Black Mental Wellness Symposium

Saturday, April 27, 2024 |聽The Heights Room,聽Corcoran Commons | 艾可直播 College | Please to attend

Please note that this conference will only be available to attend in person and will not be streamed online.

CEUs will be provided for participants attending the full event.

Black Mental Wellness Symposium

Black mental wellness has been significantly impacted by the effects of the historical and generational experiences of many people of the African diaspora characterized by the physical and emotional trauma as well as acts of violence (slow and fast, psychological and physical) they experience daily.聽 Social injustice, oppression, and violence against Black people continue to be experienced through interpersonal, structural, and institutional racism that significantly affects聽 their mental health. This is further complicated by the mistrust within the Black community towards the mental health system, which has historically been fueled by institutional bias, racism and inequities. The Black Mental Wellness Symposium will center the spiritual, social, and mental wellness of the lives of Black people in order for participants to obtain culturally-grounded, workable strategies, and resources to support, encourage and bolster the wellness of Black people.聽聽

The Black Leadership Initiative (BLI) at the 艾可直播 College School of Social Work is a social work training program that takes an Afrocentric approach to social work practice. The Afrocentric perspective is a culturally grounded social work practice-based model that affirms, codifies, and integrates everyday cultural experiences, values, and interpretations that cut across people of African descent. The program emphasizes community, collective action, cultural context, and Ubuntu- the West African concept of shared consciousness and group cohesion. The Black Mental Wellness Symposium is rooted in the Afrocentric framework and aims to further uplift the Black community within 艾可直播 College and the Greater 艾可直播 areas to emphasize the importance of Black mental health and wellness.聽 The Symposium will share the Afrocentric perspective as it relates to mental health and wellness with a goal of exploring culturally-grounded, workable strategies and resources to support, encourage and bolster the wellness of Black people.

Cosponsored by the Black Leadership Initiative聽at 艾可直播 College School of Social Work

Schedule and Registration

Saturday, April 27, 2024聽 |聽The Heights Room,聽Corcoran Commons | Please to attend

8:00-9:00 AM

Breakfast & Registration

9:00-9:30 AM

Welcome & Greetings

9:30-10:30 AM

Keynote Speech with聽Dr. Martell Teasley

10:30-10:45 AM

Break

10:45 AM-12:00 PM

Panel: Reclaiming Healing as an act of Liberation

Panelist:
Nieisha Deed
Albert Pless
Dr. Melissa Bartholomew
12:00-1:00 PM

Lunch

1:00-2:30 PM

Concurrent Workshops | 艾可直播 & Newton Room

Workshop 1: Embodiment: Beyond Talk Therapy
Led by Vanessa Benzan-Monteiro

Workshop 2:聽The Danger of Hope鈩: Creative Methods for Emotional Processing
Led by聽Morgan Breon

Workshop 3:聽Afrocentric Wellness: A Culturally-Grounded Model of Liberation
Led by聽Kaila Atkins and Lujuana Milton

2:30-3:30 PM

Wellness Mixer

CEUs will be provided for participants attending the full event.

Speakers

Dr. MARTELL TEASLEY

Martell Teasley

Dr. MARTELL TEASLEY is Associate Provost for Strategic Academic Initiatives at the University of Utah, and he is the former Dean of the College of Social Work at the University of Utah. From 2017 to 2023 he was a two-term president of the National Association of Deans and Directors of Social Work. Martell was Professor and Chair of the Department of Social Work in the College of Public Policy at the University of Texas at San Antonio from 2012 until 2017. He is the former editor-in-chief (2015-2018) of the NASW journal Children & Schools. As the lead investigator on the Social Work profession鈥檚 Grand Challenge to Eliminate Racism, his major areas of research interest are African American adolescent development, school social work practice, and diversity in social work education. Dr. Teasley has published over 60 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on a variety of topics dealing with social work practice and the educational outcomes of African American youth. He is the former Chair of the Social Work and Disaster Recovery Program at Florida State University College of Social Work. He served in the U.S. Army for 10 years and participated in the First Persian Gulf War as a Licensed Practical Nurse.聽 His education includes a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Fayetteville State University in North Carolina in 1994. He received a Master of Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia in 1996, and his doctorate in Social Work in 2002 from Howard University, located in Washington, DC.聽


