RISE UP SPIRITUALITY FAITH SOCIAL JUSTICE · Spirituality, Faith & Social Justice Friday, November 9, 2018 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. William James College One Wells Avenue, Newton,

RISE UP! SPIRITUALITY, FAITH & SOCIAL JUSTICE

One Wells AvenueNewton, MA 02459

617-327-6777 www.williamjames.edu/cmgmh

[email protected]

Friday, November 9, 2018 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

RISE UP! SPIRITUALITY, FAITH & SOCIAL JUSTICE

Rise Up! Spirituality, Faith and Social Justice 2 | P a g e

William James College…………………………………………………………………..3

Conference Overview & Objectives………………….....................................4

Program................................................................................................5-6

Keynote Address……………………………………………………………………………7

Panels & Workshops…………………………………………………….….………..7-10

Closing Address….…………………………………………………………………..……11

The Universal Voice…………………..…………………………………………………11

Biographies of Presenters..................................................................12-16

Biographies of Performers……………………………………………..…………16-18

Art Exhibit…..…………………………………………………………..….…………19-20

Conference Planning Committee...........................................................21

Conference Sponsors……………………………………………………………………22

Special Thanks & Acknowledgments………………...…………………………..22

TABLE OF CONTENTS


William James College

William James College (WJC) educates students for careers that meet the growing demand for access to quality, culturally competent psychological services for individuals, groups, communities and organizations. WJC offers 15 degree programs, with a focus on serving vulnerable populations, including children and families of adversity, Latinos and veterans. William James College is committed to meeting the needs of underserved populations and training culturally sensitive providers as well as leaders on the forefront of creating long-lasting social change. WJC’s Center for Multicultural & Global Mental Health (CMGMH) aims to be a preeminent academic, clinical training and research center in promoting social justice and addressing mental health disparities among historically marginalized groups in the U.S. and abroad. The primary mission of CMGMH is to recruit, train, educate and prepare a cadre of professionals to serve culturally diverse individuals and communities locally and around the globe. CMGMH’s initiatives are part of WJC’s institution-wide diversity goals. “William James College has set out on an important path to diversify our school and the psychology workforce as a whole,” President Covino stated. “CMGMH is a critical piece in the work that we do here by educating the public as well as facilitating various initiatives and events related to diversity.” WJC’s diversity efforts are wide-ranging. “What I am most proud of in terms of diversity at WJC are the steps forward that we have taken that are less obvious and eye-catching,” said Dr. Covino. “They serve as the building blocks that will move us forward in embracing and supporting diversity among the student body and staff. For example, we hired consultants who are experts in multicultural mental health workforce education who have helped the Diversity Committee to shape our strategic plan, which has been presented to the Board of Trustees. We have created clear goals to increase diversity at William James College which will include increasing our self-identified minority student population to 25%.” By promoting open dialogue about these crucial issues, WJC strives to attract a student body that reflects and engages with the communities it serves. The core of WJC’s approach is to provide students with hands-on experience and the clinical skills they need to be effective, pragmatic and compassionate professionals providing high quality services to their clients and solving complex problems in an increasingly diverse world.

Dr. Nicholas Covino President,



Spirituality “is the heart of empathy and care, the pulse of compassion, the vital flow of practice wisdom and the driving force of action for service” (Canda and Furman, 1999, p. xv). Spirituality is a unique place where many turn to in search for hope, personal meaning and a sense of purpose. During challenging and uncertain times, people often rely on their faith to make sense of life’s adversities and experiences, to believe in something greater than themselves, even if it is not always present or tangible, and to remain optimistic and hopeful about the future. In a world marked increasingly by insensitivity and intolerance, Hodge (2012) has asserted that faith and spirituality can serve as the motivational energy that animates the pursuit of a more socially just society and propel us toward social action and advocacy. This Conference aimed to engage agents of social change who are grappling with contemporary social issues that affect vulnerable and oppressed groups in the U.S. It sought to promote greater awareness of the need for more socially conscious and spiritually sensitive mental health providers who can pursue a social justice agenda that includes a concern for others, a willingness to advocate for the holistic needs of historically marginalized people and the commitment to ensure equity and human rights for all in society.

The conference’s primary objectives were to:

1. Promote a greater understanding of the interconnections between faith, spirituality, social justice, and social action and advocacy.

2. Identify the roles of faith community sanctuary movements as a driving force toward community activism.

3. Highlight how mental health providers and faith-based communities can work together to integrate faith, spirituality and social advocacy.

4. Discuss strategies that can be used by the collective to create meaningful and lasting social change, particularly with and on behalf of historically marginalized people.

5. Describe how mental health providers can become more engaged in practice and social justice-related activities.

CONFERENCE OVEVIEW

CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES


Spirituality, Faith & Social Justice

Friday, November 9, 2018 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.


