Cleveland State University’s Howard A. Mims African American Cultural Center will present a lecture in accordance with the state of Ohio’s Minority Health Month. The Ralph Pruitt Lecture, Arts, and Media Series event on Tuesday, April 23 will feature Dr. Brennin Brown who will speak on “The Wisdom of Wellness.”

Dr. Brown’s lecture will discuss mental health as it relates to communities of color, as well as address historical and generational trauma, systemic racism and the effect of these challenges on psychological well-being. Her objective is to provide an overview of signs and symptoms of mental and emotional imbalance in order to explore strategies, coping skills, and available resources to engage a personal practice of mental wellness, as well as to empower attendees to become advocates for minority mental health and healing in the black community.

The event is free and open to the public.??Activities begin with a book signing at 5:30 p.m. in the Howard A. Mims African American Cultural Center in Berkman Hall, Room 137. The lecture will take place at 6:00 p.m. in Berkman Hall, Room 136, followed by a reception in Room 137 at 7:15 p.m.

Dr. Brown is a native of Gainesville, Florida, who completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Florida before attending the Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) School of Medicine. During her time in medical school, she helped to organize and found a minority medical student mentorship match program. A recipient of a research fellowship in childhood emotional trauma through the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Dr. Brown graduated from CWRU School of Medicine in May 2018. She is currently a first-year resident physician at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center in the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Brown has career interests in community psychiatry, narrative medicine, racial disparities in mental healthcare and programs to support minority medical trainees.