Danyelle Dawson, MA

Danyelle Dawson, MA, is a doctoral candidate in clinical-community psychology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and cofounder of the DEAR Project. She received her bachelor's degree in psychology and social and economic justice from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her master's degree in psychology from North Carolina Central University. Ms. Dawson's program of research focuses on (1) the mental and physical impacts of racism and discrimination on marginalized populations and (2) individual- and community-level engagement in resistance and healing (e.g., radical healing, anti-racism advocacy, sociopolitical action, community building). As a researcher trained in both clinical and community psychology, her research and applied work aims to enhance both individual- and systems-level capacity to resist and challenge oppressive contexts and realities. Ms. Dawson has published numerous papers related to these topics and has won several awards recognizing her commitment to diversity and anti-racist endeavors in her work. She has worked with university counseling centers, local mental health boards, and community organizations to build their evaluation capacity and facilitate their intentional work to continuously create and sustain organizational processes consistent with their organizational goals. She lives in Charlotte, North Carolina.