Dr. Sean Joe, Dr. Sonyia Richardson featured on Science Friday

The article titled “Pandemic Unveils Growing Suicide Crisis For Communities Of Color” quoted Dr. Sean Joe and Researcher Resiliency Training Fellow Dr. Sonyia Richardson. “COVID created more transparency regarding what we already knew was happening,” said Sonyia Richardson, a licensed clinical social worker who focuses on serving people of color and an assistant professor at the […]

Dr. Joe Quoted in New York Magazine

Dr. Joe was recently mentioned in the article “Deaths of Despair Have Surged Among People of Color: New data shows another disaster unfolding alongside the pandemic. ” for his research on suicidology among Black people in the United States. Below are some excerpts from the article. “Recent studies examining statewide data have found similar patterns, […]

Race and Opportunity Lab Director Quoted in New York Times Article

Dr. Joe was recently mentioned in the article “Will the Pandemic Result in More Suicides? ” for his research on suicide among Black people in the United States. Below are some excerpts from the article. “As Sean Joe, who is the director of the Race and Opportunity Lab at Washington University in St. Louis and who […]

CBA 101

Please take the time to watch this video with Robert Motley explaining the importance of a CBA. Robert Motley, MSW is the lab Manager at our Race and Opportunity Lab and is currently working on his dissertation focusing on the effect of racism based policing on Black emerging adults 18 to 29 years of age. […]

Congratulations to Dr. Sean Joe, MSW,PhD!

  Dr. Joe recently joined the advisory board of Washington University’s PEP, Prison Education Project, and the board of directors of the Independence Center. Learn more about these organizations at the links below. Independence Center                                      PEP

Pandemic, racism compound worries about Black suicide rate

CHICAGO (AP) — Jasmin Pierre was 18 when she tried to end her life, overdosing on whatever pills she could find. Diagnosed with depression and anxiety, she survived two more attempts at suicide, which felt like the only way to stop her pain. Years of therapy brought progress, but the 31-year-old Black woman’s journey is […]

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and Vibrant Emotional Health’s Black Racism and Mental Health Webinar

On Thursday, June 18, 2020, our very own Principal Investigator, Dr. Sean Joe, and Lab Manager, Robert Motley, Jr., spoke at a panel discussion on the examination of racism, violence, and mental health hosted by the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and Vibrant Emotional Health’s Black Racism and Mental Health webinar. Watch the National Suicide Prevention […]

WashU Expert: Explaining push to ‘defund police’

In the wake of national protests following the death of George Floyd, some activists are calling on cities to defund their police departments. But what does that mean exactly? Robert Motley, a PhD candidate in the Brown School and manager of the Race & Opportunity Lab at Washington University in St. Louis, explained it’s more of a […]

Study examines black male youth reactions to social media videos of community violence

New research from the Race and Opportunity Lab in the Brown School’s Center for Social Development at Washington University in St. Louis sheds light on youths’ reactions to social media videos showing violence in their communities. Published in the journal Social Work Research, the study presents findings from a survey of black male youths incarcerated in the St. Louis […]

U.S. Needs a Behavioral Health ‘CARES’ Act Now — Here’s What It Must Include

The global pandemic caused by COVID-19 has left millions struggling with grief in a new way. Specifically, the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has left many in America and across the globe without the opportunity to be present during the illness process, dying process, or the burial process of those dear […]

Sean Joe wants to change the lives of young black men in St. Louis

“The experience of young black males was represented by the experience of Michael Brown and others who have followed over the years,” says Joe, also associate dean for faculty and research at the Brown School. In the United States, for black males ages 18-29, homicide is a leading cause of death whether by the police […]

Suicide Attempts Rise Among Black Teens, But Researcher Says Data On Solutions Is Missing

Suicide attempts among black children and teenagers have increased by 73% since 1991, according to data published in the Journal of Pediatrics this month. “This group always reported much higher rates of suicide attempts than any other group except for Native American Alaskan Indians since 1991,” says Sean Joe, a professor of social work at […]

WashU: Focus on Suicide, Gun Violence

Suicide remains preventable, and prevention methods should go beyond behavioral means, according to expert recommendations from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. The recommendations came during a June 12 congressional briefing, “The Impact of Weapons and Violence on School and Surrounding Communities,” aimed at addressing current scientific data surrounding gun violence. “Gun […]

Commentary: Who gets to be Better Together?

Could you live on $30 per day? Could you take care of your family? For too long, black men of prime working ages have remained the St. Louisans least likely to benefit from the upward economic mobility that defines the American dream.  As the St. Louis region considers the proposed Better Together merger of city […]

WashU Expert: We must address suicide in gun violence in America

In the United States, almost 50,000 people die every year from suicide. While participating in a June 13 briefing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., a Washington University in St. Louis expert testified that — amid the need nationally to stem violence in schools and elsewhere — suicide remains preventable. And prevention methods go beyond […]

Doctoral candidate receives grants to study racism-based trauma

Robert Motley Jr., a doctoral candidate at the Brown School and manager of the Center for Social Development’s Race and Opportunity Lab, has received a two-year $60,936 grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and a $5,000 grant from the Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation. Read more here.

