The mission of the Center is to train, educate, mentor, and prepare a cadre of professionals to address mental health disparities, and serve culturally diverse individuals and communities locally and across the globe.
The Center's vision is to inspire and empower students, clinicians, educators, and other providers as agents of social justice with a passion for and commitment to serving historically marginalized populations.
CMGMH is comprised of academic programs at William James College that focus primarily on historically marginalized groups and underserved communities.
CMGMH offers transformative immersion experiences that will expose, inform, and deepen students' knowledge, cultural awareness and sensitivity, and cultural fluency.

Multicultural and Global Mental Health Center of Excellence (CMGMH)

The Center for Multicultural and 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 disenfranchised populations in the U.S. and abroad. CMGMH is comprised of academic programs at William James College that focus primarily on historically marginalized groups and underserved communities. These programs include the Latino Mental Health Program (LMHP), the African and Caribbean Mental Health (ACMH) Program, and the Global Mental Health (GMH) Program.

Mission

To train, educate, mentor, and prepare a cadre of professionals to address mental health disparities, and serve culturally diverse individuals and communities locally and across the globe.

Vision

To inspire and empower students, clinicians, educators, and other providers as agents of social justice with a passion for and commitment to serving historically marginalized populations.

Goals and Objectives

Enrich the knowledge of students, mental health professionals, educators, community leaders, and service providers on topics germane to multicultural and global perspectives on psychosocial well-being.
Provide clinical field training and learning opportunities to students to serve historically marginalized individuals, families, and communities.
Support the rigorous application of science to examining mental health disparities and the impact of multicultural and global factors on health and psychosocial functioning through evidence-based research and practices.
Offer transformative immersion experiences that will expose, inform, and deepen students' knowledge, cultural awareness and sensitivity, and cultural fluency.
Mentor, nurture, and support dynamic and collegial advocates of underserved communities in order to empower leaders of social change and agents of social justice.

Program Components

Programs offered through the Center for Multicultural & Global Mental Health will incorporate the following five components:

Academics – Courses on: disparities in mental health (e.g., impact of poverty, class, culture, and migration on psychosocial well-being), assessments and clinical interventions with culturally diverse groups, introduction to global mental health, and trauma and recovery among immigrant and refugee populations.
Field Training Experiences – Clinical field training opportunities in schools, clinics, hospitals, and community health centers that serve immigrant, refugee, and historically disadvantaged populations.
Research – Capstones and Doctoral Projects with a focus on ethnic minority, immigrant, and culturally diverse groups with a local and/or global perspective. Engagement in faculty research initiatives on multicultural and global mental health.
Cultural Immersion & Community Service – Participation in global mental health initiatives in low-resource countries and active engagement in community service at the local level.
Professional Development Activities – Didactic seminars, speakers’ series, workshops, colloquia, and conferences focusing on culturally diverse populations, immigrants and refugees.

Defining Diversity and Multiculturalism

The terms multiculturalism and diversity are used interchangeably to refer to the broad scope of dimensions of age, class status, disability, education, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, immigration status, language, nationality, race, sexual orientation, religious and spiritual orientation (APA Guidelines, 2002), and veteran/military status.

“Cultural perspective plays a greater role in psychological treatment than ever before, and the center is a testament to our school’s expansion toward progressive, innovative approaches to psychology education. In our globalized world, we as psychologists cannot afford to see the world through a narrow lens. This center will help to broaden our perspective as teachers, and as professionals.” – Dr. Jill Bloom

Haiti Service Learning and Summer Immersion Program

The primary goal of the Haiti Service Learning & Summer Immersion course is to provide students with increased knowledge, skills and experience in working with Haitian and Haitian-American individuals and families. Students enrolled in the course will take part in didactic activities to learn about the rich history of Haiti, cultural belief systems and practices, and their impact on help-seeking behaviors among Haitian immigrants. Additionally, students will travel to Haiti for a week-long service learning experience where they will gain a deeper appreciation of the language, customs, and cultural traditions and practices of Haitian society. While in Haiti, students will engage in service learning activities and multidisciplinary collaborations with schools, grassroots organizations, or health care and social services agencies. They will also participate in cultural excursions, and visit historical sites and other points of interest in the host community.

In July 2016, a team of nine students and faculty from William James College traveled to Vallue (Petit-Goave), Haiti for a 10-day Service Learning and Cultural Immersion Experience. They provided training and conducted group workshops for educators, adolescents and young adults, with a particular focus on youth community engagement.

For more information on our support of Haitian Mental Health, please read these articles:

Haiti Service Learning Program - Summer 2016

Summer 2016 Haiti Immersion Information

William James College's Haiti Summer Immersion Program

August 2012 Visit to Haiti

A Response to the Earthquakes in Haiti

Scholarship Opportunity

William James College’s established the Serving the Mental Health Needs of the Underserved Scholarship to recognize the achievements and promise of students committed to pursuing Master’s (MA), Certificate of Advance Graduate Studies (CAGS) or Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) degrees at the college. The award is 2/3 of tuition costs throughout students’ enrollment in the program. Applicants will be evaluated based on a combination of academic achievement, leadership, and financial need. The scholarship is renewable annually, subject to students’ continued satisfactory academic progress, fulfillment of responsibilities (described below), and demonstrated financial needs. Please click here to learn more.

Faculty