Welcome to Season 3, Episode 4, the season finale of the Strength in Solidarity podcast. This episode is especially meaningful, as it marks the grand finale of our series — a celebration of the stories, voices, and cross-racial/ethnic solidarity present within our community. Thank you so much for tuning in this far. Thank you for all the support, and we hope you continue to share our show in your communities as you continue to fight racism with cross-racial/ethnic solidarity towards being accomplices.

In this episode, we met with Dr. Kevin Cokley, past president of APA Division 45 [2022-2023], as he reflects on his presidential initiative, Fighting Racism with Cross-Racial/Ethnic Solidarity: Toward Being an Accomplice. Dr. Cokley highlights the work of the Cross-Racial/Ethnic Solidarity Task Force, and calls on Division 45 members to continue engaging in cross-racial/ethnic solidarity.

Kevin Cokley, Ph.D. is the University Diversity and Social Transformation Professor and Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan where he serves as Associate

Chair for Diversity Initiatives and Primary Investigator of the RACE (Research on Race, Achievement, Culture, and Education) Lab in the Department of Psychology. Previously he was Chair of the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Texas, where he held the Oscar and Anne Mauzy Regents Professorship for Educational

Research and Development. He has been a Fellow of the University of Texas System and University of Texas Academy of Distinguished Teachers, past Director of the Institute for Urban Policy Research & Analysis, and Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies.

His research and teaching can be broadly categorized in the area of African American psychology, with a focus on racial identity and understanding the psychological and environmental factors that impact African American students’ academic achievement. Dr. Cokley studies the psychosocial experiences of African American students and students of color and is currently exploring the impostor phenomenon and its relationship to mental health and academic outcomes.

He is the past Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Black Psychology, holds the title of Distinguished Psychologist and received the Scholarship Award from the Association of Black Psychologists.

He is past President of the Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity, and Race, and was elected to Fellow status in the American Psychological Association for his contributions to ethnic minority psychology and counseling psychology.

He is the recipient of the Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award, the Charles and Shirley Thomas Award for mentoring ethnic minority students, and the 10 Rising Stars of the Academy award by Diverse Issues in Higher Education.

He is author of the 2014 book “The Myth of Black Anti-Intellectualism” that challenges the notion that African American students are anti-intellectual, editor of the 2021 book “Making Black Lives Matter: Confronting Anti-Black Racism”, and editor of the 2024 book “The Impostor Phenomenon: Psychological Research, Theory, and Interventions.”

He has written several Op-Eds in major media outlets on topics such as defending DEI, critical race theory, Black Lives Matter movement, Blacks’ rational mistrust of police, racism and White supremacy, the importance of ethnic studies, and racial disparities in school discipline.

His research has been recognized in media outlets including the New York Times, USA Today, and Inside Higher Education.

Social Media :

⁠www.kevincokley.com⁠

⁠https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Cokley⁠

⁠http://cognella.com/making-black-lives-matter⁠

⁠twitter.com/KevinCokley1⁠

⁠https://youtube.com/@APAdiv45_Cokley⁠

Welcome to Season 3, Episode 3 of the Strength in Solidarity podcast. This will be the final season of our Strength in Solidarity podcast series. Thank you so much for tuning in this far. Thank you for all the support, and we hope you continue to share our show in your communities as you continue to fight racism with cross-racial/ethnic solidarity towards being accomplices.

In this episode, we met with Dr. Maysa Akbar to discuss how she has been engaging in cross-racial/ethnic solidarity in her leadership endeavors.

Dr. Maysa (MY-SA) Akbar is a respected scientist-practitioner and APA’s Chief Diversity Officer and Chief of Psychology in the Public Interest. She is charged with infusing equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) into the fabric of the association’s work. As the leading architect of APA’s evolving EDI framework, Dr. Akbar works with APA staff, leaders, and members to refine and build consensus for an overall plan, operationalize its goals and establish metrics to monitor and ensure progress. The CDO also serves as a spokesperson and advocate for EDI in the field of psychology, both within and outside the association. Before assuming the CDO post, she was the founder and chief executive officer of a clinical practice based in New Haven, Connecticut, which specialized in race-based trauma. She created a consulting firm and educational network focused on organizational cultural transformation. Her firm delivered cutting-edge programs anchored in EDI to city governments, public schools and, court systems, among other entities. Dr. Akbar’s areas of specialty include racial identity development, racism, urban trauma and, allyship, topics on which she has authored research articles, books, and book chapters. Dr. Akbar is an experienced instructor and master trainer in EDI for both the medical and the broader community.

Links:

https://maysaakbar.com/

https://www.apa.org/about/apa/senior-staff/akbar-bio

Welcome to Season 3, Episode 2 of the Strength in Solidarity podcast. This will be the final season of our Strength in Solidarity podcast series. Thank you so much for tuning in this far. Thank you for all the support, and we hope you continue to share our show in your communities as you continue to fight racism with cross-racial/ethnic solidarity towards being accomplices.

In this episode, we met with Dr. Thomas Parham to discuss how he has been engaging in cross-racial/ethnic solidarity in his leadership endeavors.

Thomas A. Parham, Ph.D., is the 11 th president of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), a highly diverse, metropolitan university primarily serving the South Central and South Bay areas of Los Angeles County. CSUDH is one of the 23 campuses in the CSU system, the largest system of public higher education in the nation.

Dr. Parham previously served as vice chancellor of student affairs and an adjunct faculty member at the University of California, Irvine, where he had been since 1985.

For the past 40-plus years, Dr. Parham has focused his research efforts in the area of psychological nigrescence and has authored or co-authored six books and 45-50 journal articles and book chapters. He has sustained a scholarly focus in the areas of racial identity development, African psychology and multicultural counseling.

Dr. Parham grew up in Southern California and received his bachelor’s degree in social ecology from the University of California, Irvine, his master’s degree in counseling psychology at Washington University in St. Louis, and received his Ph.D. in counseling psychology at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Dr. Parham remains an active member of the community contributing his talents in the areas of social advocacy, community uplift and youth empowerment.

Links:

Instagram

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⁠CSU-DH⁠-Webpage

Articles, Journals & Books

The Bakari© Project: A Lifeline for African American Adolescent Development and Success

⁠CSU Black Student Success Report⁠

Article in Diverse Issues

⁠Books⁠

Other Announcements:

The Strength in Solidarity Podcast team would also like to give a huge shout-out to the ⁠⁠⁠Feedspot.com⁠⁠⁠ team for ranking us as ⁠⁠⁠#6/10 Top 10 American Psychological Association Podcasts on the web⁠⁠⁠. Thank you so much for listening to our show and for your support. It means a lot to us.