Babies and children, families and communities do the research on what it takes for them to flourish. Listen with us to what they’ve been learning. Watch a webinar. Check out the Indigenous Early Learning Collaborative. Join the Brazelton Touchpoints Center Learning Network. Join the conversation.
This free, 6-episode virtual conversation series offers a safe and welcoming space to hold conversations for and by Latinx families. Explore what it means to be a parent as part of the Latinx community, raising Latinx children while navigating U.S. mainstream cultures, and connecting Latinx cultural identities to physical and mental health. Join us as we create a Latinx parent community of mutual learning and support.
All are welcome to join and engage in these powerful conversations!
The series begins on Monday, September 19, 2022, and will be held every other Monday, from 3 to 4:30 PM ET / 12 to 1:30 PM PT, through December 12, 2022. All webinars are 1 hour followed by a NEW 30-minute Q&A session with our panelists. You are invited to attend any and all episodes that interest you!
All webinars have live Spanish translation and closed captioning available.
This series is moderated by Eva Rivera, MSW, Professional Development Program Manager and National Facilitator at the Brazelton Touchpoints Center.
Episode 1: What Does It Mean to be Latinx and a Latinx Parent in 2022?
Monday, September 19, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
In this episode, we engage in a conversation about what it means to raise our children as members of the Latinx community. We talk about the successes and challenges of Latinx families today.
Featuring:
Natalia Coletti
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, South Florida
- Worked with high-risk pregnant women and children for 21 years
- Facilitates parenting support groups with teenagers and specializes in Latinx immigrant families
- Proud mother of a college freshman
Fredy Ruiz
Director of Family and Community Development for Vision y Compromiso, County of Riverside and San Francisco/Alameda
- Provides capacity-building training for Community-Based Organizations and community stakeholders
- Proud father of an 8-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old son
Episode 2: Embracing Our Latinx Identities and Parenting Our Children to Know Who They Are
Monday, October 3, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
Join us as we think about the pieces that make up our Latinx identities and how we may or may not fit in with the larger cultural puzzle of where we live. We talk about how these elements influence our parenting and ultimately how we socialize our children.
Featuring:
Jacelyn Hall-Bucknor
In-Home Outreach Counselor, South Los Angeles
- Over 16 years of experience in social services working with families who are brought to the attention of the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) for neglect or abuse
- Loves to help families and children and give back to her community
- Also loves traveling and spending time with her family
Mayra E. Alvarez, MHA
President of The Children’s Partnership, San Diego, CA
- Working to advance child health equity through policy, research, and community engagement.
- Previously served in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the Obama-Biden administration, including at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Office of Minority Health, and Office of Health Reform
- Proud daughter of Mexican immigrants
Episode 3: Becoming Allies for our Latinx Children Who Identify as LGBTQIA+
Monday, October 17, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
In this episode, we reflect on what it means to become an ally for our children who identify as LGBTQIA+. We talk about how to navigate our own cultural beliefs and biases as we raise our children. We discuss how we can advocate for our children, and how they can advocate for themselves within our own families, communities, and the world.
Featuring:
Zeyda M. Fernandez
- Has worked in the field of child welfare and/or mental health for almost 30 years in various roles, including counselor, therapist, supervisor, manager, and director in Los Angeles area non-profit agencies
- First-born daughter of Cuban refugee parents and very proud mother of three adult children, including one gay son
- Passionate about helping Latinx individuals, children, and families stand in their strength and authenticity, with acceptance, confidence, and hope for a bright future
Tatiana Quiroga
Executive Director of Come Out With Pride
- 20 years of experience in diversity and inclusion, pragmatic planning, and working in the nonprofit sector
- Enthusiastic activist for the LGBTQ+ and Latinx community, who has held various advocacy roles
- Serves on the board of directors for Zebra Coalition, as Development Committee Chair, and as the previous Director of Family Equity and Diversity with Family Equality, a national nonprofit advocating for LGBTQ+ families
Anderson Torres, Ph.D., LCSW-R
President of R.A.I.N. TOTAL CARE, INC.
- R.A.I.N. services include 20 programs, including 13 full-service senior centers, home-delivered meals, home care services serving homebound persons of all ages, integrated care coordination, housing, case management, advocacy, support groups for the elderly and their caregivers, Alzheimer’s initiatives, transportation and intergenerational programs
- Has been in the field of healthcare for over 30 years, focusing on the areas of mental health, geriatric care, academia, government, and administration
- Serves on the New York State Public Health and Health Planning Council, and provides lectures on the topic of Alzheimer’s disease and related disparities
Episode 4: Our Emotional Health and Well-Being as Latinx Parents
Monday, October 31, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
Join in as we explore our emotional health as adults and how it intersects or not with our cultural beliefs. We will think about the impact our emotional health has on us as we raise our children and consider ways we can nurture our emotional health.