Kaila Atkins

Kaila Atkins

Kaila graduated from Northeastern University with her Bachelor's of Science in Psychology (B.Sc) with minors in Business Administration and Human Communication. She has received her Master of Social Work (MSW) at 艾可直播 College with a concentration in Afrocentric Social Work, and was a member of the Black Leadership Initiative (BLI). Kaila has provided counseling in residential, community- based and out-patient settings for individuals whose ages ranged from elementary school to seniors. She utilizes empowerment, strengths-based, and Narrative theoretical models to help clients meet their individual needs. In Kaila's free time she enjoys traveling, listening to music, and being a plant mom.


Lujuana Milton

Lujuana Milton

Lujuana Milton, MSW, LICSW graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) and a Masters of Social Work (MSW) degree from 艾可直播 College. She has over 16 years of clinical experience in the field and has worked in a number of settings addressing issues of anxiety, depression, substance abuse, opposition/defiance, and trauma. She has been trained extensively in a number of treatment approaches including traditional talk therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). She also provides consultations and workshops with local community and school districts regarding issues affecting children, adolescents, and families such as substance abuse, anxiety, depression, and self-harm.聽 Lujuana鈥檚 clinical practice centers African values and principles in service of clients of the African Diaspora.


Vanessa Benzan Monteiro

Vanessa Benzan Monteiro

Vanessa Sujey is a passionate and energetic individual who thrives on thoughtful conversations about life. With a background in social work, she brings a unique perspective to understanding the intersection of mental health and personal evolution. Vanessa's eclectic approach combines Internal Family Systems therapy with embodied practices like FLOW breathwork, sound baths, and energetic healing. She is dedicated to empowering melanated women in their journey to answer life's big questions, fostering both intellectual and holistic growth. Join Vanessa on a transformative path of self-discovery and empowerment.


Nieisha Deed

Nieisha Deed

Nieisha Deed is a powerful emerging voice and leader in the mental health and wellness space in 艾可直播 and is working fiercely to advocate for mental wellness in 艾可直播鈥檚 Black community. She is the visionary and creator behind PureSpark. As a person living with bipolar disorder, Nieisha understands all too well how important access to holistic support services and community are to one鈥檚 mental wellness. As a Black woman, Nieisha is a community builder and disruptor in the mental health and wellness space. She is dismantling the walls of silence by raising awareness about mental illness and wellness, not just through PureSpark, but with speaking engagements and facilitated events, where she shares her personal story as a Black woman living with a mental Illness. Because the Black community has historically been left out of the conversations about mental health and wellness, Nieisha feels that it鈥檚 vital to share her personal experience and voice with her community. Through her leadership, Nieisha shatters the shame around mental illnesses, creates access to mental health support, and shows us that healing is possible.


Morgan Breon

Morgan Breon

Morgan Breon is a three time graduate from the University of Michigan Ann Arbor鈥擠ual Masters in Social Work and Education Policy, and Dual Bachelors in Psychology and English. She is a Certified Relationship Coach in the Gibson Integrated Attachment Theory.

Her core passion is fostering healing and support for Black youth and young adults. She has been a volunteer and mentor with foster care and adoption agency Spaulding for Children since 2012. In addition to facilitating youth workshops through her program, P.O.W.W.E.R. Training, for over 7 years, Morgan was the Behavior Specialist for the 9th Grade Academy at Denby High School and served as the Manager of Behavior and Culture at GOAL Line (Detroit Community Education Commission).

