Mabel born and raised in Ghana, also received her midwifery training there,  where is attended over 2,000 births. She has practiced as a homebirth midwife in the US (Portland OR) since 1988. And is an expert in twin and breech deliveries.  Her book is called Mabel.

Heads Up!, Two of You?, Shoulders Stuck!, Now What?!

Mabel will discuss strategies for safe birth of twins, including positioning, time of delivery, premature delivery and avoiding postpartum hemorrhage. Participants will learn the art and science of breech birth and what factors may lead to breech presentation. Also, participants will learn the mechanism of normal breech birth, as well as the mechanism of a stuck breech and techniques for handling both will also be discussed.

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Ina May Gaskin, CPM, Luncheon Keynote Speaker 

Ina May is the founder and director of The Farm Midwifery Center in Tennessee (USA). She is the author of Spiritual Midwifery (1975) and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth (2003). She was president of the Midwives' Alliance of North America (MANA) from 1996 to 2002, and is a prominent national and international speaker. She has been a homebirth midwife for more than thirty-four years.

Birth As An Orgasmic Experience

Over twenty percent of women polled in a study reported experiencing sexual pleasure during un-medicated labor and delivery.  This remarkable information is but one feature that will be addressed in our discussion on how a woman’s responsiveness, comfort level, emotions and views on sexuality can affect her birth experience.

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                          Keynote Address; The Safe Motherhood Quilt

          The Effects of Cesarean Sections and Maternal Mortality Rates

The Safe Motherhood Quilt is a project designed to draw attention to the underreporting of maternal deaths in the United States. Joined with a discussion of the hidden causes of maternal death from a renowned women’s health activist, the quilt memorializes women who have died from childbirth complications and symbolizes the need for quality health care, education and justice for childbearing women.

         Al Yasha  ILhaam  PHD,

Al Yasha is a Professor of Philosophy at Spelman College, a birth advocate, wife, and mother and mother to Sole.                                  

Midwifery Ethics

Participants will converse on ethical issues in midwifery, with an emphasis on bridging theory and practice, designed for independently practicing direct-entry midwives and their clients.  Participants will discuss the ethical issues relating to apprenticeship and training, autonomy, confidentiality, informed consent, and the use of technology.

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                                       Barbara Douglas, CNM,

Barbara has been a certified nurse midwife since 1982.  She received her midwifery training at Columbia University in New York.  In 1996 she received an MBA from UC Irvine. Barbara has been an active member of ACNM since her student days and has served on the Board of Directors of ACNM from 1999 until 2002 as Regional Representative from Region 6. Barbara is currently a Board member of ICTC and works as a legal consultant/expert witness for several law firms.

Developing A  Midwifery Team

This workshop will prepare midwives and healers to assume a leadership role in the development and management of a midwifery/healer team.  Course content will include components of effective leadership; including effective communication skills, staffing and scheduling skills. Content will also cover team ethics and the development of a peer review/quality assurance program.

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                                      Carlotta Crawford, CNM

Carlotta Crawford, CNM, MN, MPH received an MN and MPH degree from Emory University in 1994. She has assisted in the births of approximately 1,000 infants and placed tremendous emphasis on preventing adolescent pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases during her 12 years of Nurse Midwifery practice. Carlotta helped develop a freestanding birth center in Nashville, TN that offered comprehensive women’s healthcare, childbirth and women’s health classes, perinatal care and out-of-hospital birth to a large Hispanic population and the Middle TN region. She is currently on staff at Centennial Medical Center in the Obstetrical Assessment Center in Nashville, TN.

                                       Advanced Suturing

This hands-on workshop will give you the ability to identify landmarks as you prepare to repair. Carlotta will share with you proper suturing techniques, aseptic techniques and demonstrate how to repair first and second degree lacerations.                               

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                                UmSalaama Abdullah, Retired CNM

UmSalaama earned a Masters of Nursing/Midwifery from Emory University.  Her life experience also includes extensive travel.  She currently lives in Tennessee.  Much of UmSalaama professional experience was based on helping women who were financially under privileged.  Working as a CNM and RN, she worked with women from a variety of backgrounds, including African American, Hispanic, Caucasian, immigrants, and teen mothers. Sandra is a founding member of Childbirth Providers of African Descent (CPAD).  She coordinated their 1988 Conference.  Her work with MANA includes being their first Vice President and Board Liaison for Affirmative Action Committee. UmSalaama is currently the Midwifery Director and serves as a Board Member for The Birthing Project USA. She is also the founder of One World Youth Foundation, offering inner city youth a chance to explore the world beyond their community. UmSalaama recently celebrated 29 years of serving the international birthing community and was ICTC’s Unsung Shero recipient for 2005.        

