Meet the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Career Coaches

Shunta Thomas is the Associate Director for College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, College of Health and Public Service, and Mayborn School of Journalism.

Shunta earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Illinois State University and a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Accounting from Tennessee State University. She also earned the following Texas Educator Certificates – Principal, Business, Marketing, ESL. Shunta has a lifelong passion and track record for helping youth exceed and reach their highest potential.

When she is not at UNT, she is volunteering in her community through the local high school, women’s clubs, and church. The best piece of advice she received is always strive for excellence, reflect on the learnings along your journey, and share your talents and gifts.

Want to find out more about how Shunta can help you? Her office is located in GAB 220AA.

Current undergraduate and graduate students and recent graduates (graduated one year ago or more recently) can schedule an appointment through Navigate. Experienced Alumni (graduated more than one year ago) can check out the options available for career advisement on the Alumni page.

Hello! My name is Emily Harris, and I oversee the High School Career Connect Peer Mentor Program and Career Readiness Peer Mentor Programs within the Career Center. In addition to these areas, I also serve as a Career Coach generalist with a focus on supporting the needs of Journalism students and faculty. I am a first-generation college graduate with a B.S. in Psychology from Tarleton State University and an M.Ed. in Higher Education from the University of North Texas (Go Mean Green!). My background in higher education includes experiences in Orientation, New Student Programming, Career Coaching and Leadership Development. As a Career Coach, I get so much fulfillment out of supporting students through the many challenges associated with getting career ready and enjoy helping them recognize their value and develop confidence in their skills and experiences through individualized, one on one coaching. Student development is my passion and I absolutely LOVE this work! Outside of UNT, I serve as a Co-Lead Facilitator for the LeaderShape Institute where I get to travel and facilitate leadership curriculum to high school and college students across the nation. When I am not Coaching, I am mom to two little ones, several houseplants and an Aussie named Houston. I enjoy being outdoors and love camping, hiking, and traveling to National Parks with my family any chance I get, as well as exploring my creative side through art, graphic design, and interior design. 

Want to learn more about how Emily can help you get career ready? Current students and recent graduates (graduated one year ago or more recently) can schedule an appointment through Navigate. Experienced Alumni (graduated more than one year ago) can check out the options available for career advisement on the Alumni page.

My name is Stan Hughes, and I am a Career Coach in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. I am an Army veteran who served in Desert Storm in 1990 where I was injured during battle. While my military career was cut short due to injuries, I still had a passion to help our veterans through volunteering and creating various programs. During my journey of serving our veterans, I assisted with homelessness, HIV counseling, money management resources, and helped to create outreach programs to better serve their daily needs. I felt I could better serve our veteran population through education. I received my undergraduate degree in Social Work from the University of Illinois in 2012. I continued my education at Benedictine University where I received my master’s degree in Organizational Behavior in 2015 and an MBA in 2017. I look forward to helping/assisting our next generation of amazing UNT students.

An interesting fact about me is I love to grill. I am always trying new recipes and perfecting my grilling craft.

Current students and recent graduates (graduated one year ago or more recently) can schedule an appointment through Navigate. Experienced Alumni (graduated more than one year ago) can check out the options available for career advisement on the Alumni page.

Lauren is a Career Coach for the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (CLASS) where she serves psychology, anthropology, and sociology majors.

She received her B.S. in Animal Science from Texas Tech University and her M.Ed. in Higher Education with a focus in Student Affairs from the University of North Texas! While at Texas Tech, she worked for a number of on-campus departments including orientation, undergraduate admissions, and recruitment for her academic college. Through these experiences, she found a true passion for working with and serving college students. During her time at UNT, she served as the Graduate Assistant for Orientation and New Student Programs her first year, and went on to serve as the Graduate Assistant for Student Organizations and Officer Support her second year. In addition to her graduate assistantships, Lauren was able to gain experience with other areas in student affairs from other institutions in the DFW area including orientation programs at The University of Texas at Arlington and fraternity and sorority life at Southern Methodist University. Lauren truly enjoys exploring all functional areas of student affairs and is excited to join the Career Center. She loves being a part of such an amazing team with CLASS and can’t wait to see all the ground-breaking things that are happening with the Career Center. One of Lauren’s favorite parts of coaching, is when her students have that “light bulb” moment and they begin to see what their professional future can look like. When Lauren is not at UNT, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading the latest BookTok recommendations, attending spin class, and watching all the bad reality TV.

Want to learn more about how Lauren can help you advance in your professional journey? Current students and recent graduates (graduated one year ago or more recently) can schedule an appointment through Navigate. Experienced Alumni (graduated more than one year ago) can check out the options available for career advisement on the Alumni page.

Clarence is a Career Coach for the College of Health and Public Service (HPS). He has his B.S. in Business Management from Alabama State University and his MPA from Louisiana State University. Clarence has a passion for helping students as he strives to help them translate their skills and experiences into internships and job opportunities. Clarence has worked with various political and policy organizations including Louisiana’s Public Affairs Research Council, The Southern Education Foundation, The Congressional Black Caucus, and various projects throughout Alabama’s 7^th Congressional District. He has also worked in various communities within cities such as Montgomery, Al; Memphis, TN; Syracuse, NY; and Washington D.C. Working in these various communities and with these different organizations has allowed Clarence to work with very diverse populations, which has enhanced his love for equity, inclusion, and people in general.

When Clarence is not at UNT he enjoys watching Netflix and spending time outdoors and lives by the motto that “life is about people. If you learn how to treat people fairly and communicate with them effectively, you will be successful.”

Current students and recent graduates (graduated one year ago or more recently) can schedule an appointment through Navigate. Experienced Alumni (graduated more than one year ago) can check out the options available for career advisement on the Alumni page.

Kate Thompson is an Career Coach for the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences here at UNT in the Career Center. She is a UNT Alumni, receiving both her Bachelors and Masters Degree in English. Working with students is a passion of hers, and she has previously taught English at both high school and collegiate levels. She is excited to collaborate with the amazing folks here at UNT and to help prepare students for success in a dynamic professional landscape!

Evan Tom is a Career Coach for the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences supporting Geography, Geographic Information Systems and Computer Science, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Social Sciences, Economics, and Integrative Studies. He received a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas and a Master of Music in Jazz Studies from California State University Long Beach. As a graduate student, he served as Assistant to the Department Chair of the Jazz Department at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, coaching music students and leading several jazz combo and improvisation classes. Prior to CLASS, Evan served as Senior Administrative Specialist for the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at UNT supporting students through coordinating internships, CPT, class scheduling, and student enrollment. A professional musician specializing in the upright bass, you can find Evan performing on the weekends in various jazz clubs, restaurants, wineries, hotels, weddings, and corporate events across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.  Evan is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area and enjoys a wide range of hobbies and interests including cooking, learning new recipes, going out to eat, basketball, baseball, and going for walks, just to name a few.