Dr. Ashley Walsdorf is an assistant professor of couple and family therapy at Alliant International University. She received her PhD in human development, family science, marriage, and family therapy from the University of Georgia in 2019, with a specialization in immigration policy and working with multicultural communities. In addition to her work at Alliant, Dr. Walsdorf is a licensed, bilingual marriage and family therapist and an AAMFT-approved supervisor in the state of Texas, the director of family programming at a residential treatment center, and a research affiliate of the Latino Research Institute at the University of Texas at Austin. Clinically, she has been practicing therapy in English and Spanish with individuals, couples, and families for nearly 15 years, specializing in work with immigrant families, multicultural communities, and addiction and recovery. Her research has examined ethnic-racial socialization, the effects of U.S. socio-political climate on mental health among Latino communities, affirmative clinical work with LGBTQ communities, and critical race theories. She has authored over 25 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, and presented her work at more than 50 national and international conferences. Dr. Walsdorf’s connection to India and international work is both professional and personal: her husband and stepdaughter are from Kerala, and her blended, cross-cultural family informs her commitment to systemic and culturally responsive family therapy. She loves traveling and cooking with her family and eating her mother-in-law’s seriously spicy food.
Dr. Walsdorf’s Fulbright-Nehru project is examining the relevance of systemic family therapy in the South Indian context. Based at Rajagiri College of Social Sciences in Kochi, Kerala, she is collaborating with graduate students and faculty in psychology and social work through coursework and participatory research that assess Western family therapy theories and models for “cultural fit”, while developing adaptations for local family and community contexts. Her project aims to create culturally responsive frameworks that strengthen the relational elements of mental health education while honoring South Indian social and familial dynamics, in addition to fostering India–U.S. academic partnerships.