Bridging Disciplines to Teach Community Psychology: Notes from a Transcommunal Classroom

This paper explores how an interdisciplinary pedagogy can amplify community psychology (CP) values in undergraduate education. Sociologist John Brown Childs’ (2003) concept of transcommunality, which emphasizes working across difference through shared practical action via respect, understanding, and communication, illustrates how bridging disciplines can transform CP classrooms. This framework acts as a catalyst for teaching CP values of empowerment, citizen participation, wellness, diversity, sense of community, and social justice (Kloos, Hill, Thomas, Wandersman, Elias, & Dalton, 2012). A transcommunal approach grounded in power, privilege, and oppression are further examined to explore possible class assignments and activities to facilitate student interest and thinking about CP values in relation to a transcommunal society. The paper concludes with suggestions and an assessment of the (dis)advantages of these activities for instructors

Bridging Disciplines to Teach Community Psychology: Notes from a Transcommunal Classroom

This paper explores how an interdisciplinary pedagogy can amplify community psychology (CP) values in undergraduate education. Sociologist John Brown Childs’ (2003) concept of transcommunality, which emphasizes working across difference through shared practical action via respect, understanding, and communication, illustrates how bridging disciplines can transform CP classrooms. This framework acts as a catalyst for teaching CP values of empowerment, citizen participation, wellness, diversity, sense of community, and social justice (Kloos, Hill, Thomas, Wandersman, Elias, & Dalton, 2012). A transcommunal approach grounded in power, privilege, and oppression are further examined to explore possible class assignments and activities to facilitate student interest and thinking about CP values in relation to a transcommunal society. The paper concludes with suggestions and an assessment of the (dis)advantages of these activities for instructors

Here to Stay: How we Created a Movement Toward Decolonizing our High School

A praxis and pedagogy, decoloniality can play a critical role in students’ understanding of systems of oppression and their role in creating systemic change. As decoloniality emphasizes the importance of undoing and unlearning, it is critical that a decolonial pedagogy (Buttaro, 2010; Lissovoy, 2010) provide students an opportunity to engage in these actions. One possibility that should be explored is how youth participatory action research projects-taught within a decolonial pedagogical curriculum- can be used in schools to enhance students’ understanding and commitment to the decolonial project (Cammarota, 2014, 2009; Morrell, 2008). Using autoethnography (Anzaldúa, 2002), the paper discusses the process that a group of Latinx high school students went through to create “Soy Yo” and draw upon decolonial theory to analyze how learning about decoloniality and YPAR led them to begin the process of decolonizing their school. The concludes with risks and rewards that these stakeholders encountered during this ongoing project

Here to Stay: How we Created a Movement Toward Decolonizing our High School

A praxis and pedagogy, decoloniality can play a critical role in students’ understanding of systems of oppression and their role in creating systemic change. As decoloniality emphasizes the importance of undoing and unlearning, it is critical that a decolonial pedagogy (Buttaro, 2010; Lissovoy, 2010) provide students an opportunity to engage in these actions. One possibility that should be explored is how youth participatory action research projects-taught within a decolonial pedagogical curriculum- can be used in schools to enhance students’ understanding and commitment to the decolonial project (Cammarota, 2014, 2009; Morrell, 2008). Using autoethnography (Anzaldúa, 2002), the paper discusses the process that a group of Latinx high school students went through to create “Soy Yo” and draw upon decolonial theory to analyze how learning about decoloniality and YPAR led them to begin the process of decolonizing their school. The concludes with risks and rewards that these stakeholders encountered during this ongoing project

Is there Room for More?: Considering the Need for a Decoloniality Community Psychology Core Competency

From a decolonizing standpoint, as proposed by Cruz and Sonn (2011), the current community psychology competencies seem insufficient because these often leave power structures intact. Consequently, we propose a decolonizing, decolonial and anti-colonial competency in community psychology practice to facilitate the practitioner’s process toward decoloniality, specifically decolonizing language, discourses, relationships and research processes with communities. A decolonial competency in community psychology practice is characterized by an iterative process of critical ethical reflexivity that aims to de-link community psychology practice from hegemonic Western Eurocentric perspectives in order to foster and center community voice, knowledge and power. Through an autoethnographic methodology we offer reflexive vignettes to illustrate a decolonial competency, and the lessons we have learned throughout community psychology practice. As a core community psychology competency, decoloniality can equip practitioners with the skills to engage meaningfully in a critical ethical reflexive practice that aligns with the discipline’s values and foundational principles

Is There Room for More?: Considering the Need for a Decoloniality Community Psychology Core Competency