Newborn Exam

Now that the baby has arrived how do we access how well the baby made it through its journey here. What is APGAR anyways? UmSalaama will explain and perform a complete newborn examination and show you what to look for in a healthy baby and how to spot a suspected problem. UmSalaama will discuss the importance of charting your findings for records sake. Learn what to pay attention to in babies born in rural villages.

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                                          Nyasha Bonner CNM,

Nyasha received her Masters of Science Degree in Nursing from Emory University and her Undergraduate Degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. With over 20 years of experience as a nurse and care provider, Nyasha has assisted thousands of mothers and families during childbirth and through health and emotional challenges.

                                   Healing Our Sacred Sexual Selves

This exciting workshop is designed to give women the tools to strengthen their sacred reproductive area through the use of Eastern Chakra, yoga, and tantric techniques. The teachings will enable participants to bring these practices into their everyday lives.

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                                Makeda Kamara, CNM, Visonary

 “I have been blessed on my midwifery and women’s wellness journey to share, grow, laugh, and cry with women and the people they love. As I continue on this journey, the spirit of the universal oneness resonates in the story of our lives. I have learned that even though change occurs from the inside out, the worldwide forces of gender, race, class, inequality with woman on the bottom, continues to sap the energy of justice and peace. Until the veil of patriarchal down-pression has been abolished, birth as the universe intends will still be a major struggle to achieve. When female and male energy stands as equals as it does in bringing light

“dar a lus”, the middle becomes strong and the outer layers small and insignificant. As a midwife, I speak for women, children and families and for ultimate justice.”

                                          Well Woman Exam

This course is designed to provide basic knowledge and skills needed for the assessment of women's gynecological health by focusing on the primary and preventive ambulatory care of women. It stresses the role of midwives in health promotion, disease prevention as educators and promoters of women's wellness and the assessment and evaluation of undiagnosed symptoms and physical signs. Makeda will address the management of common acute conditions:  STDs, vaginitis, anemia, etc.  Identification, consultation and appropriate referral for other health care services will be discussed as well. 

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                                   Stacy Scott MPA, LSW

Stacy is a national health advocate who specializes in infant mortality.  Stacy has dedicated the last 10 years of her life designing and implementing programs that impact underserved communities in the areas surrounding and including health disparities, prevention, and delivery of services. Stacy is the President and CEO of In Black Print, Inc. (IBP) a firm that concentrates on community outreach and development.  IBP operates on the premise that the community holds the key to eradicating disparities in health.  In Black Print’s major objective is to educate the community, providing them with tools of empowerment and then calling them to action. 

                       Keeping the Doors Open: In Search of Good Funding

This informative workshop will help you learn how to identify suitable grant opportunities for your organization. It will explore the importance of program development, program implementation and evaluation. It will help you to assess your ability and capacity to take on the problems at hand. This workshop will help you to answer the following questions: Do you have what it takes to address the needs of the community? Will you be able to effectively provide these services? Is someone else doing the same thing you propose to do? What are the qualifications and experience that makes your program the right one?

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                                    Sobande Moss-Greer, Herbalist

 Dream Weaver, Creatress, Herbalist & Healer are just some of the things that describe “Sobande Ifasanmi Karade-Anke” aka Angelique Moss–Greer. With solemn humility, Sobande (meaning seer) embraces the meaning of her name, by sharing the healing arts of the ancestors with everyone she meets.  She believes that somewhere as a child, she was called back to the healing ways of her great grandmother, thus Natural Choices Botanica was born.  A native of Louisville, Kentucky and resident of Clarksville Tennessee, Sobande is a 5^th Generational Herbalist & Holistic Health Consultant with over 20 years field experience.  Armed with a Bachelor of Science degree in Corporate Communications /Public Relations and a minor in Health & Nutrition, Sobande decided that she needed to choose something that she was passionate about instead of following the mainstream, so she dedicated herself to the ancient art of Holistic Health.

                                   The Healing Power of the Kitchen

This workshop focuses on the five elements of nutrition that play a crucial role in living a productive, balanced and healthier lifestyle. Participants will gain a working knowledge of the five element guide so that they can assist clients in providing well-balanced, holistic meals.

Granny’s Earth Medicine for Nurturing the Womb through the Childbearing Years

This workshop focuses on the old wise tales that played a crucial role in sustaining women’s health at the onset of puberty through menopause. Participants will gain a clearer understanding of why certain plants, procedures, spiritual systems and strategies were developed.

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Toya Lane, Doula

Toya is a native of Atlanta , GA. She is an aspiring midwife and currently works as a Doula. Her Birth Rite services also include lactation support, henna, and belly casting.

                                             Baby Wearing 

Baby wearing is the act of wearing or carrying a baby or child in a sling or other form of carrier. Parents in traditional cultures have carried and worn their babies since the beginning of time. In the industrialized world baby wearing has gained popularity, partly under influence of advocates of attachment parenting.

