GRADUATE ALUMNI PROFILE Faces of LIFE
Jonathan Powell Monumental Paths
Studying psychology runs in Jonathan Powell ’ s family , so it was natural for him to gravitate toward it as well . His dad has a master ’ s in psychology , his sister has a master ’ s in social work , his aunt is a licensed family therapist and he just graduated in September with a Master of Science in Positive Psychology ( Coaching Track ) from Life University .
Powell is from Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania , and he obtained his undergraduate degree in Psychology , Philosophy and Ethics from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania in December 2015 . He was a Pennsylvania Board of Governors scholarship winner , which gave him a full ride throughout his undergraduate studies . “ A lot of people get involved with university clubs , but I worked full time through my undergrad and continue to now ,” Powell explains . “ I ’ m Black , my family is Black and our opportunities are limited compared to some people , so I needed to make sure to hustle to succeed and take full advantage of the opportunity .”
Toward the end of high school and his first year at Slippery Rock , Powell was interested in clinical psychology because he wanted to work with suicidal patients . Once Powell was introduced to Positive Psychology in one of his courses , he changed his mind from therapy to coaching due to its different approach .
“ Coaching gave me the platform to do the kind of work I want to do because coaching is not therapy .” When Powell discovered coaching , he felt a change in his energy levels compared to clinical psychology . “ When I am in a coaching thing with someone , I don ’ t get drained by that experience , which was a key indicator that I should pursue that instead .”
“ I moved down to Charlotte , North Carolina the first week of September in 2016 and knew I wanted to go to grad school , but I waited three years to have a sense of adventure and figure out exactly what I wanted to do next .” After an online search of graduate level degrees in positive psychology , Powell found Life University ’ s Positive Psychology program , which was one of only a handful of its kind . “ The Coaching Track specifically is the only one of its kind as a graduate level Master of Science degree ,” Powell notes . “ I had my eye on the program for about three or so years before I applied .”
Powell started at LIFE on October 1 , 2018 — his birthday , which he took as another sign . He studied from his North Carolina home as an online student . “ When I changed from clinical psychology and started at LIFE , I was surprised by how many new approaches I learned . It was helpful to see that there was another way to do this .”
In his free time , Powell loves going to hot yoga at least once a week , building puzzles and riding his long board . Live music is also vitally important to him . “ If I haven ’ t gone to a live show in about a month , there is usually something wrong .”
Powell ’ s business , Monumental Paths , originated from his capstone project . “ I focus on resilience and what it looks like in academia ,” Powell says . “ I talk about how students can benefit from engaging in coaching conversations and applying mindfulness and movement-based practices .”
Powell believes school can take a financial , physical and emotional toll on both students and parents . His vision is that things can be done a different way . “ Students need higher quality and diverse forms of support to help them get through school .”
While his business is new , Powell is excited that his capstone was able to be put into motion . He is ready to start changing lives .
“ Students need higher quality and diverse forms of support to help them get through school .”
36 Alumni . LIFE . edu | 2020