Originally published: . Volume 10, No. 6. Source pages: 12.
Dr. Susan Glanville has completed three books, Indian Santa, the True Story, Walking in Sunshine, and Lost Hero Found, written and illustrated under her nom de plume, Susie Marie PhD®. She travels the South sharing her books and entertaining audiences at her live presentations.
The books are part of her Power of T.E.A.® (thoughts, emotions, actions) series, a psychological system for success that Glanville has been developing for almost twenty years.
In 2000, a friend who was a teacher sought her help for her stressed-out students when Louisiana implemented the LEAP test, a standardized exam for public school students. At the time Dr. Glanville was the producer and host of a local television show in New Orleans, so she began to include special segments for the students. She also worked with them every week in their classroom. “I was encouraged to continue developing my methods for success when the students passed the exams, and did better than all of the other classes at the school.”
She based the framework for her “thoughts, emotions, actions” system on one of the textbooks she used while teaching at Delgado Community College. The opening paragraph described psychology as the science of cognition, affect, and behavior. Over the years, she broadened her methods. “I expanded my programs, incorporating experiences with the people, places, crops, and critters in my rural life to help teach key principles and practices to local students and families.”
When she moved away from the city after her children were grown, Dr. Glanville found fertile soil to grow her ideas for her books and presentations. She worked on themes having to do with natural and rural life, blending art, entertainment and healthy psychological messages and practices.
Dr. Glanville now drives her RV across the South to entertain audiences with her live shows. “Because I have spent so many years in the performing arts and the broadcast media, I inevitably find myself creating sets and collecting props for my events. My RV has plenty of room for everything I need, plus I get to spend the night camping in beautiful parks instead of checking in and out of hotel rooms.”
You can find out more about Susie Marie PhD®, and invite her to do one of her shows for your group, at her website, SouthRiverStories.com.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.