Agenda & Speaker Bios
Cultural Frameworks & Social Transformations
This day will highlight culture as a context in which social services unfold. The
presenters will examine culture, diversity and gender through a cultural lens to identify
and advance the well-being and quality of life of people from diverse backgrounds.
Topics & Key Takeaways:
Cultural influences on the determination of the status of people from diverse backgrounds, how culture influences gender, and what can occur to people who experience negative social reactions because of their diversity.
- Thursday 6/6/24
- 9:00AM - 4:10PM (AKDT)
- 6 contact hours of continuing education
- Cost: $40
Continuing Education Activities:
6 Contact Hours - May apply toward cross-cultural education hours or as general continuing education hours. Contact hours relating to Alaska Native Cultures may apply towards contact hours in cross-cultural education relating to Alaska Natives.
Agenda
| Time | Topic | Presenter(s) |
| 9:00 AM | Welcome | Yvonne Chase |
| Land Acknowledgement | Maria Williams | |
| 9:15 AM | Social Change and Social Movements: Culture, Gender, and Identity and Their Influence on Global Society of the Future | David Moxley |
| 10:00 AM | Q&A | |
| 10:30 AM | 15 Minute Break | |
| 10:45 AM | Recognition of Historical Trauma in Alaska Native Communities and its Influence on Empowerment | Jessica Ross |
| 12:00 PM | Lunch Break | |
| 1:00 PM | Sustainable Housing and Cultural Context | Joel Condon |
| 2:00 PM | Cultures of schools: Creating Productive Places for Learning in Diverse Communities | Matthew Cuellar |
| 3:00 PM | 15 Minute Break | |
| 3:15 PM | Affirming Culture in Refugee Communities | Amana Mbise & David Moxley |
| 4:00 PM | Closing Remarks/Continuing Education Activities Overview | Yvonne Chase |
Speaker Presentations
Department Chair, Professor, BHS Advisor
Professor, Alaska Native Studies
Associate Professor of Construction Management
Joel Condon is an Associate Professor of Construction Management at the University of Alaska Anchorage. He is chair of the Construction Management department and the Architectural and Engineering Technology department at UAA. He is a registered architect and a licensed general building contractor. He has taught at the American University of Beirut as a visiting professor and at the Yerevan State University of Architecture and Construction as a post-graduate Fulbright Scholar. Sustainable Housing and Cultural Context - Indigenous Housing Around the World and the Implications of Demographic Trends.
Assistant Dean of the School of Justice and Human Services
David P. Moxley, Ph.D., is highly involved in the education and professional development of human services, health, and social work professionals. His areas of work include psychiatric rehabilitation, recovery, and community building for prevention. David received his Ph.D. from Ohio State University, his DPA from Western Michigan University and NIMH Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of Michigan.
Assistant Professor
Professor Ross is a Dena'ina tribal member of the Native Village of Eklutna. She serves as an Assistant professor for the Human Services program and Alaska Native Studies program at the University of Alaska Anchorage.
Professor Ross' education includes current work towards a PhD in Indigenous Studies, a Master degree in Education - Teaching and Learning, and a Bachelor Degree in Science - Dental Hygiene. Professor Ross began her teaching career in 2016 at the University of Alaska while leading head and neck anatomy, patient management, instrumentation and clinical practicum courses in the Dental Hygiene program. Her work in Human Services allows her to continue her work developing Culturally Responsive and Trauma-Informed (CRTI) approaches to practice while also leading efforts on the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Occupational Endorsement Certificate (OEC) program. Professor Ross founded the Nughejagh project (Dena'ina for "To become healed") which is a participatory project that explores the implications of trauma and potential healing impacts of Indigenous cultural revitalization.
Assistant Professor, School of Social Work
Amana Mbise brings vast experiences in global health (HIV/AIDs and Malaria), refugee integration, and community development in Tanzania, Denmark, and the U.S. His scholarship centers around migration, human trafficking, and health equity. Mbise's ongoing and most recent works include an NIJ study on labor exploitation in Alaska and a Department of State grant to estimate the prevalence of human trafficking and domestic servitude in Tanzania. In collaboration with the Alaska Black Caucus, I led the first health needs assessment of Black Alaskans. The assessment—funded through the Anchorage Health Department—provides the first look at the overarching health status, needs, and strengths of the Black Community of Alaska.
Matthew Cuellar
Assistant Professor, BSW Program Chair
Dr. Matthew J. Cuellar is a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work. He earned his Ph.D. in Social Work from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a minor in Applied Statistics from the Haslam School of Business. He earned his Master of Social Work from the University of Alabama. Cuellar has served as PI, co-PI, research scientist, and program evaluator on externally funded research projects sponsored by local, state, and federal agencies totaling more than $3.4M. Cuellar's current research focuses on disparate outcomes in school safety and barriers to academic achievement among children and adolescents in public school systems. Cuellar has extensive experience working with students in higher education, with particular expertise mentoring students at the doctoral and master levels in social work, criminal justice, and psychology. Cuellar currently teaches Introduction to Social Work and Program Evaluation in the School of Social Work.