Dr. John R. Hart is an up and coming licensed clinical Marriage and Family Therapist (LCMFT) and Family Scientist in the Washington D.C. metro area. Dr. Hart officially received both his Doctorate in Family Science and his Master’s of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy from the University of Maryland at College Park. Clinically, Dr. Hart is a senior therapist and public relations manager with the Relationship Counseling Center of Maryland in Columbia, MD. In addition, Dr. Hart is a Pre-Clinical Member of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) and a clinical supervisor at the University of Maryland. His clinical specialties with couples revolve around improving structural interactional patterns (e.g., boundaries, power dynamics, trust), facilitating vulnerability and emotional connection between partners, and fostering romantic partnership between both partners. Dr. Hart has written countless blogs and newsletters articles for both print and media outlets on these topics and more over the last 5 years.
In terms of his family science research interests, Dr. Hart’s work focuses on the transition into adulthood for young men of color, the impact mass incarceration has on Black fathers, and the re-entry experiences of young Black fathers as it pertains to jobs, communities, and their children. Dr. Hart’s work and experiences have involved improving prison and jail family space conditions for men to interact with their children, program evaluation to improving re-entry centers in the communities, and reducing relationship conflict between Black fathers and the families and mothers of their children. Throughout his career, Dr. Hart has presented at numerous conferences (e.g., American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy, National Conference on Family Relations, Black Graduate Conference in Psychology, etc.) and has been fortunate to work with prominent national researchers in the field such as Dr. Kevin Roy, Dr. Mia Smith-Bynum and Dr. Stephen Thomas. Dr. Hart is also a prominent adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland, College Park teaching on privilege, social position, affluence and poverty, and structural inequalities.
Recently, Dr. Hart has become co-creators of two lively radio podcasts on couples relationships – “Kings of the Heart” with his colleague, Tariiq Omari Walton and “The Royal Cypher” with Tariiq, Weena Wise, and Ainisha Persaud. Dr. Hart is a dedicated MFT whose personal and professional motivation is to assist couples in their journey towards communicating healthier, meeting each other needs efficiently and consistently, and growing together – the essentials for a life-long romantic relationship filled with bliss. Feel free to visit his websites at www.kingsofthehearts.com and www.rccmaryland.com or email him at john@rccmaryland.com