In 2017, Morgan decided to incorporate her gift for acting and playwriting into her 鈥渉ealing work,鈥 and founded heal.be.live., LLC. She is an award-winning playwright, a 2017 Mitten Lab Fellow, 2017-2018 University Musical Society (UMS) Artist in Residence, 2018 Playwriting Scholarship Recipient with PlayPenn Theatre in Philadelphia, PA, 2018 Kresge Arts in Detroit Fellow, 2021 4.0 Essentials Fellow, 2022 Eastern Michigan University Porter Chair recipient, 2022 4.0 Tiny Fellow and a 2022 Comcast RISE Technology Recipient. Her work has been presented at ASHE, AERA, OABSE, CEYou Plus, and a plethora of schools, universities and community organizations. (www.healbelive.com)


Albert W Pless, Jr.

Albert W Pless, Jr.

Albert W. Pless, Jr, is the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Office of Equity and Social Justice for the Town of Reading. He was the previous聽 Inaugural Director of Diversity Equity, and Inclusion for the Town of Andover. He has over 25 years of experience working in public health, and community-based programs in the Greater 艾可直播 area. In addition, he directed nationally recognized Community Health Worker programs for Black and Latino men at both the 艾可直播 Public Health Commission and Cambridge Public Health Departments. He is on numerous boards and committees, including the Men鈥檚 Health and Black Health Care Workers Caucus of the American Public Health Association (APHA) and Harvard Catalyst. Albert has committed his entire professional career to addressing health and racial inequities. He received my Master of Science degree from Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, NH.


Melissa Wood Bartholomew

Melissa Wood Bartholomew

Melissa Wood Bartholomew (she/her), MDiv 鈥15, is the Associate Dean of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging and Lecturer on Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at Harvard Divinity School. She is a Christ-centered minister and a racial justice and healing practitioner committed to a multifaith, multidisciplinary, Afrocentric approach to healing justice rooted in the African philosophy of Ubuntu, restorative justice, and love.

Melissa鈥檚 passion for racial and social justice was cultivated at Howard University where she received her undergraduate and law degrees. She is an attorney with nearly a decade鈥檚 experience in public interest law. Through her experiences in Seattle practicing law as an Assistant Attorney General, as a legal aid attorney with the Northwest Justice Project, and working as a mediator in King County Superior Court, it became clear to Melissa that the law could not facilitate the heart changes required to eradicate racism and oppression from individuals and systems. Her call to ministry led her to pursue her MDiv at HDS. Melissa is earnestly committed to eradicating racism and oppression and advancing healing and societal transformation through spiritually-engaged, heart-centered multifaith and multidisciplinary strategies rooted in love. She is a restorative justice practitioner and has studied restorative justice in Rwanda, transformational leadership in Ghana, and has published various articles exploring racial justice and healing. Melissa received her MSW from 艾可直播 College where she received her PhD in social work. Her research interests include the impact of racism, incarceration, and other systems of oppression on the mental health of Black people and the role of religion and spirituality in their resistance. She serves as part-time 艾可直播at 艾可直播 College where she teaches restorative justice at the School of Law and has taught diversity in the School of Social Work.

Workshop Descriptions

Panel Descriptions

Reclaiming Healing as an act of Liberation

Panelists:
Nieisha Deed
Albert Pless
Sean "2ruTh7" Evelyn
Dr. Melissa Bartholomew

The panel will center the spiritual, social, and mental wellness of the lives of Black people in order for participants to obtain culturally-grounded, workable strategies, and resources to support, encourage and bolster the wellness of Black people. The panelists who have experience in a number of different areas of mental wellness including Black men's mental wellness, wellness advocacy, and abolitionism will center the use of skills grounded in critical thinking, creativity, and cultural responsiveness will inspire personal and professional reflection and growth that will be both liberating and healing.聽 The panel's overall goal is to provide additional strategies and resources helpful to mental wellness within the Black community.聽聽

Campus Map and Parking

Campus Map and Parking:

Parking is available at the nearby Beacon Street and Commonwealth Avenue Garages.

艾可直播 College is also accessible via public transportation (MBTA B Line - 艾可直播 College).

Directions, Maps, and Parking

Visitor Parking Information

艾可直播 College strongly encourages conference participants to receive the COVID-19 vaccination before attending events on campus.