Dr. Joseph White, dubbed the “Godfather of Black Psychology” speaks at Florida Gulf Coast University Feb. 24. White is Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of California, Irvine. White is known for his advocacy in helping the field of psychology to adopt a multi-cultural model. In 1968, White became one of the founding members of the Association of Black Psychologists and began challenging notions of how ethnic minorities should be treated and understood in psychology.
White was also instrumental in founding California’s Educational Opportunity Program which has helped more than 250,000 low-income and educationally disadvantaged students succeed in college.
Dr. Joseph White speaks as part of a special edition of “Conversations in the Living Room,” through the Lucas Center for Faculty Development and the Office of Community Outreach at FGCU. His address, “Maximizing the Potential of Black Students,” takes place at 2:00 p.m., February 24 at the FGCU Library. The event is free and open to the public. Send RSVP to lucascenter@fgcu.edu.ead of his visit to Southwest Florida, WGCU’s John Davis spoke with Dr. White about his career and the concepts of social conditioning and racial identity that first sparked his interest in psychology back when he was a young student himself.
