Black History Month with Kayla

We are excited to celebrate Black History month by highlighting some of our inspiring Black Science Cheerleaders.

First in this series is Kayla, former 49ers Gold Rush Cheerleader and current choreographer for many professional cheer teams, such as the Golden State Warriors Dance Team and the Raiderettes. This is also perfect timing to catch up with her, because she was just promoted to Clinical Director. Congratulations, Kayla!

What does it mean to you to be an African American in your STEM career?
As a young African American psychologist, it is incredibly exciting to be able to represent diversity in the role of a Clinical Director. A Clinical Director is a psychologist who supervises clinical staff, oversees clinical treatment decisions and manages a treatment facility, overall. Clinical Director is one of the highest positions a psychologist can obtain in a treatment facility. It is very common for Clinical Directors to be predominately white and middle-aged. Naturally, as a person of color, I’ve thought about how it may take me longer to achieve my dream of being a Clinical Director, due to the disadvantages I face of not fitting the stereotype of a Clinical Director, coupled with the fact that there are minimal Clinical Director positions available in the world. I am therefore honored and thrilled to be a Clinical Director and serve as a role model for people of color in leadership positions.

Is there a Black mentor or role model who had a significant impact on your life or that you particularly look up to?
My aunt is a Black therapist, and she has made such a positive impact in my life. Growing up, I noticed how hard my aunt worked in graduate school to pursue psychology, and I therefore naturally developed an interest in psychology. She really inspired me and laid a foundation of the importance of education. Now as a clinician, I am so grateful that I have someone in my family to talk to who can relate to my life experiences in the mental health field.

Keep up the great work, Kayla!