One Wells Avenue, Newton, MA 02459

8:30 a.m. – REGISTRATION 8:45 a.m. – WELCOMING SONG (Woodland Tradition)

Performed by Leah Hopkins & Jonathan Perry, The Kingfisher Singers 9:00 - 9:15 a.m. – WELCOMING REMARKS

Gemima St. Louis, Ph.D., Co-Director, Center for Multicultural & Global Mental Health, William James College

Nicholas Covino, PsyD, President, William James College Crystal Collier, Chief of Staff, Massachusetts Department of Mental Health

9:15 - 10:15 a.m. – KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Resisting Neo-Colonialism with Native

American Healing Ceremonies – Rockey Robbins, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Oklahoma

10:15 - 10:25 a.m. – MORNING BREAK 10:25 – 10:30 a.m. – Spoken Word — Performed by Adetutu Ajibose 10:30 - 12:00 p.m. – MORNING PANEL: FAITH-BASED COMMUNITIES & SOCIAL

ADVOCACY

The Strengths of Christian Marginalized Communities and Their Role in Social Justice Advocacy – Nicholas Rowe, Ph.D., Dean of Student Engagement, Gordon College

Abiding in the Community: A Faith Based Response to a Neighborhood in Pain – Colleen Sharka, LMHC; and Debra Johnson, The Cory Johnson Program for Post-Traumatic Healing, Roxbury Presbyterian Church Social Impact Center

In the Echo of the Shattering: A Commandment Thunders in Witness and Warning – Rabbi Victor Hillel Reinstein, Nehar Shalom Community Synagogue

CONFERENCE PROGRAM


12:00 to 1:00 p.m. – NETWORKING LUNCH (Provided)

Live Performance – Sohenga Depestre, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology Program, William James College

The Art of Hope: An Exhibit by Artsbridge 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. – CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS: MINDFULNESS, MEDITATION &

RELAXATION PRACTICES

How Mindfulness and Compassion Practice Can Help Tap Into Inner, Community and Ancestral Strength – Richa Gawande, Ph.D., Research and Programs Manager, Center for Mindfulness and Compassion, Cambridge Health Alliance

Mandala Rock Painting – April Clayton, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology Program, William James College

Tai Chi for Better Body Awareness and Relaxation – Nelson Wong, MAOM, Licensed Acupuncturist, Newton Centre

2:00 – 2:15 p.m. – AFTERNOON BREAK 2:15 – 2:30 p.m. – Faith-Based Musical Performance

Damon Pryor, Jonathan Newell Roberts, and Stephen Allsop 2:30 – 4:00 p.m. – AFTERNOON PANEL: SPIRITUALITY, SOCIAL JUSTICE &

ACTIVISM

Yorùbá Spiritual Practice and Restorative Justice – Yvette ‘Lepolata Aduke’ Modestin, LMHC, Founder and Executive Director, Encuentro Diaspora Afro; and Tony Menelik Van Der Meer, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Africana Studies Department, University of Massachusetts Boston

Responding to the Plight of the Rohingyan Refugees: Working from a Muslim Perspective – Shamaila Khan, Ph.D., Co-Director, Center for Multicultural Training in Psychology; and Assistant Professor, Boston University School of Medicine

4:00 – 4:45 p.m. – CLOSING ADDRESS: Reconciling the Horizontal and

Vertical Planes: Advising Clinicians on Spirituality – Imam Taymullah Abdur-Rahman, Founder, Young Merchants Club; Former Chaplain, Massachusetts Department of Corrections, Harvard University and Northeastern University

4:45 p.m. – The Universal Voice – Meridith Apfelbaum, MS, Assistant Dean of

Students, William James College; & Sohenga Depestre, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology Program, William James College


In his Keynote Address, Dr. Robbins discussed strategies that incorporate lessons taught in Native American ceremonies, which can be used to promote education as a social change agent. The goals of his presentation were to foreground the following Native American ceremonial ideas: (1) Learn to get along with each other. (2) Decolonize ourselves and our programs, realizing how we have all been coerced into accepting certain toxic conditions and ideas that are changeable. (3) Be aware that what we teach and learn is directly related to our relationship with the Earth and our relatives. (4) Holistic education based on the Circle (spiritual, mental, emotional and physical) can nurture healing for ourselves and those we work with. (5) The harmonious braiding together of Native American and Western wisdoms promotes balance, greater acceptance of diversity, and serves to licensure, academic and employment requirement of students.

