W&M Featured Events

Location

Panel 3: Black Male Well-Being

12th Annual Lemon Project Spring Symposium

To join us in person, please register here.

To join us virtually, please register here.

Montrell Pryor, (He, Him, His) Instructor, University of Kentucky, Adjust your Crown: A Culturally Competent Trauma Informed Approach to Decreasing the Impact of Trauma among Black Boys and Men

Black boys and men tend to experience trauma at significantly higher rates than those of other ethnicities and demographics. The impact of trauma is demonstrative of how Black boys and men show up in a world and society that does not honor and respect their existence. Through the impact of trauma, Black boys and men are expected to still perform, demonstrate unrealistic expectations of masculinity and strength in the middle of traumatizing events, disregard shame and guilt, move forward with the day to day operations of life, and a host of other impractical societal and cultural expectations. This presentation introduces and discusses a new approach that other Black male therapists should consider implementing when working with Black boys and men who have experienced trauma, while simultaneously strengthening the therapeutic process. The presentation will also offer action steps that can be added within trauma informed care to help mitigate the impact of trauma. This presentation relates to the conference theme “The Time is Now: The Lives of Black Men Past, Present, and Future” by discussing the intersections of what it means to be Black, male, and their place in a world that has already pre-disregarded their contributions to a better world.

Dr. Jessica Martin (she,her) Faculty, William & Mary and Dr. Andrew Wood, (he,his) University of Cincinnati, A Counseling Approach for African American Couples with Prostate Cancer

Approximately three million individuals have prostate cancer (PCa) (American Cancer Society [ACS], 2020), a disease which mostly affects individuals over the age of 55 and is the most common cancer in the United States (SEER Cancer Stat Facts, 2019). However, PCa incidence and mortality rates have been declining over the past 20 years, with 98% of individuals diagnosed surviving for more than five years (SEER Cancer Stat Facts, 2019). While these numbers provide good news to those who have been diagnosed with PCa, health disparities continue to exist, with the incidence and mortality rates for African American men being disproportionately higher than any other race (Taksler et al., 2012). These numbers tell many stories, however, one story that is not immediately apparent is the mental health needs of African Americans who have been diagnosed with PCa. In this presentation, we will discuss diagnosis, etiology, prevalence, and impact of prostate cancer in the African American community, how counselors and community stakeholders can take a culturally informed approach to supporting the mental health needs of African American prostate cancer survivors, specifically speaking to the needs and unique experiences of those who are in relationships.

Terrence Joshua Lewis, (he, him, his) Presidential Research Fellow at Auburn University, “The Bridge Builder”: Critical Reflections of a millennial Black Man Educator

The Lemon Project lists three central outcomes associated with the upcoming symposium. While this proposal and potential workshop addresses all the listed outcomes, it directly aligns with theme three, “providing practical strategies and techniques to improve the existence of Black males…” Given the national discourse surrounding Black boys and Black men, I believe more first-hand information regarding the experiences on Black men and Black boys must be collected for systems to better respond to their specific needs based upon differing contexts and their lived experiences. Therefore, this workshop will discuss an autoethnography I conducted on myself regarding my employed pedagogy and experiences as a secondary social studies teacher. More specifically, I wanted to examine my teaching of Black boy students and the ways in which I either supported or resisted master narratives associated with societal and political structures. Findings from the study suggested my interactions with and teaching of Black boy students as intentional but lacking criticality regarding teaching them how to challenge societal and political structures they deemed oppressive. My reason for conducting this study was questioning the type of “Bridge” I was building for my students and determining whether I was building in which they needed.

Contact

[[setho2, Sarah Thomas]]

This Event Appears On

• W&M Featured Events
• Diversity & Inclusion Events
• The Lemon Project Events