Changing the Conversation

Some things that happen in our lives have such a profound impact that you can see their tentacles reaching into every avenue of your life. For me, I can see how living poor as an adolescent, losing my mother to cancer, and meeting my husband at an early age has impacted how I approach the world today.

Then other things happen, and while you know they are significant, you can’t trace their impact. You are at a loss on how to interpret the pain and the grief, so you put it aside and move on. I lost my dad to addiction when I was 21 years old.

Throughout this week's webcast, Marc articulated the importance of understanding and integrating the experiences and needs of LGBTQ youth in the mental health system in several ways that grabbed my attention and gave me new ideas and perspectives.

The Center for Social Innovation will host the Dawn Jahn Moses memorial lecture on June 30^th about the intersection of intimate partner violence, child well-being, and resilience with human rights activist, William Kellibrew, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department Children and Families, Linda Spears, Carmela DeCandia, Psy.D., faculty at the Massachusetts General Hospital’s Institute of Health Professions, and Rachel Latta, Ph.D., Director of Trauma and Violence Prevention at the Center for Social Innovation.

Just this past month, a landmark class action lawsuit was filed to address the pervasive public health problem of childhood trauma. Filed by Public Counsel, the lawsuit seeks to mandate the integration of trauma-informed practices in schools in Compton, CA.