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2004-
2005 ANNUAL REPORT
Bahá'í
Association of Mental Health Professionals,
Inc.
Board of Directors:
Dr. James Bartee, Dr. Larry
McCullough, Dr. Michael Penn, Ms. Mary K.
Radpour, Ms. Adrienne Stengel, Ms. Heidi
Wood
The Bahá'í Association of
Mental Health Professionals (BAMHP) is a
non-profit, Bahá'í-inspired organization
designed to serve the intellectual, social
and spiritual needs of practitioners,
researchers and theoreticians who desire to
apply the insights contained in the Bahá'í
writings to the mental health professions.
It is incorporated in the State of Illinois
as a non-profit corporation, and the
National Spiritual Assembly serves as its
“sole member” with the Board of
Directors serving at its appointment.
Because the Bahá'í
Association of Mental Health Professionals
holds its annual meeting in the fall of each
year, this report reviews the
accomplishments in the years 2004-2005.
BAMHP accomplished the agenda set for itself
by its Board:
a) Maintenance of the
membership of approximately 70 mental health
professionals;
b) The holding of an annual
conference at Bosch Bahá'í school, on the
theme of “The Brain and the Spirit: In
Search of the Whole Self.” The purpose of
this year’s conference was to explore new
discoveries in neurobiology and their
implications for therapeutic interventions
for mental health. It involved presentations
and performances on the construction of
racial, moral, cultural and spiritual
identity, as well as discussions of their
implications for mental health and spiritual
development. Presenters at this year’s
conference and their topics were:
Ms. Adrienne Stengel, Dr.
James Bartee, Dr. Heidi Spencer and Dr. Homa
Mahmoudi, in a panel presentation on the
integration of spiritual perspectives into
treatment;
Hal Williamson, CEO of Hope
Unlimited, “These Amazing Brains.”
Dr. Pat Romano-McGraw , “Creating
Your Own Reality;”
Dr. James Bartee, “Spirituality
and Psychology: Am Emerging Partnership.”
Dr. Bruce Lipton, “The
Biology of Belief.”
Dr. Azin Nasseri, “The
Pathways of Love.”
Michelle Thulen-Steele and
Tuli Rode, on “The Seven Valleys.”
Dr. Heidi Spencer, on the
power of family relationships in creating an
identity.
c) The nomination of members
to the BAMHP Board at the annual meeting to
replace the two members whose term of office
had ended. This year the new nominations
were for Dr. James Bartee and Dr. Lawrence
McCullough.
d) Inviting the
participation of non-Bahá'í presenters and
attendees at the conference, through the
invitation of Hal Williamson and Dr. Bruce
Lipton
e) Maintenance of the BAMHP
website at www.bamhp.org with conference
reports, abstracts of presentations,
presentation papers; statement of purpose
and various other useful documents;
f) Auditing of the BAMHP
books;
g) Planning and promotion of
the upcoming conference on the theme: “The
Psychology of Peace: Society and the
Transcendent Self,” to be held at Green
Acre Bahá'í School in support of the
celebration of the signing of the Portsmouth
Peace Treaty.
h) Continuing promotion of
the booklet, “Some Guidance for Spiritual
Assemblies Regarding Mental Illness and Its
Treatment” through the website.
Several new initiatives were
also begun:
a) Plans are underway for a
interdisciplinary symposium sponsored by
BAMHP which would invite others to help us
envision the next stage in the development
of this initiative. We would invite a number
of presenters to share their work and then
to articulate how BAMHP might be of
assistance to them, and they might be of
assistance to BAMHP.
b) Plans are also underway
for a collaboration with BNASAA in the
development of materials and initiatives
which would specifically assist young people
in arenas of sexuality.
Among the remaining
unaccomplished challenges which must engage
the Board are the following goals
articulated in previous years:
a) Greater participation of
minorities in the work of BAMHP;
b) Obtaining professional
continuing education credits for attendance
at the BAMHP conference;
c) Stimulating fuller
participation of non-Baha’is in BAMHP
conferences and initiatives.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary K. Radpour, Chairperson
Baha’i Association of
Mental Health Professionals
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