New faculty profile: Greg Townley

When Greg Townley began looking for teaching jobs, he found exactly what he was looking for: an opening in the Portland State Department of Psychology’s Applied Social and Community Psychology program.

The newest addition to the psychology department, Townley graduated from the University of South Carolina with a doctorate in clinical-community psychology.

This term, he is teaching community psychology. Next term he’s set to teach an introduction to psychopathology class.

Community is Townley’s main area of focus; he looks at how one’s environment—both physical and social—can impact wellbeing.

“I’ve studied housing, issues of homelessness, issues of how our social identifications impact our identity and more broadly our wellbeing, and our ability to fit into our environments and feel a sense of belonging,” Townley said.

Townley works primarily with people who have psychiatric disabilities like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and in South Carolina he was involved in a self-help organization.

“What really drew me to PSU was the mission of the school,” Townley said.

“Having research be applied to the human condition and finding ways to better both the local community, Portland and, more broadly, the human community of the entire world.”

Townley believes PSU’s mission statement, “Let knowledge serve the city,” is an important aspect to focus on. He encourages students to get involved in the community and work toward finding something they have a passion for.

He’s excited to integrate into the Portland community and looks forward to meeting different organizations, forming collaborative relationships and making a difference for them.

Outside of the academic world, Townley thinks he fits into Portland perfectly. A fan of comics and graphic novels, he hopes to incorporate them into his coursework as a supplement to textbooks.