Dr. Myisha Driver Named the 2021 Dianne Kipnes Social Innovation Award Co-Recipient

Myisha Driver, PhD’19 and Elizabeth Speck, PhD’11 are the recipients of the 2021 Dianne Kipnes Social Innovation Award

Myisha Driver, PhD’19

Dr. Myisha Driver, PhD Clinical Psychology 2019

Dr. Driver’s project, Nurturing Psyches of Color,  was designed with two major goals: 1) positively impact the lives of parenting Black and Latinx teens/young adults and their babies by providing resources and prevention-based psychoeducation on parenting and mental health related topics from a strength based culturally sensitive framework, and 2) reduce feelings of isolation by providing opportunities for teen/young adult parents to make meaningful connections with other parents.

The project created content related to attachment, community resources, and self-care shared across multiple social media outlets (Instagram, Facebook, digital newsletter).  The program also hosted an online event and produced a 20 minute video focused on providing resources and education for parents.  The video featured professional women of color who provide services to families with young children.  The goal of the video is to educate viewers regarding the types of services available, reduce stigma related to seeking supportive services, and identify specific resources that serve diverse populations with culturally relevant practices.  The professionals interviewed included an occupational therapist, a doula, and a yogi. The full-length video will be posted on the organization website and uploaded to YouTube.

Finally, to increase involvement among young parents, the program hired a social media coordinator and created an electronic pathway for new participants to easily register, complete pre-post surveys, and collect other outcome related data. It is hoped that these efforts will lead to less isolation for the young parent population and more opportunity to connect with peers.

“I believe wholeheartedly in the power of relationships. Infants’ relationships with their parents provide them with the foundation for emotional health, learning, and overall development that they will build upon throughout their lives. As a psychologist and a Black woman, I understand the negative impact of race and racism on families and want to take action to help meet some of their specific needs.” — Myisha Driver, Ph.D.

Myisha J. Driver-Woods earned her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Fielding Graduate University in 2019 and completed APA accredited internship and two-year post-doctoral fellowship at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) in the Early Childhood Mental Health Program. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a California Endorsed Infant Family Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist, and Reflective Practice Facilitator II. Her research interests include the influence of fathers on early development and integrating infant mental health into medical settings. She is a proud native of Compton, California, and uses her personal and professional experiences to educate others and advocate for social and racial justice. She currently works at CHLA as part of two grant programs developing and delivering training content focused on infant mental health and addressing disparities.