findings via peer-reviewed conference presentation and publication.
Representative Publications
Clark, K., *Blyth, G., *Plant, M., *Wilson, K., & Malecki, C. (2024). Dual-factor mental health in adolescence: Comparing latent profile and local norming grouping methods. Journal of School Psychology, 101391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2024.101391
*Plant, M. & Clark, K. (2024). Universal screening for student mental health: Selection of norming group.
Assessment for Effective Intervention, 50(1), 3-15. https://doi.org/10.1177/15345084241265632
Renshaw, T., Clark, K., *Farley, C., *Franzmann, T., & *Yang, N-J. (2024). Global and specific student subjective
wellbeing as predictors of school outcomes. School Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-024-09684-4
Clark, K. & Malecki, C. (2022). Adolescent mental health profiles through a latent dual-factor
approach. Journal of School Psychology, 91, 112–128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2022.01.003
Clark, K., Strissel, D., Malecki, C., Ogg, J., Demaray, M., & Eldridge, M. (2022). Evaluating
the Signs of Suicide Program: Middle school students at risk and staff acceptability.
School Psychology Review, Special Topics Section: Addressing Youth Suicide through
Prevention, Intervention, and Postvention, 51(3), 354–369. https://doi.org/10.1080/2372966X.2021.1936166
Current Courses Taught
Psychoeducational Assessment (7165)
Practicum in School Psychology (7668/7669)
Introduction to Psychology (2000)
Psychology of the Lifespan (2070)
Professional Affiliations
National Association of School Psychologists
American Psychological Association, Division 16
International School Psychology Association