By NU Office of Communications May 03, 2021
NORTHFIELD, Vt. Norwich University named Dr. Julia Bernard as its first-ever vice president of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, effective July 1.
Bernard now serves as interim chair and associate professor in East Tennessee State University’s Department of Counseling and Human Services. She holds a doctorate in child development and family studies, a master’s in marriage and family therapy, and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Purdue University. She is also a certified nursing assistant who holds numerous certificates in disciplines including leading in equity, diversity and inclusion in higher education; ecopsychology; clinical trauma; mental health first aid; mediation and several others.
âWhat would Robin do?â is a question Alex Leonard will be asking himself for the rest of his life, and he hopes others will do the same.
Robin, as in Robin Leonard, was Alexâs mother, a psychologist and a professor at East Tennessee State University. She died Friday after 11 days on life support following a stabbing at her home. Each one of those days, Alex sat by his motherâs side, held her hand and read âHarry Potter and the Sorcererâs Stoneâ to her.
Itâs the same thing she had read to him when the series was published. As a kid, he was so anxious and impatient to know what happened next in the books that he began reading them himself. Thatâs just one of the intimate moments that will live in Alexâs memories of his mother.
The Womenâs Studies Program at East Tennessee State University will host a two-day institute in January about infusing trauma-informed care principles into strategies for teaching and learning.
Phyllis Thompson, director of the Womenâs Studies Program and associate professor in the Department of Literature and Language, is co-organizing the institute with members of the Womenâs Studies Steering Committee. The project, âTrauma-Informed Strategies for Teaching and Learning: Creating a Culture of Belonging, Fostering Retention, and Increasing Degree Completion,â was one of seven projects funded by ETSUâs Instructional Development Committee.
The online institute will kick off on the evening of Sunday, Jan. 10, from 4-5:30 p.m. and will be followed by a full day of sessions on Monday, Jan. 11, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The events are free to attend. Registration can be found at www.etsu.edu/conf/trauma-informed-approaches-teaching-learning/.