Summit aims to better lives for 60,000 black males in St. Louis area

The HomeGrown STL Inaugural Summit, February 9 at the Brown School, drew about 120 people committed to improving the lives of black boys and young men in St. Louis City and County. “Equity and economics are different sides of the same coin,” said Joe Reagan, president and CEO of the St. Louis Regional Chamber, in […]

St. Louis must invest in young, black males to grow

While St. Louis was preoccupied with Better Together’s recently released proposal for merging St. Louis city and county governments, HomeGrown STL convened its annual summit on February 7 at the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University, where it’s based. Its focus was succinctly stated in the title of the policy brief released and […]

My Brother’s Keeper Alliance brings HomeGrown STL into its fold

Inspired by HomeGrown STL’s “strong track record of working to improve life outcomes for boys and young men of color,” the Obama Foundation’s My Brother’s Keeper Alliance has named HomeGrown STL a “Community to Watch.” Professor Sean Joe, director of HomeGrown STL, announced the designation last week at HomeGrown’s third annual regional summit, “Building Capacity for […]

National Initiative Sites Absorb Lessons on Implicit Bias

“In the weeks before the 2018-19 school year dawned, police officers, procedural justice trainers, and School Resource Officers (SROs) from numerous National Initiative for Building Community Trust & Justice (NI) sites absorbed their own formative classroom lessons—on implicit bias and reconciliation. In Texas, this meant a two-day peer exchange in August dedicated to improving SRO interactions with […]

Forward Promise Appoints Prestigious National Advisory Committee

Forward Promise, a national grant-making program that supports the health of boys and young men of color, today announced the members of its National Advisory Committee (NAC). A diverse group of national leaders in the fields of health, education, youth advocacy, technology, psychology, business and philanthropy will guide Forward Promise in its efforts to help […]

The Black Boys & Men: Changing the Narrative

The Black Boys & Men: Changing the Narrative podcast series brings together thought leaders from the public and private sectors to analyze stereotypes and dispel myths concerning Black boys and men, while providing facts and best practices for those working with these often marginalized populations. The series calls into question issues of systemic racism and oppression and […]

From Policing to Policy

In 2014, Luther Tyus was finishing his sixth year as an officer with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. He had become well known within the department, winning accolades like the Meritorious Service Citation and Citizen’s Service Award for his work to build trust between officers and local communities. He had organized a series of police-run events, such […]

Why Didn’t I Kill Him?

Editor’s Note: Luther O. Tyus is a graduate research assistant in the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, as well as an eight-year veteran of the St. Louis Police Department and a certified Peace Officer Standards and Training police instructor. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. The first time I almost killed a […]

‘Build the village that raises the child’

HomeGrown STL rallying cry: ‘Build the village that raises the child’ By Jill Young Miller More than 120 people working to improve the lives of black boys and young men in St. Louis participated in the second annual HomeGrown STL Summit on February 8 at the Brown School of Social Work. “Build the village that […]

HomeGrown STL featured in the St. Louis American

Sean Joe developed Home Grown STL as a response to moving to St. Louis to take a faculty position at Washington University in August 2014 – the same month of the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown Jr. Home Grown STL is a research project that consists of networking events with local professionals to seek […]

Regional Summit featured in Center for Social Development News

The HomeGrown STL Inaugural Summit, February 9 at the Brown School, drew about 120 people committed to improving the lives of black boys and young men in St. Louis City and County. “Equity and economics are different sides of the same coin,” said Joe Reagan, president and CEO of the St. Louis Regional Chamber, in […]

HomeGrown STL nearing action ‘on the ground’

​HomeGrown STL is close to putting its strategy for collective impact to work in St. Louis. The project, part of the Center for Social Development’s Race and Opportunity Lab, aims to support the social mobility of black boys and men between the ages of 12 and 29 in St. Louis City and County. “We want […]

Policing and Social Trust

Humans are a social species. The need for trust is rooted in our DNA. In times of peril and uncertainty, trusting relationships provide a sense of security. Trust helps us to survive. In 2014, during the Ferguson unrest, I was a police officer in St. Louis, assigned to a special unit focusing on low-income housing […]

Police More Likely to Use Force Against Higher Income Black Women

A new study  by Robert Motley Jr. a doctoral student and Sean Joe, the Benjamin E. Youngdahl Professor of Social Development at the Brown School of Washington University in St. Louis, examines the use of force by police officers when factors such as race, gender and income are taken into account. The researchers examined 2011 data […]

HomeGrown STL rallying cry: ‘Build the village that raises the child’

More than 120 people working to improve the lives of black boys and young men in St. Louis participated in the second annual HomeGrown STL Summit on February 8 at the Brown School of Social Work. “Build the village that raises the child,” said Sean Joe, the Benjamin E. Youngdahl Professor of Social Development, who […]

Study Finds That Police Are More Likely to Use Force Against Higher Income Black Women

A new study  by Robert Motley Jr. a doctoral student and Sean Joe, the Benjamin E. Youngdahl Professor of Social Development at the Brown School of Washington University in St. Louis, examines the use of force by police officers when factors such as race, gender and income are taken into account. The researchers examined 2011 data […]

HomeGrown STL nearing action ‘on the ground’ for black males

​HomeGrown STL is close to putting its strategy for collective impact to work in St. Louis. The project, part of the Center for Social Development’s Race and Opportunity Lab, aims to support the social mobility of black boys and men between the ages of 12 and 29 in St. Louis City and County. “We want […]