From a decolonizing standpoint, as proposed by Cruz and Sonn (2011), the current community psychology competencies seem insufficient because these often leave power structures intact. Consequently, we propose a decolonizing, decolonial and anti-colonial competency in community psychology practice to facilitate the practitioner’s process toward decoloniality, specifically decolonizing language, discourses, relationships and research processes with communities. A decolonial competency in community psychology practice is characterized by an iterative process of critical ethical reflexivity that aims to de-link community psychology practice from hegemonic Western Eurocentric perspectives in order to foster and center community voice, knowledge and power. Through an autoethnographic methodology we offer reflexive vignettes to illustrate a decolonial competency, and the lessons we have learned throughout community psychology practice. As a core community psychology competency, decoloniality can equip practitioners with the skills to engage meaningfully in a critical ethical reflexive practice that aligns with the discipline’s values and foundational principles

Is There Room for More?: Considering the Need for a Decoloniality Community Psychology Core Competency

From a decolonizing standpoint, as proposed by Cruz and Sonn (2011), the current community psychology competencies seem insufficient because these often leave power structures intact. Consequently, we propose a decolonizing, decolonial and anti-colonial competency in community psychology practice to facilitate the practitioner’s process toward decoloniality, specifically decolonizing language, discourses, relationships and research processes with communities. A decolonial competency in community psychology practice is characterized by an iterative process of critical ethical reflexivity that aims to de-link community psychology practice from hegemonic Western Eurocentric perspectives in order to foster and center community voice, knowledge and power. Through an autoethnographic methodology we offer reflexive vignettes to illustrate a decolonial competency, and the lessons we have learned throughout community psychology practice. As a core community psychology competency, decoloniality can equip practitioners with the skills to engage meaningfully in a critical ethical reflexive practice that aligns with the discipline’s values and foundational principles

Thinking Through our Processes: How the UCSC Community Psychology Research & Action Team Strives to Embody Ethical, Critically Reflexive Anti-racist Feminist Praxis

Co-written by eight people, this paper describes how the UCSC Community Psychology Research and Action Team (CPRAT) organizes itself in weekly group meetings and how this structure is an attempt to embody an ethical, critically reflexive anti-racist feminist praxis. First, we outline the community psychology core competency of an ethical, reflective practice (Dalton & Wolfe, 2012). We offer a friendly amendment to consider an ethical, critically reflexive anti-racist feminist praxis. Second, we discuss how we organize CPRAT meetings to uphold these ideas. We describe our current structure, which includes personal and project check-ins, rotating facilitation, and attention to broader professional development issues. Third, we provide two examples to illustrate our process: (a) why talking about poop matters in addressing imposter syndrome and (b) getting our team on the same page regarding a research site. We end the paper with a description of a “rough edge,” or an area for growth in our praxis

Modulation of presynaptic plasticity and learning by the H-ras/extracellular signal-regulated kinase/synapsin I signaling pathway

Molecular and cellular studies of the mechanisms underlying mammalian learning and memory have focused almost exclusively on postsynaptic function. We now reveal an experience-dependent presynaptic mechanism that modulates learning and synaptic plasticity in mice. Consistent with a presynapticfunctionfor endogenous H-ras/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling, we observed that, under normal physiologic conditions in wild-type mice, hippocampus-dependent learning stimulated the ERK-dependent phosphorylation of synapsin I, and MEK (MAP kinase kinase)/ERK inhibition selectively decreased the frequency of miniature EPSCs. By generating transgenic mice expressing a constitutively active form of H-ras (H-rasG12V), which is abundantly localized in axon terminals, we were able to increase the ERK-dependent phosphorylation of synapsin I. This resulted in several presynaptic changes, including a higher density of docked neurotransmitter vesiclesin glutamatergicterminals, anincreasedfrequency of miniature EPSCs, andincreased paired-pulse facilitation. In addition, we observed facilitated neurotransmitter release selectively during high-frequency activity with consequent increases in long-term potentiation. Moreover, these mice showed dramatic enhancements in hippocampus-dependent learning. Importantly, deletion of synapsin I, an exclusively presynaptic protein, blocked the enhancements of learning, presynaptic plasticity, and long-term potentiation. Together with previous invertebrate studies, these results demonstrate that presynaptic plasticity represents an important evolutionarily conserved mechanism for modulating learning and memory

Cancer Risk after Fat Transfer: A Multicenter Case-Cohort Study

Fat transfer is an increasingly popular method for refining post-mastectomy breast reconstructions. However, concern persists that fat transfer may promote disease recurrence. Adipocytes are derived from adipose-derived stem cells and express adipocytokines that can facilitate active breast cancer cells in laboratory models. We sough to evaluate the association between fat transfer to the reconstructed breast and cancer recurrence in patients diagnosed with local or regional invasive breast cancers