The Strengths of Christian Marginalized Communities and Their Role in Social Justice Advocacy

Nicholas Rowe, Ph.D., Dean of Student Engagement at Gordon College, Rehoboth Counseling

In this presentation, Dr. Nicholas Rowe proposed that Christian communities in marginalized spaces are the best equipped to demonstrate authentic expressions of Christian spirituality that address the needs of the whole person. For various reasons, these specific communities are less inclined to fall victim to one of the oldest heresies in the Christian faith community, which permits its adherents to dismiss the marginalized by separating right thinking from right action. However, marginalized Christian communities are examples where this separation tends not to happen, chiefly because they experience and identify with the suffering that comes from deprivation of physical needs, and the unjust expression of power and control over their persons. Thus, this presentation was an asset-based discussion about marginalized Christin communities in the west, and its strengths that find expression in social justice and direct physical ministry, and advocacy concerns.

MORNING PANEL: FAITH-BASED COMMUNITIES & SOCIAL ADVOCACY

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Resisting Neo-Colonialism with

Native American Healing Ceremonies Rockey Robbins, Ph.D.


Abiding in the Community: A Faith Based Response to a Neighborhood in Pain Colleen Sharka, LMHC; and Debra Johnson, The Cory Johnson Program for Post-Traumatic

Healing, Roxbury Presbyterian Church Social Impact Center This presentation highlighted community ‘healing-centered’ support that strives to address the chronic individual and collective impact of trauma in urban neighborhoods. Whether from community violence, structural oppression, poverty, addiction, or various forms of interpersonal abuse, trauma is at the core of a steadily eroding rupture of an individual's sense of safety, meaning in the world, to self and others, and personal agency. When trauma is experienced collectively there is a need for both individual and community healing. The main focus of the presentation was on how the trauma healing journey can be understood as a fundamentally spiritual process that is led by community companions, people who have experienced trauma.

In the Echo of the Shattering — A Commandment Thunders in Witness and Warning [You shall not mistreat or oppress a stranger (Ex. 22:21)]

Rabbi Victor Hillel Reinstein, Nehar Shalom Community Synagogue November 9, 1938 – Meeting on the eightieth anniversary of Kristallnacht/Reich’s Pogrom Nacht, the echo of the shattering that began the Holocaust reminds in stark juxtaposition of what happens when neighbors become strangers and strangers become other. It reminds of what happens when strangers are treated as other rather than as the neighbor who is to be loved. Some thirty-six times the Torah reminds not to wrong or oppress a stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. Called to emulate God’s compassion, activism on behalf of the hurting and the oppressed, even as we reach out to those hurting among us in all ways, is a mitzvah/a commandment/a holy deed. In the echo of the shattering, a sharing from Jewish sources as drawn on by one rabbi and as lived by one synagogue community.

From left to right: Rabbi Victor Reinstein, Ms. Colleen Sharka, Ms. Debra Johnson and Dr. Nicholas Rowe


How Mindfulness and Compassion Practice Can Help Tap Into Inner, Community and Ancestral Strength

Richa Gawande, Ph.D., Research and Programs Manager, Center for Mindfulness and Compassion, Cambridge Health Alliance

In this workshop, Dr. Richa Gawande addressed the following questions: What are mindfulness and compassion and what does cultivating these innate capacities have to offer us? She described how the modern mindfulness movement has led to more familiarity with meditation practice

and contemplation in the west, and the integration of these practices into many settings, including clinical settings, education, corporate America, wellness and fitness centers, the U.S. Army, and more. She noted that secular mindfulness and compassion practices have been shown to be helpful for a variety of mental and physical disorders, and that there is no one size fits all approach. During the presentation, Dr. Gawande provided (1) individual and interpersonal mindfulness and compassion practices; (2) a discussion of some considerations to keep in mind for

co-creating these practices with faith-based and historically marginalized populations; (3) a summary of the research and clinical work being done at Cambridge Health Alliance Center for Mindfulness and Compassion focused on integrating a mindfulness and compassion-based clinical service into primary care and mental health; and (4) references on work being done in the area of trauma-informed mindfulness, inclusion and diversity in mindfulness teaching, and international and social justice mindfulness movements.

Mandala Rock Painting April Clayton, Doctoral Student, Clinical

Psychology Program, William James College During this workshop participants were able to create a rock mandala of their own. This exercise was facilitated by Ms. April Clayton who assisted attendees in utilizing some of Carl Jung's techniques to tell a personal story through the mandala. The workshop was intended to be a relaxing and fun journey of mindful creativity.

CONCURRENT WORKSHOPS: MINDFULNESS, MEDITATION & RELAXATION PRACTICES


Tai Chi for Better Body Awareness and Relaxation Nelson Wong, MAOM, Licensed Acupuncturist, Newton Centre

Tai chi is a martial art which has been adapted in recent times to improve body awareness, movement, and balance. In this workshop, Mr. Nelson Wong taught participants how to practice the general principles of tai chi, such as how to relax into their body, move within their capacity (full focus with relaxation), and aligning their legs and arms properly. Mr. Wong also discussed how at higher levels of tai chi, one can use the movements of tai chi as a true spiritual practice to clear energetic blocks and release them.

