CBHL is proud to introduce the Project Team, who model equity-grounded leadership and bring a wealth of experience and expertise to the development of the Fellow Program. Their approach is person-centered, recovery-oriented, trauma-informed, and acknowledges that individual leaders have different experiences, abilities, and needs.
Program Development
Curriculum and Facilitation
Crystal Brandow, PhD
Crystal L. Brandow, PhD, has been working in the fields of behavioral and community health for over a decade, including efforts related to well-being and wellness; trauma, healing, and resilience; identity, culture, and bias; and social justice. Dr. Brandow’s interests include broader, interdisciplinary topics related to public health communication, population health, and health disparities. Applying these interests, her portfolio and expertise includes training, facilitation, technical and academic writing, curriculum development, and product development on interdisciplinary topics related to public health and disparities. Dr. Brandow strives to integrate an equity lens to all the projects she engages in. Dr. Brandow centers her work around Wellness First, and aims to bring an authentic, impactful, innovative voice to the behavioral health space.
Recent dissemination of Dr. Brandow’s work includes Improving Black Mental Health: A Collective Call to Action, co-authored with Dr. Margaret Swarbrick; and The Intersection of Racial Injustice and Behavioral Health, co-presented with Drs. Ron Manderscheid and Margaret Swarbrick. Both pieces highlight the need for dismantling white supremacy structures in mental health services and creating equitable opportunities for Black people while preventing further traumatization.
Dr. Brandow is a Fellow at the Wellness in Recovery Addiction Advocacy Research Program at the Rutgers University Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies, where she is co-producing a culturally relevant wellness model, designed for and by young Black adults.
Prior to joining CBHL as the Program Development Consultant, Dr. Brandow served in several positions elevating equity in the behavioral health space. Dr. Brandow is the former Assistant Director of SAMHSA’s Program to Achieve Wellness, which was designed to integrate wellness into recovery for individuals with mental health conditions. She has worked with a range of community-based organizations, including Community Action Agencies and Statewide Family and Consumer Networks, and on a number of federal contracts focused on mental and behavioral health. Her consulting services and clients span a variety of fields, such as healthcare, mental health, courts, and substance use. She previously served as an adjunct professor in the Communication Department at the University at Albany.
Dr. Brandow is a member of CBHL, Founding Member of the Society for Health Communication, and Section Councilor for the American Public Health Association Mental Health Section, where she co-chairs the Section’s Population Health Workgroup. Dr. Brandow is a consultant with HumanKind Workshop and Inspired Vision, LLC. Dr. Brandow has her PhD in Communication from the University at Albany.
Ebony Chambers
Ebony Chambers, Chief Family & Youth Partnership Officer at Stanford Sierra Youth and Families, has over 18 years of experience working with issues of social justice, equity, education, mental health and diversity. Ebony brings both professional and personal life experiences to her work and provides the oversight of advocacy and support to youth and families in the Northern California Region.
She is a speaker, educator, and workshop leader who has worked extensively throughout the United States and has served nationally and locally as an advocate and activist for access to care and the elimination of the stigma of mental illness for underserved and unserved communities. Chambers has provided extensive training in cultural competence and culturally responsive practices to schools, universities, social service and mental health agencies through her work in non-profit and for UC Davis Center for Family Focused Practice. Through her classes and trainings, she covers a wide range of topics including examining issues of privilege, power and the role of leaders and educators in a multicultural society.
Chambers also worked with the National Council of Behavioral Health, on addressing Health Disparities within her local community, with a focus on eliminating barriers and increasing access for the LGBTQ community. Chambers is the recipient of the 2017 Sacramento Business Journal’s 40 under 40 award for her outstanding professional accomplishments and community involvement as well as the 2018 Bizwomen Headliner for her work in the non-profit community. Actively involved in the community, Ebony is a member the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Steering Committee and other community initiatives, ensuring family and youth voice is integrated at every system level. She also serves as Board President for Black Womxn United- dedicated to the education, advancement and empowerment of all black womxn and girls.
