Diversity and Justice

Mission of Diversity and Justice Committee

We intentionally seek to cultivate and sustain this ethos by actively inviting students and faculty underrepresented in the PsyD program to pursue excellence in scholarship and clinical service as members of a supportive and welcoming community - one that promotes the good of everyone with preference to individuals and communities who have been historically and traditionally marginalized and wounded by our society.

The goals of diversity and justice initiatives in the Psy.D. program are to:

1. Infuse themes of diversity and individual differences into the environment, pedagogy, and programmatic ethos;
2. Broaden definition of diversity beyond racial and ethnic representation - without minimizing their importance – to include class, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and physical/ cognitive abilities;
3. Re-invigorate our mission of serving diverse unjustly-served communities and reframing this mission as the practice of integrating clinical psychology and biblical/ theological studies; and
4. Create sustained ethos of inclusion – for all students, faculty, and staff.

Strategic Initiatives

1. Recruitment and mentorship of students and faculty who belong to historically underrepresented groups in the Psy.D. program;
2. Promote awareness, advocacy, and programmatic accountability on issues of diversity in clinical research and practice that are integrated into the broader Psy.D. curriculum and training;
3. Strengthening of relationship between our commitment to diversity and justice, and our commitment to Christ and His kingdom; and
4. Measuring the results of on-going diversity and justice initiative.

Committee Members

• John McConnell (Psy.D. Diversity and Justice Coordinator )
• Benjamin Pyykkonen (Psy.D. Director)
• Tao Liu (Psy.D. Diversity and Justice Assistant Coordinator)
• Ginger Smith (Doctoral Program Administrator)

Diversity & Justice Mini-Grant Application