Centering Critical Consciousness, Critical Self-Reflection, Racial Equity and Inclusion in Reflective Supervision/Consultation
Presented by Nucha Isarowong, University of Washington and Carmen Rosa Noroña, Boston University School of Medicine
This webinar was presented live on Wednesday November 1st, 2023 at 4pm US Eastern time. Through the kindness of the presenters, a recording of the webinar is available here
Nucha Isarowong and Carmen Rosa Noroña
Dominant models of practice and understanding of Reflective Supervision/Consultation (RS/C) in infant and early childhood mental health do not fully integrate the perspectives of culturally and racially diverse practitioners and families. Because these models are rooted in Eurocentric and colonized paradigms, (Hernandez-Wolfe, 2011; Ramirez, Chin & Graham, 2020) they have reproduced harmful patterns of inequity and exclusion. The interests, values, beliefs and practices of dominant, socially positioned groups have been protected, perpetuating disparities in leadership positions, valued knowledge and power in the field to the detriment of minoritized individuals and groups.
Dr. Jeree Pawl reminded us “you are yourself and your roles” (Pawl & St. John, 1998, p. 6); “who we are” intersects with “how we are” and “what we do”. Inspired by this reminder and using the compass offered by the Diversity-Informed Tenets (Thomas, Noroña, & St. John, 2019), as well as antiracism, racial equity, and decolonization lenses, this presentation: (1) Examines how social and institutional structures and policies around our social positionality shape our existence, social interaction and practice (Burton, Winn, Stevenson & Clark, 2004); (2) Describes the role of self-awareness, critical consciousness and critical self-reflection in changing frameworks and catalyzing transformative actions towards social and racial justice change; (3) Highlights the potential and critical role of RS/C for the promotion of critical thinking/critical self-reflection and for the protection of providers from marginalized communities; (4) Reflect on and discuss practitioners’ next step in advancing social and racial equity through RS/C. Participants will engage in individual and group reflective exercises.
Nucha Isarowong, PhD, LICSW, IMH-E® is Director of the Advanced Clinical Training (ACT) Program at the Barnard Center for Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health at the University of Washington. In this current role, he works to diversify and expand the infant and early childhood mental health clinical and consultation workforce in the state of Washington by centering relationships, experiences of people and communities targeted for oppression, and principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in program administration, curriculum, and delivery. As a part of this work, he engages in efforts towards systems change by influencing multi-level systems integration of diversity-informed practice principles in the IECMH field. Nucha is a ZERO TO THREE Fellow (2012-2013) and a member of the Academy of ZERO TO THREE Fellows Coordinating Council. He serves as a board member for Profectum Foundation and a national workshop facilitator and member of the Executive Committee for the Diversity-Informed Tenets for Work with Infants, Children and Families (Tenets) Initiative.
Carmen Rosa Noroña, LICSW, MS. Ed., IECMH-E® is originally from Ecuador. She serves as the Child Trauma Clinical Services and Training Lead and the Boston Site Associate Director of the Early Trauma Treatment Network at the Child Witness to Violence Project at Boston Medical Center. She is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine, a Child-Parent Psychotherapy National Trainer, an expert faculty of the DC: 0-5 Training. She is also a co-developer of the Diversity-Informed Tenets Initiative, the BMC Family Preparedness Plan for Immigrant Families and of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) Being Anti-Racist is Central to Trauma-informed Care: Principles of An Anti-Racist, Trauma-Informed Organization. As a clinician, supervisor, trainer and consultant Ms. Noroña’s work has focused on understanding the impact of historical trauma, displacement and colonization in young children in minoritized families and implementing interventions tailored to their unique strengths, needs and socio-cultural-historical, racial ethnic and linguistic contexts. Ms. Noroña is also committed to addressing the intersection of systemic inequities and secondary traumatic stress in the workforce via promoting diversity-informed reflective consultation/supervision, skills training, Radical Healing strategies and organizational accountability. At the NCTSN she is a member of the Steering Committee, a core faculty of the Being Anti-Racist is Central to Trauma-Informed Care Initiative, and co-chair of the Latin American Families Collaborative group. Ms. Noroña has contributed to the literature in infant and early childhood mental health, reflective supervision, diversity and immigration and has adapted and translated materials for Spanish-speaking families affected by trauma.
A recording of the webinar is available here