EDI Action Council Members

To solicit nominations, review applications, and select a trainee and faculty Champion of Diversity each year. Members of the subcommittee also help to write remarks for presenting the award and descriptions of each awardee for the website.

Lisa Eyler

• Neal Doran 
• Chuchu Li 
• Victoria Merritt 
• Arpi Minassian 
• Seong Park 
• Katherine Williams 

• Raise awareness about the importance of Community Engagement in our research, clinical, and teaching spheres.
• Create education and training opportunities for UC San Diego Health Sciences to promote meaningful engagement with research participants, patients, invested parties, and the broader community we serve.
• Advocate for more direct and collaborative involvement of the community “in the work” so that the Department of Psychiatry is better positioned to address the community’s health-related needs.
• Advocate for adding community engagement as an evaluation pillar in faculty merit and promotion reviews, and work with Health Sciences to establish relevant evaluation metrics.

Nicole Stadnick, Amy Lansing, & Arpi Minassian 

• Jessica Carrasco 
• Victoria Chentsova 
• Amy Lansing 
• Judith Lobo 
• Victoria Merritt 
• Arpi Minassian 
• David Moore 
• Nicole Stadnick 
• Erin Sundermann 
• Natasha Wade 

Lisa Eyler

• Tiffany Greenwood 
• Arpi Minassian 
• Pei-an Betty Shih 
• Elizabeth Twamley 
• Jared Young 

• To provide solutions, education, and resources to support the untapped abilities of disabled faculty, trainees and students.
• To provide education on disability issues to non-disabled faculty and administrators.

Dawn Schiehser

• Dawn Schiehser 
• Mark Ettenhofer 
• Laurie Lindamer 
• Adam Fields 
• Adam Halberstadt 

Focus on the dissemination of existing workshops and training materials to advance EDI related knowledge and skills for faculty and trainees. Identify gaps with the goal of developing new materials and trainings.

Jeremy Elman

• Kelly Courntey
• Jeremy Elman
• Lisa Eyler 
• James Pittman 

• Provide forums to discuss best practices in conducting mental health research in diverse populations to increase rigor and promote health equity.
• Select and award investigators conducting excellent research in health equity at the annual Department of Psychiatry Judd Young Investigators Research symposium.
• Disseminate disparity-related funding opportunities to Department of Psychiatry faculty and trainees.
• Promote disparity-related research within the department.   

Susan Powell

• Ariel Lang 
• Arpi Minassian 
• Jessica Montoya 
• Danielle Fettes 
• Samantha Chalker 

• Raise awareness, promote transparency, and disseminate information related to gender equity, family issues, and ensuring a safe and healthy work environment for all genders.
• Advocate for structural changes to address existing gender inequities.
• Recognize and promote women and gender non-binary individuals in the Deparment of Psychiatry and their accomplishments via a quarterly newsletter.

Kelsey Thomas

• Kimberly Claudat 
• Erika Crable 
• Stephanie Dulawa 
• Suzi Hong 
• Kelsey Thomas 
• Jared Young 

• Educate the department about research, clinical, and teaching competencies related to the LGBTQIA+ community
• Disseminate educational resources (scholarly work, trainings), plus community and social events promoting LGBTQIA+ health
• Support advocacy efforts for equal access to care for patients with an LGBTQIA+ identity 
• Support advocacy efforts for our LGBTQIA+ community within the Department

Arpi Minassian & Jared Young

• Tyler Bell 
• Eve Lasswell 
• Arpi Minassian 
• Dafna Paltin 
• Herry Patel 
• Christine Smith 
• Jared Young 

• Return soon for updated content. 

Jared Young

• Jared Young 

Description/Mission
The UC San Diego Department of Psychiatry is committed to promoting the inclusion and success of individuals from historically underrepresented backgrounds in academic medicine. We strive to foster a supportive and inclusive environment for trainees, staff, and faculty representing all aspects of diversity (including, but not limited to race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and religion). This EDI Action council subcommittee aims to advocate for and facilitate recruiting and retaining diverse individuals. Some of our recent efforts include advocating for increased transparency and accountability with respect to hiring and departmental diversity data. We also create and promote resources that bolster recruitment and retention of underrepresented individuals in the Department of Psychiatry. 

Point of Contact
Kristen Duarte 

• Marga Behrens 
• Lauren Brookman-Frazee 
• Renata Cupertino 
• Kristen Duarte 
• Lisa Eyler 
• Larry Malak 
• Sabrina Ortega 
• Kelsey Thomas 
• Emily Treichler 
• Beth Twamley 
• Jared Young