Rev. Dr. Que English, Director of HHS Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Tours Yeshiva University’s Bronx Campus & Community Health Programs
Jan 31, 2023 By: yunews
On January 17th, Yeshiva University along with several of its graduate schools welcomed Rev. Dr. Que English, Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, for a tour of YU’s Bronx campus, where YU hosts many local community health programs and offers graduate study in vital health-related fields.Rev. Dr. Que English is HHS’ chief liaison to faith communities and to grassroots organizations and is responsible for spearheading the department’s communication with local communities through faith-based, grassroots, and other local institutions. Dr. English toured the Max and Celia Parnes Family Psychological and Psychoeducational Services Clinic at YU’s Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology and the Physicians Assistant program at YU’s Katz School of Science and Health. Dr. Que English, Director of HHS Faith Based and Community Partnerships, Tours YU's Bronx Campus along With Administrators from Wurzweiler School of Social Work, Katz School of Science and Health, and Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology“I am grateful for the invitation to tour Yeshiva University's Bronx facilities,” stated Dr. English. “The visit gave me a unique perspective on the critical role of YU's graduate schools in servicing the communities of greater New York City. These meetings also sparked productive conversations and reinforced my commitment to harnessing the faith community's resources to address pressing healthcare and mental health issues impacting millions of Americans.”Jon Greenfield, Director of Government Relations for Yeshiva University and event organizer shared “it was an honor to host Rev. Dr. English for her visit to campus and showcase all of the great work our students and faculty at The Wurzweiler School of Social Work, Katz School of Science and Health, and Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology. Yeshiva University is a leader in healthcare and mental health services and is proud of its strong commitment to the communities we serve in the Bronx, Northern Manhattan, and across New York City.” Greenfield concluded, “we look forward to strengthening our partnerships with Dr. English and with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and to continue to serve the community and further our mission of public service as the world's flagship Jewish institution of higher learning.” Dr. English’s first stop of the afternoon took place at Ferkauf’s Parnes Clinic, which is led by Dr. Bill Salton. The clinic offers affordable sliding-scale mental health treatment and psychological assessment services to 600 patients per year, about two-thirds of whom are Bronx residents, and is the fourth largest psychological training clinic in the nation. Dr. Leslie Halpern, Dean of Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Provides a Tour of the Parnes Center to Director Que EnglishAdditionally, Director English learned about several community and faith-based oriented programs offered at Ferkauf including its pastoral counseling certificate program, an innovative online Master of Arts degree in mental health counseling for members of Haredi communities, as well as a specialized training program in gero-psychology at Jacobi Hospital for medical residents and psychology doctoral students.Dr. Leslie Halpern, Dean of Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, noted “our meeting with Dr. English was remarkably productive and we appreciated the opportunity to showcase the wide-ranging impact of our community-based programming. Ferkauf is committed to training the next generation of mental health practitioners and is particularly attuned to our community’s growing need for faith-based programming and culturally sensitive mental health services.” Halpern continued “we hope to build off our meeting with Dr. English and further develop our relationships with our government and community partners. As we pursue innovative programs to address a growing mental health crisis and bridge the gap in healthcare equity in our communities, it's critical to have partners in government that can help steer us toward grant funding to expand our community-based intervention programs, research, and scholarships for students, especially those from historically Visit by Reverend Dr. Que English to the Parnes Center and the Katz School's new facilities on the Bronx campusunderrepresented groups.” Dr. English also received an overview from Dean Paul Russo about the graduate programs offered at the Katz School of Science and Health. Specifically, the discussion focused on Katz’s emphasis on expanding the primary care workforce with programs like physician assistant studies and graduate nursing. Dr. Russo also highlighted the growing need for rehabilitative therapies such as occupational therapy and speech language pathology, which have provided vital services to New York communities throughout the pandemic and its aftermath.Dean Russo remarked “we were grateful to Dr. English for sharing her insights about national trends in health care as well as brainstorming on ways in which YU can expand its contributions. The meeting reinforced the need for government, hospitals, and unions to work with universities to strengthen and support the healthcare workforce. Through close-knit engagements with agencies like HHS, we can tackle perennial challenges in the industry such as talent shortages while advancing healthcare in practice with new diagnostics, protocols, technologies, and analytics.” Russo highlighted “equally important is our emphasis on service, for example, Dr. Marissa Barrera’s telehealth clinic for speech-language pathology and occupational therapy which has served over 2,000 New Yorkers since the pandemic began. This work provides invaluable clinical experience and critical exposure to diverse patient populations.” Dr. Que English, Director of HHS Faith Based and Community Partnerships, Receives Demonstration of Virtual State-of-The-Art Cadaver Utilized by Katz School PA StudentsLastly, Dr. Mary Morrissey, Director of the Ph.D. Program at the Wurzweiler School of Social Work discussed the positive contributions of several community-facing programs during the tour including the Wurzweiler Care Café led by Kimberly Moore and the palliative care training program for both graduate and clergy students. Both programs help prepare students and local leaders to be informed and compassionate mental health professionals in their communities through hands on experience. Wurzweiler MSW Student Allysha Bryant Presents About the Impact of Care Café - A Community Social Welfare Program Led By YU's School of Social WorkDr. Morrissey reflected “we were delighted to have the opportunity to meet and engage with Dr. English and other faculty members across YU’s various institutions. In particular, we had productive conversations about the importance of maximizing the clinical and programming resources provided by the Care Café and palliative care training program.”Dr. Morrissey concluded “projects like the Care Café serve as an invaluable resource for vulnerable communities in New York City, such as veterans, Holocaust survivors, refugees, and lower-income individuals. To achieve maximum impact, the program provides crisis counseling and referrals by leveraging close partnerships with faith-based, government, and goodwill facilities. We hope to strengthen these relationships following our meeting with Dr. English as we came out energized about new prospective programs and partnerships.” Visit by Reverend Dr. Que English to the Parnes Center and the Katz School's new facilities on the Bronx campus. From L to R: Yael Muskat, Mary Beth Quaranta Morrissey, Leslie Halpern, Allysha Bryant, Andrew Avi Lauer, Que English, Jon Greenfield, Amiya Waldman-Levi, Peggy Tallier, Paul Russo, Richard Zweig, William Salton
Dr. Que English, Director of HHS Faith Based and Community Partnerships, Tours YU's Bronx Campus along With Administrators from Wurzweiler School of Social Work, Katz School of Science and Health, and Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology
Dr. Leslie Halpern, Dean of Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Provides a Tour of the Parnes Center to Director Que English
Visit by Reverend Dr. Que English to the Parnes Center and the Katz School's new facilities on the Bronx campus
Dr. Que English, Director of HHS Faith Based and Community Partnerships, Receives Demonstration of Virtual State-of-The-Art Cadaver Utilized by Katz School PA Students
Wurzweiler MSW Student Allysha Bryant Presents About the Impact of Care Café - A Community Social Welfare Program Led By YU's School of Social Work
Visit by Reverend Dr. Que English to the Parnes Center and the Katz School's new facilities on the Bronx campus. From L to R: Yael Muskat, Mary Beth Quaranta Morrissey, Leslie Halpern, Allysha Bryant, Andrew Avi Lauer, Que English, Jon Greenfield, Amiya Waldman-Levi, Peggy Tallier, Paul Russo, Richard Zweig, William Salton
