THE DISCOVERY SUMMIT AND AWARD CEREMONY
Posted widely on social media. Services provided by Ms. Afrika Abney
From November 8, 2023 - December 4, 2023, Ms. Afrika Abney provided services for The Discovery Summit & Scholarship Awards Ceremony. Information about the workshop was posted widely online and sent via email to parent groups, community organizations, schools, churches and other businesses. The event was widely advertised on the following sites. Some of them include Adventure Moms DC, Anacostia Coordinating Council Newsletter/Bulletin, DC Public Charter School Board Newsletter, Washington Parent Magazine, Washington Family Magazine, Washington Informer, and Washington Afro American Newspaper.
Join Esther Productions, Inc and Black Student Fund for the Discovering Me Summit and Awards Ceremony includes special appearance by The Honorable Anita Josey-Herring, chief judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, plus mini workshops, led by dynamic clinicians, wellness experts and healing artists including jonetta rose barras, Dr. Misty Freeman and Dr. Tracie Robinson, that are designed to educate, inspire and empower fatherless girls and women who are grappling with the adverse consequences of father absence.
The event also celebrates teen girls who entered the Discovering Me Without You Personal Essay Scholarship Contest which was presented by Esther Productions, Inc and the Black Student Fund. The top winners of that competition will be announced on December 9, 2023. The deadline for the contest was October 31st.
THE HONORABLE ANITA JOSEY-HERRING, chief judge, Superior Court of the District of Columbia, was appointed to the bench in November 1997 by President William Clinton. She was selected as chief judge on July 21, 2020 and was sworn in on Oct. 16, 2020. She has had a very distinguished career. As an Associate Judge, she served in the Family, Civil and Criminal Divisions of the court. In 2000, Judge Josey-Herring was appointed by the Chief Judge to serve as the Deputy Presiding Judge of the Family Court and later served as the Presiding Judge of the Family Court from 2006 through 2008. During her service in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Chief Judge Josey-Herring has led numerous initiatives to improve the quality of justice and service to litigants and attorneys alike. She led the highly regarded Family Treatment Court Initiative that provides drug treatment and social services to mothers charged with neglecting their children due to substance abuse. Additionally, Chief Judge Josey-Herring presided over the Family Treatment Court calendar from its inception and collaborated with District agencies to deliver services to parents and children in the neglect system. She also presided over the Juvenile Drug Court prior to the establishment of the Family Treatment Court. Chief Judge Josey-Herring alsoplayed a significant role in the development and implementation of the D.C. Family Court and implemented several programs, in her role as Deputy Presiding and later Presiding Judge of Family Court, to improve the quality of justice provided to District families. Chief Judge Josey-Herring has also served on numerous committees. She has received a host of awards in recognition of her service to citizens of the District of Columbia.
Ms. Jonetta Barras is an award-winning journalist and best-selling author. She has more than 20 years experience reporting and commenting on national social, political, and cultural trends, including as an opinion writer with The Washington Post, Washington Examiner and Washington City Paper.
Ms. Barras founded Esther Productions Inc. in 2004 after the publication of her Black Board bestseller Whatever Happened to Daddy's Little Girl: The Impact of Fatherlessness on Black Women (Ballantine 2000, hardcover—2001, paperback). She has spoken at more than two-dozen national and international conferences and symposia, and many consider her the foremost authority on the affects of father absence among girls and women.
Dr. Tracie Robinson, Ph. D, RP, CHT is a holistic artist healer and certified dance/movement therapist with more than 30 years of experience. She uses structure and/or authentic dance and movement to facilitate synergistic change. Her goal is to expose people to their predispositions by integrating movement, gestures, rhythms, breath, verbal and non-verbal communication with a less defended expression of the body. This also includes facilitating the revelation of repressed feelings, structured movement interventions, exploring alternative methods of resolving internal and interpersonal conflicts and supporting psychological growth in areas of self-empowerment, self-esteem and positive body image.
"Dr. Misty Freeman applies her expertise in mental health, learning, and behavior, to help children and youth succeed academically, socially, behaviorally, and emotionally. "
Esther Productions, Inc. is dedicated to using a variety of vehicles—traditional and nontraditional—to develop communities throughout the United States and Europe. It was created in 2004 by Jonetta Rose Barras, award-winning journalist and author of Whatever Happened to Daddy’s Little Girl? - estherproductionsinc.com
"The Black Student Fund (BSF) provides essential advocacy, academic and retention support to academically motivated African American and other underserved students to facilitate their access, admission and successful matriculation and graduation from member schools. BSF partners with member schools to provide financial assistance, as well as instruction, evaluations, feedback and monitoring necessary to facilitate the creation and maintenance of a supportive and responsive environment." - https://blackstudentfund.org/
Contact: Esther Productions, Inc at estherproductionsinc@gmail.com
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