GSE student awarded fellowship on ethnic identities and mental health

Jane-Roz Abbe, a student in UB’s master’s program in mental health counseling, is helping young people embrace their identities and build community through a new youth fellowship focused on healing and empowerment.

Originally from New Jersey, Abbe completed her undergraduate degree at Rutgers University before moving to Buffalo to pursue her degree. Now nearing the end of her program in the Graduate School of Education, she recalls how she chose UB.

“I was looking into good programs for mental health counseling, since that’s what I wanted to do, and UB popped up,” Abbe explains. “When I came for the interview, I could tell they were really passionate about mental health, so I made the move.”

Set to graduate later this year, Abbe is also one of the inaugural youth fellows in a new initiative by the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF), called “Healing Ourselves, Healing Our Communities.” This five-week program brings together youth fellows like Abbe to co-lead workshops for young people ages 14 to 24.

Over the course of five sessions, the Healing Ourselves Youth Fellows lead their peers through the workshop series’ curriculum.

“The workshop is centered around getting to know your own ethnicity, becoming confident and comfortable with that, and also building community with others in the workshop,” Abbe says.

Each session incorporates interactive activities — like icebreakers and open discussions — to encourage connection among participants across cultures. The workshops are held on the North Campus and hosted in partnership with Bridges from Borders (BFB), where Abbe is also completing her internship.

Abbe and her co-facilitator guide participants through themed weekly topics, ranging from identity and culture to goal-setting and empowerment.

“We focus on helping them set realistic, long-term goals for themselves,” she notes. “At their age, some goals can feel overwhelming, so we try to break them down into manageable steps.”

With an average of 8 to 10 participants per session, the intimate group size allows for deep conversations and personal connections, along with helping participants feel “seen” and validated in their experiences. And while the program is short-term, Abbe sees lasting value in the skills and confidence participants can gain.

“Above all, the overarching goal is for them to feel comfortable in their identities — especially in a world that sometimes makes you feel like who you are isn’t enough or isn’t represented,” she says. “We want them to know that their healing matters, their voices matter and their opinions matter.”

Abbe says that while she’s not of Asian American or Pacific Islander descent, she’s deeply committed to learning about different ethnic groups to better serve diverse communities. As she looks ahead to completing her master’s degree, she plans to continue working in community mental health and will pursue licensure through agency work. While a PhD remains a future possibility, her immediate focus is on directly supporting people in need.

Reflecting on her time at UB, Abbe is grateful for the opportunities and mentorship she’s received.

“The professors here are passionate about the field, and they emphasize the importance of mental health, multiculturalism and how the field has changed — especially since COVID,” she says. “I feel like the stigma around mental health is starting to lessen and hopefully that continues.”