Yorùbá Spiritual Practice and Restorative Justice Yvette ‘Lepolata Aduke’ Modestin, LMHC, Founder and Executive Director, Encuentro

Diaspora Afro; and Tony Menelik Van Der Meer, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Africana Studies Department, University of Massachusetts Boston

Ifá and Òrișá practitioners’ quest for social justice is the fundamental plank of the practice. Yoruba philosophy’s sacred literature implores practitioners to adhere to ethical standards as it relates to gender and class disparities. This presentation examined the framework of Yorùbá cosmology that instructs its ethical principles.

Responding to the Plight of the Rohingyan Refugees: Working from a Muslim Perspective

Shamaila Khan, Ph.D., Co-Director, Center for Multicultural Training in Psychology; and Assistant Professor, Boston University School of Medicine

Locating the currently occurring genocide and ethnic cleaning of the Rohingyan refugees in the sociohistorical and transgenerational context of colonialism, this presentation entailed discussion from both an objective and a subjective stance, as experienced by a Psychologist who situates herself as a Hybrid-Muslim, Pakistani, Multilingual, Female. Drawing from her own religious and spiritual identity as a Muslim clinician, Dr. Khan conducted humanitarian fieldwork in Bangladesh with the severely marginalized Rohingyan Muslims, which allowed for the very religious and spiritual practices for which they have been persecuted to be acknowledged, understood, and incorporated into their healing and recovery. The presentation recounted images and testimonials that encapsulate the atrocities, particularly those focused on experiences of the subjugated and violated women and children, including the unborn, capturing the complex nature of trauma and resilience, as embedded in faith and culture.

AFTERNOON PANEL: SPIRITUALITY, SOCIAL JUSTICE & ACTIVISM


In his Closing Address, Imam Taymullah Abdur-Rahman discussed the importance of doctors and clinicians recognizing that they are mostly familiar with laws of the horizontal plane. However, in order to accommodate the sentiment of clients with faith-based lives, they must gain appreciative knowledge of the vertical laws. This calls for educating themselves in the principles of the unseen to achieve what Eboo Patel calls “Imaginative Empathy”. Attention was also given to those great revolutionaries whose belief, conviction and resilience centered around spiritual practices and not simply political means. Concluding remarks advocated that clinicians must become allies with spiritual leaders and incorporate them into the therapy of their patients who are spiritually-inclined.

Music is spiritual. Music is alive. Music is felt and heard and touches the core of our beings. Music is the universal language that has the power to unite people from all faiths, cultures and belief systems. In that spirit, we closed the conference with a communal percussion and vocal exercise that gave attendees the opportunity to hear each other and be uplifted and empowered by our universal voice!

CLOSING ADDRESS Reconciling the Horizontal and Vertical Planes:

Advising Clinicians on Spirituality Imam Taymullah Abdur-Rahman Founder, Young Merchants Club

THE UNIVERSAL VOICE Meridith Apfelbaum, MS, Assistant Dean of Students; and Sohenga Depestre, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology

Program, William James College


Imam Taymullah Abdur-Rahman has served as chaplain for the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, Harvard University and Northeastern. He has been a family counselor, pastoral care provider and thought leader in the fields of interfaith leadership, social justice and youth delinquency prevention. He is the founder of Young Merchants Club, a project-based learning organization for urban youth. He is the author of “44 Ways to Manhood” and executive producer and host of “Exconversations,” a podcast about reformed criminals on TIDAL streaming service.

Ms. April D. Clayton is a 2nd year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Program at William James College where she is completing a concentration in forensic psychology with an emphasis in global mental health. She has a 17-year work history within the criminal justice field in corrections and private security, and is a mother of six beautiful children. She currently works as an in-home and outpatient therapist with South Shore Behavioral Health to reach patients and their families who have difficulty accessing traditional mental health services. Her doctoral project research is centered around the psychological impacts of the money bail system in the

United States. She took part in the 2018 service learning immersion to Guyana, South America. She is the current Work Study Coordinator for the Center for Multicultural and Global Mental Health. She is also student volunteer for the WJC Diversity Taskforce, and a conference volunteer for the APA (Division 41) American Psychology-Law Society. Ms. Crystal Collier’s professional career has been grounded in the service of individuals and communities. A graduate of Howard University School of Law, Ms. Collier began her career in the Queens County District Attorney’s Office. With a need for greater impact, she transitioned from advocacy in the legal world to develop her leadership and management skills in non-profit organizations serving children and families in New York City and Vermont. In the Commonwealth of MA for 13 years, she has held various leadership roles with the Departments of Mental Health, Youth Services and Probation. Ms. Collier is currently serving as the Chief of Staff for the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health. Her philosophy of service includes the development of leaders to effect change and improve systems for those individuals who rely on assistance from the public sector to navigate their lives. As a woman of color fortunate enough to hold positions of authority and influence, Ms. Collier is committed to advancing the principles of Race, Equity and Inclusion and creating opportunities for professionals to better serve communities of color through policy and workforce development.