Featuring:
Lizette Ojeda, PhD
- Nationally recognized Latino mental health authority, tenured professor, published researcher, keynote speaker, and bilingual licensed psychologist
- Translates behavioral science into evidence-based practical tools to help protect one’s wellness
- Honored with the highly regarded Fellow status by the American Psychological Association for her outstanding impact and unusual contribution to Latino mental health at a national level
- As a “first generation success” and child of Mexican immigrants who did not attend high school, Dr. Lizette Ojeda is known as a “relatable expert” who inspires marginalized communities to live their best life without sacrificing one’s energy, identity, or family
Budy J. Whitfield, LCSW
- Budy (pronounced Beauty) Jamilly Whitfield is a licensed clinical social worker with over 18 years of experience as a senior leader managing programs and treating, children, adolescents, women, and families in the areas of complex trauma, immigration, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, neglect, intimate partner violence, anxiety, depression and a host of other adverse experiences.
- She possesses an innate ability to build relationships with those who have experienced significant adversity and has been successful in creating environments where people feel safe to share their stories and begin their healing journeys.
Episode 6: Looking Forward – Hopes and Dreams for Our Latinx Children
Monday, November 28, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
Join in as we hear from our panelists about what we hope to see for our Latinx communities and our children in the future. We will think about how we continue to sustain our cultures as we navigate raising children within American society.
Featuring:
Erica Priscilla Sandoval, LCSW
CEO and Founder, Latinx In Social Work Podcast
- Erica is an award-winning mental health practitioner, speaker, executive coach, entrepreneur, podcaster, philanthropist, and author of Latinx/e in Social Work Volumes I and II.
- She is the founder and CEO of Sandoval Psychotherapy Consultation – known as Sandoval CoLab – which offers talk therapy, ketamine-assisted therapy, and trainings in diversity, equity, inclusion, and wellness.
- Erica holds a Master’s in Clinical Adolescent Psychology and a Master’s in Social Work from New York University, Silver School of Social Work.
Laudy Burgos, LCSW-R
Associate Director, Department of Social Work, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, NY
- Laudy Burgos, LCSW-R, is a bilingual English/Spanish licensed clinical social worker with 24 years of experience in the area of perinatal mood disorders and family and children’s services.
- As an Associate Director at Mount Sinai Hospital in the Department of Social Work Services, she supervises the OB/GYN and NICU social workers, leads the Social Work Anti-Racism Initiative, and manages the Northeast Regional Alliance (NERA) Behavioral Health-Social Work program.
- She has also served as a consultant at various child welfare agencies.
- Ms. Burgos received her Bachelor of Science in Social Work from NYU Silver School of Social Work, and her Master’s in Social Work from NYU as well.
- Ms. Burgos has taught in the BSW program at NYU and the MSW program at Columbia University. She has also presented at various professional conferences and has several publications.
Episode 5: Our Latinx Children’s Emotional Health and Well-Being
NEW DATE: Monday, December 12, 2022, 3–4:30 PM ET / 12–1:30 PM PT
In this episode, we will explore some definitions of emotional health and how they may or may not intersect with our cultural beliefs. We will think about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted our children’s emotional health. We will also reflect on how our children’s cultural identities can impact their emotional health.
Dr. Hector Colón-Rivera
Medical Director of the Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha, Inc Behavioral Health Program (APM), Philadelphia
- Dr. Hector Colón-Rivera is a distinguished general, adolescent, and addiction psychiatrist. He has broad experience in community-based programs, with an emphasis on those that help to increase access to assisted medical treatments for patients with substance use disorder.
- As Medical Director at APM, he is dedicated to improving the quality of life of Hispanic communities through direct behavior and substance use disorder services in the Philadelphia area.
- He is an attending telemedicine physician and a participant in a grant funded by the NIH Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) initiative at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).
- Additionally, Dr. Colón-Rivera is a member of the Pennsylvania Advisory Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and a senior advisor for the Opioid State Targeted Response Technical Assistance effort for Puerto Rico. He is a faculty member at UPMC and Einstein Medical Center.
- He is a co-founder, volunteer, and member of CrearConSalud.org, a nonprofit with the goals of supporting and conducting educational, research, and advocacy activities to increase public awareness and action regarding mental health in Puerto Rico and Latinx communities in the United States.
Rosita L. Marinez, MS-NPL, ADV-CSW, MSW
Director of Housing Operations, Fountain House
- Rosita L. Marinez has over 20 years of experience specializing in operations management, program development, clinical supervision, and executive leadership.
- Her areas of focus are mental health, substance use disorder, HIV/AIDS, and housing. She has dedicated her career to the housing sector for the past 14 years.
- Rosita has held Senior Leadership positions in well-known organizations focused on ending homelessness in New York City.
- She has been part of several initiatives in HIV/AIDS, Single-Stop, and housing.
- Most importantly, Rosita is a mother of a 26-year-old multi-cultural young man.
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