Parenting Culture is a team of strong, resilient parents who are all psychologists of color with expertise in children/adolescents. We each bring our own lens, area of specialty, and personal experiences to the table to help provide holistic and competent resources that capture the diversity of parenting.
Our Team
Dr. Anjali Gowda Ferguson is the founder of Parenting Culture and an Indian American clinical psychologist with expertise in parenting, early childhood mental health, trauma, and cultural responsiveness. She recently started my own parenting journey a little over a year ago and was continually struck by the lack of resources for parents of color. While she specialized in parenting well before becoming a parent herself, she often found it hard to resonate with the interventions that existed. Something was missing in the world of parenting. Online/offline parenting spaces are stark in their lack of representation of minoritized communities. The spaces can feel uncomfortable and unwelcoming of cultural experiences and thoughts. Raising a biracial Blindian (Black and Indian) child has its unique challenges and she was moved to develop content that promoted understanding and competence of the cultural complexities. Thus, Parenting Culture was created.
Dr. Ferguson can be contacted for consultations, workshops, and presentations regarding parenting, social determinants of health (SDH), racial socialization strategies/DEI principles, racial trauma information, raising biracial children, and general Parenting Culture inquiries.
Dr. Jadig Garcia is a Latinx mom and clinical psychologist who strives to provide culturally competent and trauma informed care to children, adolescents and their families. Her specialties include complex trauma and Spanish speaking populations. She has experience working within inpatient, outpatient, and integrated health settings and understands that what clinicians are taught in the classroom does not often translates to the real world. The intersectionality of a person’s identity can greatly impact what people need and how they respond to treatment. As a mother and a clinician she strives to de-stigmatized mental health care among BIPOC communities and ensure that they are provided with a safe space to discuss the many stressors that they experience.
Dr. Garcia can be contacted for consultations and presentations related to trauma, acculturation, and general parenting concerns.
Dr. Ariana Hoet is the co-founder of Parenting Culture and a pediatric psychologist working in primary care, primarily with a Latinx and Somali population. Her personal experience, immigrating to the US from Venezuela as a teenager, allows her to bring a cultural approach to treatment with families. Although we know evidence-based treatments work, they also have gaps in how to address the experience of many immigrant families. Personally, she started her own parenting journey and hopes to raise a bilingual little one with a love for our country and culture, along with understanding our privileges and how to actively work on an anti-racist society.
Dr. Jide Bamishigbin is a Nigerian American health psychologist, college professor, and community program evaluator. My area of expertise focuses on three main questions. 1. What factors contribute to mental health issues in Black, Latinx, and low-income fathers? 2. How do these mental health issues impact the mental and physical health of the child, the other parent, and the father himself? 3. What steps can be taken on an individual level, a community level, and a societal level to improve paternal mental health? As a father and husband myself, I take these questions seriously and feel extremely lucky that I am able to work on a topic that is so central to my own life.
Dr. Bamishigbin can be contacted for Diversity Equity Inclusion (DEI) consulting, survey creation, statistical analysis, and workshop/presentation about paternal mental health.
Dr. Vinetra King is an African American mom and trauma informed clinical child and adolescent psychologist who strives to deliver culturally competent care to high risk children and their families. Her specialties include school mental health, child and adolescent trauma, and adolescent substance use and she has expertise working in schools, primary care, and juvenile justice settings. In her practice she recognized how various “gold standard” assessments, therapeutic modalities, and practices didn’t take into account the unique needs and dynamics of African American children and their families. Additionally the stigma that is often associated with mental health care in the Black community often prevents children and families from seeking help when they need it and our inequitable health care system in the U.S., especially in poorer states like Alabama, creates an additional barrier to African American families when they want to access mental health care. There is a huge need for safe spaces for African American children and families to feel welcomed, considered, and understood.
Dr. Erica Chow is a Chinese American licensed clinical psychologist. She works with school-aged children (5+), adolescents, parents, families, adults, and couples who present with a variety of concerns including anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, relationship and identity issues, trauma, and adjustment-related distress.
“I have been told that parenthood is a journey. Now, as a new, first-time mother, I wholeheartedly agree with, and believe in this statement. Parenthood is absolutely a journey; a journey that can yield both expected and unexpected paths, road bumps/potholes, detours, and even unpredictable destinations. At the same time, it can also lead to wonderful adventures. It is no secret that parenting is hard. My hope is that by bridging evidence-based parenting practices with a culturally informed lens, the journey of parenthood can be a more inclusive and enriching experience for all.”