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Culturally Responsive Practice Workshops

One of the strategies to meet the Caring Across Communities Collaborative's goal of increased access to mental health services of refugee and immigrant children and their families is to provide a series of cultural competency trainings to school-based social workers, counselors, clinicians, and other community service providers who work with children and adolescents and their families so that they can provide services that incorporate respect, cultural sensitivity, and cultural empowerment.

2009-2010 Workshop Schedule

Communicating Effectively Across Cultures

Thursday, October 29; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: Laura Val, Videographer, Vision In Action
This workshop is designed to explore, in an accessible way, complex
issues related to the intercultural communication process such as perception, core beliefs, and communication styles. The presentation assists participants in gaining an awareness of how their own communication processes affect their perceptions and interactions with people from other cultures. In a safe environment, the participants will be invited to engage in meaningful dialogue about issues of culture, values, beliefs, and communication.

U.S. School Experiences of Refugee Children from Africa

Thursday, December 10; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: Touorouzou Herve Some, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Univ. of Southern Maine
The presenter will discuss his study on the U.S. school experiences of refugee adolescent students from Africa. What are their challenges and successes? What strategies do they use to navigate the U.S. educational system? How can educators and other caring adults strengthen their resiliency in the face of poverty, past trauma, peer pressure, linguistic and cultural barriers, and discrimination.

The Role of Linguistic and Cultural Competence in Health Disparities

Monday, January 11; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: Richard Aronson, MD, Director and Founder, Humane Worlds Center for Maternal and Child Health; Adjunct Professor of Public Health Hampshire College
This workshop explores how cultural and linguistic competence doesn’t mean being an authority on the values and beliefs of every culture. It does mean holding deep respect for cultural and language diversity, developing awareness of how culture and language shape our views of health and healing, and learning how such competence can address health disparities.

Cross-Cultural Mental Health Care

Wednesday, January 20; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: Julie Schirmer, MSW, Director of Behavioral Medicine and Assistant Predoctoral Director at the Family Medicine Department of Maine Medical Center and the University of Vermont Medical School
This presentation describes factors to consider when conversing about mental health issues with families from cultures different from one’s own. We will use cases from Vietnam, Somalia and other parts of the world to illustrate the key points to consider, the challenges, and the strategies for successful treatment and collaboration with patients experiencing common mental illnesses, domestic violence, and maternal-
child health difficulties.

Young Men of Color: The Obama Factor

Monday, February 1; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: H. Roy Partridge, PhD, LCSW, Professor and Special Assistant to the President for Multicultural Affairs, Bowdoin College
In this workshop, the presenter will discuss approaches to working with young men and boys of color in what some consider a post-racial society. In this discussion, we will look at the actual statistical status of men of color in contrast with the perceptions by some that racial issues no longer have changed things for the better. Does racism still have the same devastating impact on Black and Latino males as they once did? What is the “model minority” myth for Asian men? Are there problems specific to Native American males? Strategies for counseling, teaching, and advising young men of color will be offered.

Cross-Cultural Healing Traditions

Tuesday, March 30; 3:00–5:00
Facilitator: Paul Johnson, DSW, LCSW, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, University of Southern Maine
Traditional Western practice utilizes assessment, diagnosis and treatment to promote emotional well-being. In this workshop, healers from other cultures will share their notions of health and well-being as well as rituals and beliefs that support well-being in their families and communities. How these two different approaches could possibly be successfully integrated will also be examined.

Bridging Cultures: Reaching Common Ground with Diverse Clientele

Tuesday, April 13; 8:30–10:00 or 3:30–5:00
Presenter: Debra Rothenberg, MD, PhD, Assistant Program Director, Maine Medical Center Family Medicine Residency Program
Western medical practitioners, educators, and social service providers learn to “see” the world in culturally specific ways that can—and often do—conflict with the ways clients from other cultural traditions conceptualize problems. This interactive workshop will give examples of such culture clashes both from the presenter’s personal experience as
a physician-anthropologist and from the literature. We will then explore methods to improve cross-cultural understanding, thereby avoiding some of the pitfalls of these culture clashes.

Caring and Empowerment Across Communities: Key Learnings

Tuesday, May 4; 3:30–5:00
Presenters: Caring Across Communities Collaborative Members
Members of the CAC Collaborative will share findings and key learnings in implementing Robert Wood Johnson’s Caring Across Communities Grant. What has been accomplished? What are the outcomes and impact? And finally, what are the next steps for the project and partnership after the grant cycle?