ANITA KILBOURNE-GREER

Associate Director of NiswongerCARE

Phone: (423) 820-8218

Growing up there was never a question about going to college - I was going, and I couldn’t wait! I loved every minute of my time at Carson-Newman. However, as graduation neared, it dawned on me that I had never answered that age old question, “what did I want to do when I grow up?” So there I was, with a bachelor’s degree in hand but no idea what to do with it. I stumbled into a major with little thought of how that major translated into a career and was so very lost. So I did what any sane, recent college grad with no clue would do - I went to graduate school. Of course, at that point I had to choose a career (they don’t let you get a master’s degree in general studies). I chose school counseling because I thought it would be interesting, there was a school counseling program at ETSU which was close to home, and I would get summer’s off. Fast forward 20+ years. I have a Master’s Degree in School Counseling, but have never worked as a school counselor. I’ve worked as an outpatient therapist at a mental health clinic, a grant writer and program coordinator at a Children’s Advocacy Center, a children’s minister at a Baptist Church, and as a college and career counselor. If I had to answer the question, “what do you want to be when you grow up?’ today, I’d be a little closer to the answer than I was when I was 22, but I still couldn’t give you a definitive answer. I’m still learning and growing and life tends to be full of surprises. But my passion has remained the same - I love working with students of all ages. I like helping them discover their own passions, and skills, and strengths. While I don’t go into the schools and work with students often, I get to work with some amazing Advisors - those individuals who are in the schools assisting students with everything from career exploration to completing the FAFSA (you can read about these incredible people by choosing the Advisor tab under About Us).

When I’m not working, you’ll find me at the gym struggling through a workout or on my couch with my dog, Puggy Sue and two cats, Wiz Katlifa and Furlock Holmes. I have two amazing children; Hannah is a mental health counselor living in Boston with her husband Seth, and Eli lives in Bethesda, MD and works government adjacent. My husband, John, works for the Bristol Tennessee City school system and loves magic (don’t ask him to show you a card trick, ‘cause he’ll do it!)