Dr. Shelly Rambo,
Director

Chaplain Ylisse C. Bess,
Program Director

Dayna Olson-Getty,
Project Coordinator

Shelly Rambo is an Associate Professor of Theology at Boston University. Her writing and teaching bridges theological understandings of suffering with contemporary clinical discourses in trauma and moral injury. She is the author of Spirit and Trauma: A Theology of Remaining, Resurrecting Wounds: Living in the Afterlife of Trauma, and a co-editor of Post-Traumatic Public Theology. Through recent grants and collaborations with Chaplaincy Innovation Lab, she is rethinking the education and training of “spiritual first-responders.” She is co-editor, with Wendy Cadge, of a forthcoming book, Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care in the 21st Century: An Introduction (UNC Press).

Ylisse C. Bess (she/her) is a board-certified hospital chaplain at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Bess, whose ministry is informed by pastoral theology and feminist/womanist theologies, works at the intersections of faith, culture, and healthcare. Beyond hospital ministry, Bess is an affiliated minister at Myrtle Baptist Church, Newton. As well, Bess supports people through the range of their reproductive experiences, primarily as an abortion doula in Boston, MA. She holds a BA in sociology and religious studies from Gonzaga University; an M.Div. from Boston University School of Theology; and completed Clinical Pastoral Education at Massachusetts General Hospital. In her free time, Bess enjoys swimming and cycling or roller-skating to 90s R&B and audiobooks.

Dayna Olson-Getty joined the Center for Practical Theology as Program Coordinator for the Trauma-Responsive Congregations grant in 2021. She holds an MDiv from Fuller Theological Seminary and is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College. She previously worked as a program coordinator at the Duke Divinity School Center for Reconciliation and has experience in church publishing, pastoral ministry, and campus ministry. She worships with SundayMorning@Home, a diverse ecumenical faith community, and lives with her husband and son in Harrisonburg, VA.

Shelby Hall,
Project Assistant

Shelby Hall (she/they) is a current Ph.D. student in Practical Theology at Boston University School of Theology. She is interested in the intersection of mental health and spiritual care. Before attending BU, Shelby worked as a chaplain at Emory Wesley Woods Hospital, an adult psychiatric facility. She is a graduate of Candler School of Theology where she focused on church and society, psychology of religion, and chaplaincy. She is looking forward to being involved in pastoral congregational care with the Trauma-Responsive Congregations project.

Nataly Romero,
Project Assistant

Nataly Romero is an MDiv student at Boston University School of Divinity. She was a pastor in the Methodist Church of Peru and is currently a member of the First Community United Methodist Church in Medford. She has a bachelor's degree in Biblical Sciences and a bachelor's degree in Tourism Administration, Hospitality and Gastronomy.

Megan Strouse,
Project Assistant

Megan Strouse (she/they) is in her final semester of study as an MDiv student at Boston University School of Theology and is in the ordination process in the United Church of Christ. She currently serves as an Intern for Discipleship and Outreach at Plymouth Church, a UCC community in Belmont, MA. Megan received a graduate certificate in Interfaith Dialogue from Hartford International University for Religion and Peace and is passionate about conflict transformation, engaging with queer, feminist, and process theologies, and working in youth ministry. Before their seminary studies, Megan received a bachelor's degree in Documentary Studies & Production and Anthropology from Ithaca College.

Jeehyun Baek,
Project Advisor

Kate Davis,
Project Advisor

Andrew Kimble,
Project Advisor

Jeehyun Baek (she/her) is a Ph.D. candidate in Constructive Theology at Boston University School of Theology. She holds degrees from Ewha Woman's University (B.A., M.A. in Christian Studies) and Duke Divinity School (M.Div., Th.M. in Theology). Her research interests lie in feminist and womanist theologies, Asian American studies/theologies, and trauma studies. She is currently working on her dissertation titled “Mourning Across Generations: Theological Witness to Intergenerational Trauma in the Korean Diaspora.” Jeehyun is also a Certified Candidate of the United Methodist Church in the NC Conference.

Kate Rae Davis serves as the Director of the Center for Transforming Engagement, a branch of The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology focused on equipping Christian leaders with tools of the social sciences to restore resilience and form trusting teams. She is also an involved lay leader and preacher in the Episcopal Church. Originally from West Michigan, Kate moved to Seattle in 2011 for her MDiv, and is currently working towards an EdD at NYU.

Rev. Andrew Kimble revels in conversation about philosophical and theological topics ranging from the metaphysical to the ethical. He currently serves as Associate Minister of Church and Culture at the Historic Charles St. AME Church and works at the Boston University School of Theology (BUSTH) as Associate Director of Alumni and Donor Relations and Director of Lifelong Learning. Andrew earned a BA in philosophy at Morehouse College and an MDiv from BUSTH. In his free time, he enjoys talking and laughing with friends and family, meeting new people, exercising, listening to jazz, and visiting the used book section in local bookstores. Originally from Los Angeles, he tries to bring a little “sunshine” wherever duty calls.

Martha Schick,
Project Advisor

Michelle Shoemaker,
Project Advisor

Mary Page Wilson-Lyons,
Project Advisor

Martha Schick (she/her) serves as a Pastoral Resident at Wellesley Village Church and is in the ordination process in the United Church of Christ. She first worked on the TRC grant as a research assistant while completing her MDiv at Boston University School of Theology, and is thrilled to continue working with this team as an educational advisor. She brings a deep love of gender and sexuality justice inside and outside the church, as well as a commitment to pastoral care. She previously worked in youth, young adult, and interfaith college ministry settings.

