Dr. Natalie Cort has been appointed as the new director of the Center for Multicultural and Global Mental Health (CMGMH), after three years serving as co-director. The CMGMH was inaugurated in 2016 with groundbreaking programs like the Black Mental Health Graduate Academy and graduate-level academic concentrations in Latino Mental Health, African and Caribbean Mental Health, the nation’s first and only at that time, Asian Mental Health, the nation’s only, and Global Mental Health.
Cort, a research grade psychiatric diagnostician consultant, has been an investigator, intervention developer, clinician, and interpersonal psychotherapy trainer on 11 research trials and programs funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She has also co-authored peer-reviewed journal articles and a practitioner guide on racial/ethnic differences in youth mental health, child abuse reporting practices, high-risk sexual behaviors, age-discordant sexual relationships, and depression treatment outcomes.
As an immigrant of Afro- and Indo-Caribbean cultural background from Guyana in South America, her personal experiences spurred her to challenge ethnocentric and monocultural practices in the mental health field. Through her company, Cort Consulting and Counseling, Cort provides leadership coaching, professional development training, and consultation to ensure the promotion of culturally responsive and trauma-informed organizational policies and practices.
Previously named the 2023 Teacher of the Year by the Massachusetts Psychological Association (MPA), an award presented to professors who promote an interest in the field of psychology to students and develop effective teaching methods and courses, among other things, Cort also directs the Black Mental Health Graduate Academy at WJC, an award-winning mentoring and leadership pipeline program designed to recruit and retain Black students pursuing careers in psychology and mental health counseling.
The mission and vision of the Center is to train, educate, mentor, and prepare a cadre of professionals to address mental health disparities, and serve culturally diverse individuals and communities locally and across the globe. It is also to inspire and empower students, clinicians, educators, and other providers as agents of social justice with a passion for and commitment to serving historically marginalized populations.
