Allison L. Cabana
Allison L. Cabana (she/her) is a queer mixed descent Latina critical social psychologist. She spent much of her life growing up in California and comes from a family with a mother of Mexican descent and a white father. Allison has lived in New York since 2014, and has worked in the Bronx since 2017 when she began teaching at Bronx Community College. She also currently works at Hostos Community College. Allison is a CUNY Graduate Student, Adjunct CUNY Instructor, and Writing Across the Curriculum Fellow working in different colleges across the CUNY system. Allison was a facilitator at CERA in 2017 and 2018, and learned a great deal about research history, Bronx history, and ethics through attending CERA sessions. She joined BxCRRB because of her commitment to justice and her commitment to de-centering institutionally produced (and hoarded) knowledge as the “only” recognized knowledge. Allison hopes to continue to learn about public health, the history of research and ethics, and how she can be a part of transforming the spaces she is in – at school, at work, and in her communities. Allison is also hopeful to continue to be a part of communities that increase access to everything for everyone and democratize the processes of research and health education – especially for folks and communities who have been historically marginalized. You can reach her via email at [email protected] or [email protected].
Alexandria Sumner
Alexandria Sumner (she/her/elle) comes from a multiracial background of Black, Native American, and Afro Caribbean/Latina descent. She was a long-time resident of the Mid-Hudson Valley, NY, and made The Bronx her home in 2007. Alexandria reps the Parkchester and North East region of The Bronx.
She is a Certified Pharmacy Technician with a specialty in clinical pharmacy and managed care. She is also a CASAC-T(credentialed alcohol substance abuse counselor – trainee). She has over a decade of experience as a union delegate with 1199 SEIU HealthCare Workers East, where she started her activism for health care issues. She is also an advocate for Black Maternal Care, which progressed into her becoming a Postpartum Birthworker. She has a passion for Holistic health and believes that with the proper access to nourishment, people can be healed.
She is a Bronx Community College Alumni and is currently completing her Bachelor’s in Community Health with a concentration in Public Health. She plans on pursuing her Master’s in Social Work and Public Health in the near future. Alexandria joined the CRRB after witnessing too many folx, BIPOC, being mistreated by the many who take an oath, to do no harm to them. She hopes to provide impactful insight from a community perspective. She hopes that her membership from the CRRB will gain her resources to better the community. Alexandria is a member of the New York State Council of Health-systems Pharmacist and a PCORI Ambassador. She is a mother of three amazing children, a plant mom, and has a full-service travel agency.
You can reach Alexandria through her email accounts: [email protected] and for travel only: [email protected]
Dr. Devin A. Heyward
Devin A. Heyward, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) is a Black cis-gender woman who has lived in the Soundview section of the Bronx on and off for the last 16 years. She spent most of her formative years in New Rochelle, NY. Devin has worked at Lehman College as an adjunct instructor in Psychology, as well as the program coordinator for the CUNY Institute for Health Equity (CIHE). Currently, Devin is an Assistant Professor of Sociology, Urban Studies, and Anthropology, the Director of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and the Director of the Gender and Sexuality Studies program at Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City.
As a patient, Devin is a carrier for Sickle Cell Anemia. Devin first became involved with the CRRB as a CERA facilitator. At the conclusion of CERA 2018, she joined as a member and was eventually elected to the Board of Directors. She hopes that through the work and guidance of the CRRB, researchers will create projects that centers and respects the agency and needs of Bronx residents. Additionally, Devin hopes that ethics are expanded to include cultural and historical understandings of our communities. Her research analyzes how racial identity changes over the lifespan and how it is influenced by self-initiated encounter events, in particular genetic ancestry testing. Prior to joining Saint Peter’s University, Devin taught several courses at The City College of New York, Lehman College, The Fashion Institute of Technology (SUNY), and SUNY Empire State College. She can be contacted at the following email address: [email protected] (website forthcoming)
Rashema K. White
Rashema K. White (She, Her) is an African American Bronx born native, currently representing the Parkchester section of the Bronx. She formerly worked as a Dialysis Technician dedicating 20 years of life as a caregiver and educator to Bronx natives. Rashema loves to educate patients and families on the importance of kidney care and following a renal diet once diagnosed with kidney failure. Rashema has currently moved on to work with the Department of Health and Health Hospitals joint efforts to help residents of New York City overcome Covid 19, with the help of contact tracing.
Rashema became a member of the BxCRRB in 2018, after graduating from CERA in 2017, where she was taught about research and how it can be used to change the quality of your life, if used responsively. Rashema was taught about the importance of ethics and research and how these two entities must become one, in order to show respect, care, love and dignity to the communities involved in the research. When the opportunity arose to be a part of the BxCRRB, she was overjoyed to accept the position. While on the BxCRRB, Rashema would like to continue to educate Bronx residents on the importance of community-based research, along with educating researchers on the dignity they must show Bronx residents when allowed in these communities.
Rashema is currently working on a children’s book and creating a space to help encourage young women facing kidney failure. Rashema can be reached via email at: [email protected].
Marcia Stoddard-Pennant
Marcia Stoddard-Pennant is a Bronx patient, resident, caregiver and advocate who migrated from Jamaica, West Indies and lived in the Northeast section of the Bronx since 2006. She refers herself as someone who goes places where no one wants to go in conversations. Marcia identifies herself as black and gender pronouns are: She/Her/Hers. She is a mother, wife, daughter, sister and aunt who have dedicate herself to the work of Health Education and Promotion giving special focus to pregnant mothers and residents in low income communities. Marcia attends Bronx Community College where she majored in Community School Health and in 2012 entered Lehman College where she pursues both her Bachelors and Masters in Health Education and Promotion. It raises my eye brows to see how little or no information is given in colleges or universities about research. Prior to CERA I worked as a Community Health Worker in low income neighborhoods by educating them on the issues of health that affects them which includes health insurance, the importance of having a primary care physician, how to prepare for their primary care visits and health homes. Current project working on is COVID-19 through Health and Hospital Corporation by supporting staff in reaching their goals in such difficult times, assisting in two local church food pantries in packing and distributing food to community residents.
I applied to be a part CERA because there are other individuals who share the same passion and goals to be better community residents by wanting to do more in making a change in improving health which will happen through research. Marcia will use what she learns in CERA to see the health and well being of members of our communities reaches the point where they are educated about various if not all diseases that affects them and to prevent them before it happens. Having every member being involved in decision making that affects them is another dream I would love to see happen.