BIOGRAPHIES OF PRESENTERS


Dr. Richa Gawande, PhD, is Research and Programs Manager for the CHA Center for Mindfulness and Compassion. She is passionate about communities and community organizing, mindfulness and compassion practice, research and teaching. She is committed to reducing barriers to access to mindfulness and compassion training in marginalized populations, to integrating these trainings into mental health and primary care, and to researching the effects of these trainings on self-compassion and healthy living. She has a background in tuberculosis biology and public health and is interested in the intersection of mental and physical health.

Ms. Debra Johnson is the mother of Cory Johnson who was murdered in 2010. She leads a team of people who provide peer support and companionship to those who have experienced trauma. Ms. Johnson has worked for Eversource for 28 years, currently serving as a Field Service Representative. She is the mother of 3, and grandmother of 5. Ms. Johnson is a Lead Community Companion and has been actively involved with The Cory Johnson Program for Post-Traumatic Healing at the Roxbury Presbyterian Church Social Impact Center.

Dr. Shamaila Khan, PhD, is a licensed Clinical Psychologist with a psychodynamic background and an interest in postcolonial theory. Her specialty training is in Trauma: Individual trauma, group/community-based trauma, disaster related trauma, immigration and postcolonial trauma. She is the Co-Director of the Center for Multicultural Training in Psychology and an Assistant Professor at the Boston University School of Medicine. She was previously the Director of Behavioral Health & Resiliency at the Massachusetts Resiliency Center of the Boston Medical Center, supported by the Massachusetts Office of Victim Assistance, where she provided clinical and other services for Boston Marathon Bombing survivors. She travels nationally and internationally to provide culturally-attuned disaster relief services – e.g., following 9/11 in the mosques, following the floods and the earthquake in Pakistan, following the earthquake in Haiti, following the Tsunami in Japan and, most recently, in Bangladesh working with the

Rohingyan Refugees. Dr. Khan is a member of the American Muslim Health Professionals Committee and a member of the Islamic Society of North America. She is a recipient of several awards, including the “Service Appreciation Award” for her work following the Boston Marathon Tragedy; “Woman of the Year Appreciation Award” by the Pakistani Association of NY; an “Outstanding Service Award” by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for services provided during the Tsarnaev trial, and a Humanitarian mission service award for her work with the Rohingyan refugees. She is of Pakistani American descent and as a Muslim raised on three different continents, she is conversant in seven languages.


Ms. Yvette ‘Lepolata Aduke’ Modestin, LMHC, is a writer, poet and activist who was born and raised in Colon, Panama. Ms. Modestin was named one of “30 Afro Latinas you should Know.” She has been profiled in the Boston Globe as “The Uniter” for her work in bringing the Latin American and African American community together and for her activism in building a voice for the Afro Latino Community. Ms. Modestin was recently recognized at the Boston City Council’s Black History Month Event celebrating “Black Immigrant Achievers in Boston”. She is the Founder/Executive Director of Encuentro Diaspora Afro in Boston, MA. She is the Co-Founder of RCAA/ARAAC EEUU – The Regional Council of People of

African Descent from Latin America and the Caribbean. Ms. Modestin is the Diaspora Coordinator of the Red de Mujeres Afrolatinoamericanas, Afrocaribeñas y de la Diaspora, an international network of Afro descendent women. Ms. Modestin is the narrator of the film Cimarronaje en Panama/Maroons in Panama, a film by Toshi Sakai. As an artist, a licensed mental health clinician, a wellness facilitator, a community organizer, an educator and an Ifa practitioner, her purpose is to move with the intent of lifting the voices of the ancestors. Rabbi Victor Reinstein served as a rabbi in Lewiston, Maine and in Victoria, British Columbia, and as the school rabbi of a Jewish day school in Boston. Rabbi Reinstein founded Nehar Shalom Community Synagogue in Jamaica Plain with his wife Mieke in 2005. He has been a congregational rabbi for over 30 years. As a teacher, learner and seeker, he loves to engage in and share Torah with people of all ages. He especially loves to teach Chassidic texts. Committed to interfaith dialogue, he is particularly involved in building bridges between Jews and Muslims, and speaks widely in interfaith contexts throughout the Boston area. A long time social activist, he draws from Torah and Jewish life the inspiration and the guidance, the “vision and the way,” to help fulfill God’s hope for a world of justice and wholeness in which peace shall flow like a river.

