News Stories

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. This month celebrates and highlights the intersection of two topics that are so important to our community and the broader community that our students and graduates serve every day. Counseling psychology faculty, Sherry Wang, Ph.D., and Ling Lam, Ph.D., offer a few resources to support the AAPI community and raise awareness about mental health.

What can you do to support the AAPI community?

Wang, Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology, a licensed psychologist, researcher, and anti-racist educator, says, "AAPI month is a time to remind everyone that Asian Americans cannot and should not be asked to stop AAPI hate or racism. AAPI safety, healing, and well-being can only be achieved when our society collectively cares for, protects, and intervenes in anti-Asian sentiments that have been normalized throughout US history. We have to be able to name anti-Asian racism, and at the same time, it is so important to humanize us to recognize our history, strengths, contributions, and excellence."

Wang’s most recent publication, “Go Back to China with Your (Expletive) Virus”: A Revelatory Case Study of Anti-Asian Racism During COVID-19, takes a deeper look at anti-Asian racism and Covid-19. The paper details collaborators who serve the AAPI community, and who helped to make this study possible.

Two tips to combat the stigma associated with mental health

In the AAPI community, there is often a sense of shame and stigma attached to mental health. In this video, Dr. Lam, a Lecturer of Counseling Psychology and a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), shares a personal story about navigating shame and how to counter it.

Resources to learn more about anti-Asian racism

• AsiansNOW! - Asian, Asian American, and Asian Diaspora Empowerment
• Stop Racism Against Asian Americans - 1 MillionStrong
• The Conscious Kid
• Asians for Mental Health
• Asian Mental Health Project
• Asian Mental Health Collective
• Brown Girl Therapy
• This Asian Am Life
• Teach and Transform
• Dr. Therapinay

Integrating multicultural awareness and diversity into classroom and therapy settings

The School of Education and Counseling Psychology offers a variety of courses for current students who are pursuing a career as a teacher, therapist, or educational leader.

Education department:

• Marco Murillo - EDUC 375 Leading for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Pedro Nava - EDUC 372 Communities, Schools, & Critical Social Theory

Counseling Psychology department:

• Sherry Wang, Lucy Ramos-Sanchez, Terry SooHoo - CPSY 231 Multicultural Psychology
• Ling Lam - CSPY 361 Special Topics in Multicultural Psychotherapy