Get Involved
Become a Thought Partner
Partner with us to produce thought leadership that moves the needle on behavioral healthcare.
Other options to get involved
Thank you!
We received your information and will be in contact soon!
Get Involved
Thank you!
We reiceived your information and will be in contact soon!
Get Involved
Grantmaking
We fund organizations and projects which disrupt our current behavioral health space and create impact at the individual, organizational, and societal levels.
Participatory Funds
Our participatory funds alter traditional grantmaking by shifting power
to impacted communities to direct resources and make funding decisions.
Special Grant Programs
We build public and private partnerships to administer grant dollars toward targeted programs.
Program Related Investments
We provide funds at below-market interest rates that can be particularly useful to start, grow, or sustain a program, or when results cannot be achieved with grant dollars alone.
Get Involved
Tia Burroughs Clayton, MSS
Learning and Community Impact Consultant
Add some text here
Alyson Ferguson, MPH
Chief Operating Officer
Contact Alyson about grantmaking, program related investments, and the paper series.
Samantha Matlin, PhD
Senior Learning & Community Impact Consultant
Contact Samantha about program planning and evaluation consulting services.
Caitlin O'Brien, MPH
Director of Learning & Community Impact
Contact Caitlin about the Community Fund for Immigrant Wellness, the Annual Innovation Award, and trauma-informed programming.
Joe Pyle, MA
President
Contact Joe about partnership opportunities, thought leadership, and the Foundation’s property.
Bridget Talone, MFA
Grants Manager for Learning and Community Impact
Add some text here
Dr. Nettie Johnson is the Executive Director of Health Department at the African Cultural Alliance of North America (ACANA). She directs several public health and mental health projects including the DOJ Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C), PCAR’s Sexual Violence Initiative, PDPH COVID-19 and Mental Health Literacy and Case Management.
Ms. Wonder Guannu, MSW is the Project Coordinator of ACANA’s Mental Health Literacy Project.
About the Mental Health Literacy Project
Starting in July 2022, ACANA partnered with the Masjid Ar-Rahman Community Center to provide monthly trauma-informed, culturally tailored, and language-appropriate health literacy workshops. To date, more than 150 African and Caribbean refugees and new immigrant women with children and roughly 30 men in the Philadelphia area have benefited from the program. The program promotes open conversations about behavioral health, establishes concrete definitions of mental health symptoms, and provides holistic interventions that will ameliorate the anguish of the afflicted to make them wholesome functioning members of their respective communities. ACANA’s successful community-based model draws on the unique strengths and connections of its members, by relying on on-the-ground advocacy most familiar to community members from their countries of origin. ACANA hosts community tabling events and monthly virtual educational sessions focused on topical mental health topics such as acculturation stress, parenting skills, PTSD, and stressors associated with migration. ACANA’s health navigators are trusted messengers who present information in the languages familiar to the target community and lead monthly in-person check-in meetings. In these ways, ACANA’s community-driven outreach helps to build trust, address misinformation, and reduced stigma while advancing health equity through access to credible information and care. ACANA’s on-site clinic also provides basic health screenings and linkage to care to the local health centers. ACANA serves over 7000 people annually. Other services provided are immigration/legal, community development, benefits counseling, ESL, and arts and culture.
What does mental health mean to you?
Dr. Johnson: For me, mental health is an integral part of my health journey just as physical health. I have found it very important to my overall wellbeing. Prioritizing my mental health can be hard work at times, but it is so worth it. It is important to create safe spaces for conversations and advocate for increasing mental health access especially for minority populations.
Wonder: Mental health is the epicenter of my daily functioning. Maintaining a healthy mental health fuels and contributes to a meaningful interaction with others and how I view myself. My mental health is a priority because I am more effective, coherent, and valuable to others and my vision.
What keeps you going?
Dr. Johnson: Seeing the positive impact that ACANA’s health programs have made on the community members is what keeps me going and motivates me to do a great job. Our community members are becoming strong advocates for enhanced mental health access for everyone. Knowing that I have great administrative support and my amazing team is hardworking and committed inspires me to always give my best effort.
Wonder: The opportunity to make an impact in the lives of others brings me joy. I delight in the things that bring success, fulfillment, and seeing others find avenues to receive care and mental health services. What a joy it is to see hope in the eyes of many and be a part of a wonderful team here at ACANA.