Dr. Rockey Robbins, Ph.D., has been a professor in the Professional Counseling Program at the University of Oklahoma for 17 years. He has written over 50 journal articles and book chapters, all related to Native Americans and Psychology. Two of his favorites are: “A Folk Healer and the Little People,” and “Letter to My Son on the Anniversary of His Sundance Piercing.” He teaches Multi-Cultural Counseling, Personality Assessment and Behavior Disorders courses. He was the first person to receive a citation from the Oklahoma Psychological Association for Social Justice Work. He travels extensively across the

United States and Europe speaking on Native American issues and giving psycho-educational workshops for Native American tribes.


Dr. Nicholas Rowe, Ph.D., is Dean of Student Engagement and Associate Professor of History and Peace Studies at Gordon College. Before this, he spent the past ten years on the faculty of St. Augustine College of South Africa in Johannesburg, culminating in the role of Academic Dean and Interim President. He is a historian of Atlantic cultural history whose teaching and research interests include identity formation and how communities use the past to form their identities and how this fuels intergroup conflict.

He also has more than twenty years consulting with communities about cross-racial and cross-ethnic reconciliation and pastoral counseling for reconciling communities in the USA and South Africa. His international experiences in higher education have convinced him that this is a strategic point in world history and that communities the world over are in need of leaders who are lively in imagination, protective of the dignity of persons, relentless in pursuit of the common good and attentive in spirit. He is married to Sheila Wise Rowe, a professional therapist. They have two adult children.

Ms. Colleen Sharka, MA, LMHC, is a licensed mental health counselor who serves as the Director of The Cory Johnson Program for Post-Traumatic Healing. Her leadership of the program includes administrative and clinical supervision for all the weekly components of the program, including the facilitation of a weekly support group for mothers who have lost children to homicide. In May 2017, she received a Certificate in Traumatic Stress Studies from The Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, a 9-month, weekly program. She previously served as Assistant Director of Trinity Boston Counseling Center, Trinity Church in Copley Square, where she developed and facilitated trauma-informed and

spiritually-integrated psychotherapy training for masters-level mental health interns as well as programs to address secondary trauma and self-care for providers. Ms. Sharka previously served on the advisory committee of the Center for Psychotherapy and Spirituality at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (now William James College).

Dr. Tony Menelik Van Der Meer, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer in the Africana Studies Department at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He is the Co-Editor of the book State of the Race, Creating Our 21st Century: Where Do We Go From Here? Dr. Van Der Meer is an initiated Ifá priest in the Yorùbá Ifá/Òrìṣà spiritual belief system based in Nigeria and throughout West Africa. He is a longtime activist interested in leadership and change locally, nationally and internationally. Dr. Van Der Meer was born in Harlem, New York.


Mr. Nelson Wong, MAOM, is a licensed acupuncturist with a private practice in Newton Centre. He graduated from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) University/New England School of Acupuncture (NESA) in 2016 with a Master’s in Oriental Medicine (MAOM), with specialties in Chinese and Japanese acupuncture styles and Chinese herbal medicine. He has held many roles at Brookline Tai Chi: student, teacher, and board member since 2006 and, most recently, as Executive Director. He continues to provide one-on-one, private tai chi and qigong instruction in his practice.

Ms. Adetutu Ajibose, M.A., is a doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Program at William James College. Her major areas of concentration are in African and Caribbean Mental Health, and Children and Families of Adversity and Resilience. Ms. Ajibose is the student representative for the American Psychological Association’s Division 52 (International Psychology). She is also the United Nation Fellow for the Association for Trauma and Outreach & Prevention (ATOP) Meaningfulworld for 2018-2019. Ms. Ajibose’s long-term professional goal is to develop a foundation committed to eliminating the stigma associated with the mental health profession in African countries. She hopes to establish mental health clinics in Nigeria that will address trauma and educate the public about the impact of mental health on well-being.

Dr. Stephen AZA Allsop, Ph.D., is a multi-instrumentalist who is intimately familiar with a wide range of music but is deeply rooted in the African American musical tradition. He grew up listening to gospel, reggae, calypso, soca, blues, soul, and jazz and all of these genres have had a profound influence on the development of his musical style. He was fortunate to not only develop a unique ear for mixing elements of different genres together, but to also have a firm foundation in music theory as well as formal studies of gospel and jazz music in college. He has played as a professional musician for over 10 years and has performed at venues such as Jazz at the Lincoln Center, Arts at the Armory, Regattabar, and The Middle East. After teaming up with NtheLAB’s founder and lead producer

T.wav$ in early 2017, they began to make music that inspired him to launch his career as an independent artist. He wants to make music that is relevant for the culture but will take the people to a higher place of consciousness, action, and peace. This is music for the culture. Vibrations for our times. Melodies for the world. AZA is a student in the MD/PhD program at Harvard Medical School. He finished his PhD in Neuroscience at MIT in 2016 and is currently finishing his MD with plans to pursue residency training in psychiatry.

