Alumni Spotlight: Lorah Bodie

Lorah Wood Bodie, Ed.D (’73, Psychology) is the Community Liaison for the Psychology Department at San Diego State University (SDSU). In that capacity, she is the Supervising Instructor for undergraduate service learning courses and the Internship Coordinator for the Masters Program in Industrial/Organizational Psychology.

Dr. Bodie is a graduate of the San Diego State University - University of San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Education with an emphasis in web-based learning. Her research centers on the social presence construct and instructor behaviors as they relate to learning outcomes. In addition to her SUU degree, Lorah has a BS in Information Science from Coleman College and a MS in Counseling from San Diego State.

Lorah has worked over 20 years in strategic planning, organizational development, community relations, and information management. Prior to joining SDSU, she worked as the Manager of Research and Development for the San Diego Workforce Partnership, and as a Market Research Analyst for the Strategic Development Department at Scripps Health.

She credits her time at SUU as providing her with a solid foundation for later success in psychology, music and life in general. “I want to publically thank Dr. Blaine Johnson (my voice coach from ages 9-16), who showed me how to give power to my voice and Dr. Les Jones who fuelled my unending interest in psychology,” says Lorah. “I am also grateful to my parents, Wourth and VeLyn Wood, who instilled in me a love for learning and the confidence to keep going, no matter how difficult the challenge.”

Lorah is an accomplished musician, and in addition to a variety of day gigs, she was a professional singer for 16 years. Her musical scrapbook is available online: http://www.psychology.sdsu.edu/fp-port/index.html

In June of 2009, Lorah performed with friends (many of whom are SUU alums) in Cedar City at a fundraiser for youth football, and again at the July Jamboree.

Lorah has two sons, Jason Bodie and Jade Austin, and a daughter, Chelsey Austin, who is currently a junior Education major at SUU.