Karin Van Vlack, MS
CCSH Fellow, Emory Winship Supportive Care Clinic and Emory Proton Therapy Center
Rev. Karin Van Vlack (she/they) is the Compassion-Centered Spiritual Health Fellow for Emory Winship Supportive Care Clinic and the Emory Proton Therapy Center. She is a 2015 graduate of the Zen Buddhist Chaplaincy Training Program at Upaya Institute and Zen Center in Santa Fe, NM; the following year, she was ordained as a lay minister by Roshi Joan Halifax, Ph.D. Karin completed her Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) internship at a community hospital. During her CPE residency, she joined the interdisciplinary care team of a regional hospice agency, serving patients and care partners in assisted living and skilled nursing facilities. In 2021-22, she completed additional coursework at the Institute of Buddhist Studies and the Starr King School for the Ministry and, in 2022, received an End-of-Life Doula Certificate through the University of Vermont’s Continuing Education Department. She has nearly 10 years of experience as a volunteer with a Washington hospice agency supporting patients, families, and staff in both in-patient and assisted care facilities.
Karin is a native of northern Indiana where she grew up on the shore of Lake Michigan. She received a B.A. in English and Environmental Studies, a Master of Public Affairs, and an M.S. in Environmental Science, all at Indiana University. She has served federal, state, and local government agencies in Washington, DC, Wisconsin, and Washington, focusing on environmental education and policy. For more than five years, she was employed by a major outdoor gear retailer, which offered opportunities to hike, paddle, and ski with colleagues on her days off. Prior to moving to Atlanta, Karin lived on a small island in Washington’s south Puget Sound where she and her husband raised their now-adult daughter. She enjoys spending time with extended family in the greater Atlanta area, as well as long walks, biking, baking, and pulling for her favorite soccer clubs.
Karin is a native of northern Indiana where she grew up on the shore of Lake Michigan. She received a B.A. in English and Environmental Studies, a Master of Public Affairs, and an M.S. in Environmental Science, all at Indiana University. She has served federal, state, and local government agencies in Washington, DC, Wisconsin, and Washington, focusing on environmental education and policy. For more than five years, she was employed by a major outdoor gear retailer, which offered opportunities to hike, paddle, and ski with colleagues on her days off. Prior to moving to Atlanta, Karin lived on a small island in Washington’s south Puget Sound where she and her husband raised their now-adult daughter. She enjoys spending time with extended family in the greater Atlanta area, as well as long walks, biking, baking, and pulling for her favorite soccer clubs.