online event; open to all mentees, all mentors & program alum
Let’s celebrate AAPI Heritage Months and Mental Health Awareness Months together! Join us in honoring the impact of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans on the history, culture, and achievements of the United States. What community joys and challenges do you feel are important to share? Through the lens of poetry, Brittany Barker will guide us through reflections on AAPI heritage and mental health.
In this Community Chat, we will explore how AAPI communities celebrate their heritage and look at the challenges faced around AAPI identity and culture in the USA. We will create poetry to express our feelings on heritage and how injustices concerning identity and culture impact our own well-being. Techniques for taking care of ourselves and our communities will be shared.
Brittany Barker is an educator, poet and the creative director of Creative Soul House. She’s served in education for 8 years, as a humanities instructor, curriculum designer and a Dean of Programs where she spearheaded schoolwide youth and adult-development initiatives for enrichment and socio-emotional learning. Brittany has been recognized by the Walton Foundation for her leadership in transformative arts education and currently curates holistic and social-justice experiences for schools and organizations in local NY communities.
Jesse Jagtiani is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and researcher of Indian-German heritage residing in New York City. Jesse earned her Doctor of Education in Art & Art Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, complemented by an MFA in Studio Art from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, and a degree in Visual Communications from the University of Arts, Berlin. Her research centers on the formative dimensions of intuition, bridging indigenous wisdom with contemporary scientific perspectives to foster a balance of the intuitive and the rational mind within Western educational paradigms. Jesse’s artwork has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and her scholarly contributions extend to various publications, including chapter three of the book Developing Informed Intuition for Decision Making. Jesse has taught in (and outside of) higher education for numerous years and is passionate about supporting emerging artists, writers, and leaders on their creative, academic, and career pathways.
all mentees, all mentors and program alum