BIOGRAPHIES OF PERFORMERS


Ms. Meridith Apfelbaum, MS, serves as the Assistant Dean of Students at William James College. In her role, she serves as both counselor and educational administrator, fostering the personal and professional development of students and alumni through a variety of career development, community service, cultural, artistic, and social programs. A Higher Education professional for over 18 years, Meridith has worked with domestic and international undergraduate, graduate student, and professional adult populations at both public and private universities, including Harvard University, Brandeis University, Lesley University, UMASS Lowell, and SUNY Purchase. She has also had the privilege of serving as a song leader for children and drum circle facilitator for adults. Meridith has a Master of Science degree in Counseling from Long Island University and an Advanced Professional Certificate in Expressive Therapies Studies from Lesley University.

Ms. Sohenga Depestre is a 2nd year doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Program at William James College. She received a bachelor’s degree from Gordon College where she majored in Psychology with a Neuroscience minor. Ms. Depestre has a passion for diversity and supportive learning environments for youth. She believes every child deserves a fighting chance and loves to see students recognize their potential and strive for greatness. Ms. Depestre completed her first-year practicum training at the O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science, Boston Public Schools.

Ms. Leah Hopkins (Narragansett), known as a culture bearer, educator, traditional artist and performer, provides professional programs and performances to both Native and non-Native communities, institutions and organizations. She is strongly rooted in her traditions passed down through her parents, grandparents and extended family, resulting in a strong passion for educating Native peoples and facilitating programs to increase cultural competency. Growing up in the bountiful Northeast, Ms. Hopkins has used the many gifts of the ocean, forest and field to provide her family with traditional nutrition and has been preparing feasts of traditional foods for her community most of her life. Her professional work experience includes the proprietorship of her own cultural consultation business as well many years in the museum and tribal youth education field. She is a seamstress and beadwork artist as well as a traditional Eastern Woodlands singer and dancer and a founding member of the Kingfisher Theater. She has performed both nationally and internationally and is looking forward to further traveling to share and educate about her Northeastern Native culture.


Mr. Jonathan Perry is Wampanoag culture bearer, leader, historian, artist and professional speaker. He is currently serving his fourth, three-year term as Councilman for the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). Mr. Perry works diligently to enforce and uphold the sovereignty of his tribal nation as well as to maintain cultural continuance among his tribal citizens. He has over 15 years of experience working within the Tribal Historic Preservation Office, with the responsibility of protecting and preserving cultural sites of significance throughout southern New England. He has over 20 years of experience in the research and historical interpretation of Eastern Woodlands Native culture and art. He has worked with various non-profit and tribal organizations in exhibit design and cultural consultation based on traditional Wampanoag knowledge, symbolism, and values. Mr. Perry is a respected Northern Traditional and Eastern Woodland singer, dancer and artist, and is a founding member of the Iron River Singers and Kingfisher Dance Theater. He is a seasoned actor and producer, working on historical documentaries that feature Native New England people. He is well known throughout the Native community for his commitment to working with the youth in mentoring and fostering cultural competency. He was recently acknowledged by the First People’s Fund as a 2017 Jennifer Easton Community Spirit Award Honoree for his work in reviving maritime traditions in Northeastern Native communities.

Mr. Damon A. Pryor, M.A., is a 4th year clinical psychology doctoral student at William James College. He received his master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling from Boston College and is currently a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Massachusetts. His areas of clinical interest are African and Caribbean Mental Health, Multicultural issues, Identity Development, Trauma, and Grief/Coping. Recently, he opened a private practice in Newton Center serving a variety of mental health presentations. In addition to his academic and professional achievements, Mr. Pryor is a member of Myrtle Baptist Church, located in West Newton, where the Reverend Brandon T. Crowley is Senior Pastor. He is actively involved in several ministries within the church and is currently servant leader/coordinator for the young adult ministry named the Myrtle Vine.

Mr. Jonathan Newell Roberts, MBA, is a Vice President at Santander Bank managing enterprise projects and programs. He has formerly held positions at Bank of America and Merrill Lynch. Mr. Roberts holds an MBA from Bryant University and is currently working on a second master’s degree in Organizational Studies at Northeastern University. Outside of his banking career, he also serves as the Interim Director of Music at Myrtle Baptist Church in West Newton.


