Project Trust, Part 3

Kaiser Foundation of Northern California Innovation Grant

2019-2020

This initiative– begun by the Center for Innovation in Ministry at San Francisco Theological Seminary now at the Graduate School of Theology at the University of Redlands– features research exploration into the reasons for underuse of mental health systems by African American communities in the Bay Area. 2020 is the third consecutive year the grant has been received from the Kaiser Foundation of Northern California.

This research is conducted in partnership with academic researchers from Palo Alto University. All research was compliant with the standards set by the Institutional Review Board (also known as the Independent Ethics Committee.)

Grant Purposes

• Addresses the central challenge of distrust amongst marginalized communities, their religious and spiritual leaders, and mental health practitioners.  
• Seeks to first understand the barriers unique to underserved communities, and then to find ways to overcome gaps in understanding among healthcare and pastoral care practitioners in order to increase effectiveness of mental health services.
• Focus on African American individuals in faith communities throughout Oakland and San Francisco, including LGBTQ+ and sexual minorities.

Granting Organization

Kaiser Foundation of Northern California Innovation Grant (Kaiser Permanente Northern California Community Benefit Programs)

Leadership

	Rev. Floyd Thompkins CEO, Justice & Peace Foundation; Consultant to the Applied Wisdom Institute
	Peter Goldblum, PhD, MPH Professor Emeritus and past Director of Clinical Training at the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology at Palo Alto University
	Rev. Dr. D. Mark Wilson Lecturer, University of California, Berkeley
	Dr. Lisa Brown Professor Director, Trauma Area of Emphasis Director, Risk and Resilience Research Lab Co-Chair, Palo Alto University Institutional Review Board Faculty Advisor, Association of Traumatic Stress Studies