Michelle Shoemaker is a Chaplain for Sharp Hospitals in San Diego. After working for 30 years as a graphic designer and design professor, she joined Point Loma Nazarene University’s Center for Justice & Reconciliation as Director of San Diego Churches Against Trafficking in 2013. Alongside this work, she also volunteered with Generate Hope San Diego in mentoring survivors of human trafficking, and became captivated with trauma-informed, one-on-one ministry. This set off a journey of entering seminary and going through the Clinical Pastoral Educational process to become a Chaplain. She hopes to complete her M.Div. degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in the Fall of 2023.

Mary Page Wilson-Lyons is currently a doctoral student in Practical Theology at Boston University School of Theology. Her focus is centered on the experience of mental health problems, especially with those who also live under traumatic systems and structures, and rethinking liberative theologies of wholeness. Before returning to her studies, she served as a strategy consultant for The Women’s Fund of Greater Birmingham, an organization that develops approaches to connect women and families experiencing poverty with opportunities to thrive, and empowers the voices of women to be heard on the legislative level. Before her consulting experience, Mary Page worked as a Visiting Instructor of Religion at Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham, AL, taught high school abroad in Székesfehérvár, Hungary, and served as a chaplain intern at the Metro State Prison for Women in Atlanta, GA.

Eric M. Brown, Ph.D.,
Consultant

Rev. Dr. Eunil David Cho,
Consultant

Dr. Eric Brown is an Assistant Professor in the Mental Health Counseling and Behavioral Medicine Program at BU School of Medicine. For the past 12 years, he has worked in various clinical settings: in a level one trauma hospital, a community mental health counseling center, and a private practice. He is a member of the American Counseling Association, International Association for Resilience and Trauma Counseling, and the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision. His service to the community focuses on consulting and training in areas related to the mental health development of marginalized populations and trauma-informed care. Before entering academia, Dr. Brown served as a Senior Minister of a church for 11 years.

Rev. Dr. Cho is Assistant Professor of Spiritual Care and Counseling at BU School of Theology (STH). He is a practical theologian whose research in pastoral theology and spiritual care, especially among immigrant and refugee communities, engages the fields of narrative theories, psychology of religion, and sociology of religion. Dr. Cho approaches spiritual care from the position of an ethnic and racial minority by integrating proficiency in critical race theory, global migration, and qualitative research methods. He is committed to teaching out of his personal and academic expertise as a former middle school teacher, minister, and chaplain in a way that contributes to the transformation of personal, communal, and public life. Dr. Cho currently serves as a Co-Director of the Center for Practical Theology at STH. He is also an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Jamie Harris Rosen,
Consultant

Sook Kyoung,
Consultant

Jamie Harris Rosen is an Expressive Arts Therapist, Freelance Artist, Educator, Restorative Justice Practitioner, and Peacemaker. For the past decade, she has been developing and utilizing an innovative community-based healing model, intertwining Expressive Arts, Somatics, Restorative Justice, and Trauma-Informed Care. She uses this multi-disciplinary approach with nonprofits, educational institutions, humanitarian organizations, and for-profit enterprises, to help them tap into their multiple intelligences, innate wisdom and imagination to overcome obstacles and cultivate long-term resilience and well-being.  She recently co-founded The Creatives PATCH- Play and Arts-based Tools for Change and Healing (https://thecreativespatch.com). The primary focus is on building a safe container for the playful, artistic and sensory-based exploration needed to bridge cultural differences, break down old patterns/barriers and create new insights and just ways of being from the inside out. Jamie particularly enjoys supporting those struggling with special needs, grief and trauma, including immigrants /refugees, veterans, unsheltered youth/families, the incarcerated, and families navigating disabilities and chronic illness. Like many fellow Virgos, she loves art and nature and actively needs those creative juices movin’ and groovin’.  Find her painting in a brilliant mountain meadow, dancing barefoot at the beach, or belting out Abba as she cooks. Art is her  North star! When it comes to R&R, find her laughing with friends and family around the dinner table and playing with her beloved Australian Shepherd, Aspen.

Sook Kyoung Kwon is an Expressive Arts Therapist and Restorative Justice Practitioner who specializes in utilizing creative interventions to help people with communication, problem-solving, peace-building and healing. She strongly believes in the power of play and arts to heal people, restore relationships, and build and support communities. Sook Kyoung has extensive experience working with families of children with special needs, immigrants, refugees, incarcerated and homeless. She is passionate about bringing expressive arts and training programs to diverse communities. As an active theatre artist, her work incorporates the Theatre of the Oppressed and Playback Theatre to bring people together to share their stories and to serve change.

Sook Kyoung studied Theology (BA) and Christian Education and Counseling (Th.M) at Yonsei University in Korea. She holds an MA in Expressive Arts Therapy from European Graduate School. She is a co-founder of The Creatives PATCH: Play and Arts Tools for Change and Healing and currently serves as a counselor at Elim Counseling Center for Family and Community (www.elimccfc.org). Sook Kyoung has been a trainer/facilitator for NCRC since 2018.