Artsbridge utilizes a unique approach for working with teens that includes our unique method of dialogue, as well as collaborative art projects through a 3-week intensive summer program, as well as several follow up seminars during the year for our alumni. Founded in 2007, the Summer Intercultural Leadership Program, worked solely with Israeli and Palestinian students, helping them develop skills in constructive communication, leadership and creative thinking, while also helping them learn how to engage with other teens considered to be their enemy. In 2013, Artsbridge began to include American students and to broaden its scope beyond the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Currently, Artsbridge has grown to include students from around the world, including diverse communities from the United States, Israel, Palestine, Central and South America and Sri Lanka. The summer program continues to be a 3-week intensive program where students learn our method of dialogue, and work in small groups to create a piece of art over the three weeks. The Artsbridge program is an important place of growth for teens aged 15-17 as they work together to address topics surrounding identity, conflict, empathy, and the challenges facing the complex world we live in. As one student writes:

“Because of Artsbridge I am a different person today. I am more mature and open to different points of view. I feel that because of Artsbridge I know myself better.”

The Art of Hope

The art presented in this exhibit is a selection of art created by Artsbridge students during the intensive three-week leadership development program. Each art piece was created by an intercultural pair or team of youth who were charged with creating a piece of art together over the course of the three weeks. It was their responsibility to come up with a theme for the piece, to decide which medium would best express its meaning, how to reach the viewer, and how to best articulate their ideas. The only requirement is that each of their voices be represented in the piece. The posters represent a compilation of images of the art, photos of students in the process of creating the art and the narrative jointly written by them which describes their piece, why they chose that particular topic, and what it was like working together. Also included in this exhibit are some of the sculptural pieces created by the students.

ART EXHIBIT: “THE ART OF HOPE”


“Steps” by Boulos and Bar

“Our mural is about the Israelis and Palestinians breaking through the wall that separates them. There is a big hole in the wall, through which we can see a road that symbolizes a start for a new way to a better life, different from what we experience now in our every day lives. In the picture there are eight people— four Palestinians and four Israelis, who are working together to tear the wall down. Above the wall there is a dove that is holding an olive branch in her mouth. This dove symbolizes peace between the two nations.” Deborah Nathan, Founder & Executive Director, Artsbridge

Deborah Nathan is an experienced artist, psychotherapist, art therapist, and manager. She has been a professional mixed media and fiber artist for over 30 years, and has taught art to children and adults, run a retreat center, and directed various art programs. Her focus over the years has been the impact of trauma on youth and family systems, and the use of arts with communities in conflict. She received her master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling and Art Therapy from Lesley University. Aside from being the founder and executive director of Artsbridge, she has a private practice in Salem, MA, and is adjunct faculty in the Graduate Program in Expressive Therapies at Lesley University.


Faculty/Staff Committee Members:

MERIDITH APFELBAUM, MS Assistant Dean of Students MARI CARMEN BENNASAR, PsyD Director, Lucero Latino Mental Health Program Assistant Professor JILL BLOOM, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Clinical Psychology Department; Co-Director, Center for Multicultural and Global Mental Health; Director, Global Mental Health Concentration NATALIE A. CORT, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Clinical Psychology Department; Director, Black Mental Health Graduate Academy Core Faculty, Center for Multicultural and Global Mental Health JODIE KLIMAN, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Clinical Psychology Department GEMIMA ST. LOUIS, Ph.D. (Conference Coordinator) Associate Professor, Clinical Psychology Department; Co-Director, Center for Multicultural & Global Mental Health; Director, Concentration in African & Caribbean Mental Health

Student Committee Members: BERTHONIA ANTOINE Doctoral Student, Organizational Leadership Department SOHENGA DEPESTRE Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology Department BRANDI DERR Doctoral Student, Organizational Leadership Department CARMAUDELY GALLIOTTE Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology Department ROSILYN SANDERS Doctoral Student, Organizational Leadership Department

Volunteer: JESSICA BRANCATO AmeriCorps VISTA Member (2018-2019) Project Coordinator, Department of Community Engagement

CONFERENCE PLANNING COMMITTEE


The Conference on Spirituality, Faith and Social Justice was organized by the Center for Multicultural & Global Mental Health, and co-sponsored by the Dean of Students Office at William James College and Myrtle Vine Young Adult Ministry in West Newton.

Our sincere gratitude goes to the following individuals:

The Keynote and Invited Speakers The Panelists & Presenters The Artists and Performers

Dr. Nicholas Covino Marice Nichols, Kevin Costello, Maura Kiley and Facilities Staff

Department of Continuing Education & Information Technology Staff William James College’s Administrators, Faculty, Students and Staff

CONFERENCE SPONSORS

SPECIAL THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Documents

RISE UP SPIRITUALITY FAITH SOCIAL JUSTICE · Spirituality, Faith & Social Justice Friday, November 9, 2018 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. William James College One Wells Avenue, Newton,