What are you working on now?
I work for a digital mental health app called BeMe health. BeMe is a mobile mental health platform to improve teen well-being by bringing together the best aspects of digital media, live support, and clinical care. I’m the Coaching lead on the clinical team. In my role I contribute to the content, feedback and manage the live coaching in the app. Where teens can be connected with a live coach for support.
This fall I’m entering my 6th semester as an Adjunct professor for Kean University’s graduate school of social work,where I earned my bachelors and masters. Last year after I took a leap from being a school social worker for 11 years into digital mental health and said yes to a long time dream of mine of deejaying. I’ve been DJing now for a little over a year as DJ Brighter Daze.
How did you get to where you are?
My heart has always been in social work,specifically working with children and adolescents. When I finished graduate school in 2011, my first job was back at my alma mater North Star Academy Washington Park High School. I joined the team as the first full time social worker and one of the first alumni to be hired as a full time staff member. I launched my career working side by side with some of my former teachers and mentors. I’ve gotten to where I am now because of my community of mentors and always being open to learning new things. Being in community personally and professionally has shaped who I am today. We truly need a community to succeed and have people to lean on for support.
What are you most passionate about?
I’m passionate about teen mental health, the new generation of social workers and music. In 2017 I founded Wellness Day at NSA’s Lincoln Park High school and that launched my love for helping teenagers figure out what coping skills work for them. We all have something that works just for us. It’s important to develop those skills early and have them throughout our lives.
I’ve been working on social work field education for the last 6 years and love supporting the next generation of social workers while they are at their internship. My goal is to make sure they are having the best experience and prepared to go out in the community to start their careers.
Music is my personal form of wellness and what I lean into daily to start my day. I’ve been collecting vinyl records for over 10 years now and that helped me get into my love for music. Finding that one song that helps shift your mood or get through the day is magical. Having the opportunity now to provide the sounds and vibes for events and getting people to dance, brings me so much JOY through Deejaying.
So far which lesson do you carry with you no matter where you go?
At the end of my 5th grade year at North Star Academy, now Downtown middle school Julie Jackson gave all her students a framed copy of the poem Don’t Quit. During the first week of 5th grade she told us to remember the poem like we knew our first name. We recited that poem weekly and I never forgot it. I still have the framed copy of the poem on my desk. I carried the words with me often. It has been in every office I ever had for students to see. My favorite lines from it are “When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest if you must, but don’t you quit” Life can get the best of us sometimes and that is okay. Holding time for rest and wellness will refill our cups to keep going. Some days we have to whisper to ourselves Don’t Quit.