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                                    Billy Muhammad, Barber

Barbershop owner and licensed cosmetologist with 10 years experience in grooming, cutting, styling, training and management. 

                  Barber Shop Talk;  Empowering the Families We Serve

Billy will discuss the fatherhood experience from different perspectives from across the spectrum i.e. pre-conceptional fathers to single and married fathers.  Topics include various aspects of raising children, challenges and difficulties of fatherhood in addition to parenting from a cultural perspective; “the black experience”. 

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                                     Fatima Abdullah, Doula

Fatima is the Doula Project Coordinator at the Phoenix Birthing Project. She is also an aspiring midwife.

                                    Tia Y. Thompson, Doula

Tia earned a Bachelors of Arts – Interdisciplinary Studies: Health, Medicine, and Society from the University of California at Berkeley. Currently, she is a Nursing student at Rio Salado Community College. Tia is a Certified Doula and has served as a liaison between Planned Parenthood, La Leche League, WIC, Black Infant Health, and MediCal. Tia mentors pregnant women, of varying ages, through the child’s first two years of life as well as providing education, support, and connects them with pertinent community services.

                                        Doula, Doula, Doula

The workshop will be broken into an afternoon and morning session.  The morning session will consist of a verbal introduction of what a doula is and her role or scope of practice, noting how training/education, practical application and experience equals a better quality of support and the ability to assist clients in making more informed decisions. This introduction will lead into the presentation of a “signal” (an experience that clarifies or challenges current mindsets) through literature or video. The signal will be discussed and then evaluated from social and cultural perspectives. The afternoon session will focus on comfort measures to assist women and families during labor and delivery. Participants will learn techniques and various tools that can be used with their clients. After demonstration of these techniques, participants will have the opportunity to practice and ask clarifying questions.

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                                 Kimberley Traylor, MA, LS

Kimberley has a Master’s Degree in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College, in Pasadena, California that encompassed an independent study specialty in human lactation. Since 2001, when Kimberley found her passion and pursued her degree in lactation, she has devoted well over 2,500 hours to consultations with pregnant women as well as lactating mothers with newborns and older babies. She founded The Village – where Breastfeeding is the norm … after all it is TheirBirthRight.org.  The organization goes into the communities and offers preconception, prepared childbirth, breastfeeding, and parenting classes along with lactation and doula services.

   Reuniting the African American Culture and the Culture of Breastfeeding                   

This workshop will focus on how we can work on getting the culture of breastfeeding back into the African American culture.  As you know, there are many factors involved in achieving this and it takes the effort of every person/agency in the healthcare industry.  We will discuss a number of barriers and link them together to recommend an effective plan of action for prenatal and early postpartum breastfeeding education.

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   Shafia Monroe, BA, CM, CEE

“I am moved to move by those who came before me.” “The contributions of the black midwife was must be profiled and recorded”.

Shafia Monroe, CM, CBE, BA, is the founder of the nation’s first black midwifery and maternal-infant health advocacy non-profit organization, The International Center for Traditional Childbearing (ICTC), headquartered in Portland, Oregon.  She is the creator of the web-site, www.blackmidwives.org and is the visionary and force behind the prominent Annual International Black Midwives and Healers Conference.  She is the president of Sistah Midwife International, business to provide training and products to promote midwifery and develop culturally competency.  Ms. Monroe holds a degree in Medical Sociology and has been a midwife and maternal/paternal and child health advocate for three decades. Shafia will teach the traditions of head wrapping, baby tying and share the facts from the Midwives Delegation to Sierra Leone, that she organized and led..

She is the recipient of numerous awards, such as the Unsung Hero of Community Medicine, the Martin Luther King Merit Award,  the Outstanding Leadership for Better Birth Outcomes, the Vagina Warrior Award for Community Birthing Services, and has a Wall of Tolerance Certificate from the late Rosa Parks for her work in universal peace.

She spends her leisure time with her family, gardening, fishing and reading and writing.  She has recently published the “Directory of Black Midwives and Prenatal Care Providers … Essential Recipes and Words of Wisdom.

                                                 Head Wrapping

Enjoy the experience of learning how to beautifully adorn your crown and glory by wrapping your hair in vibrant colorful wraps. Come to understand the meaning of wrapping your hair and what wrapping your hair signifies.

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                                              Rhonda Haynes

Filmmaker Rhonda L. Haynes won the 2005 Paul Robeson Award Initiative Special Prize (PRAI) for her film ‘Bringin’ in da Spirit,’ at the FESPACO Film Festival in Burkina Faso, West Africa, the longest running, prestigious cultural arts and film festival in Africa. Haynes’ film records the ancient rituals and traditions of midwifery. 

Rhonda Haynes was born in Pontiac, Michigan in 1960.  She earned her undergrad at Western Michigan University where she majored in communications and minored in journalism and dance. She produced a 13-part TV series on teen pregnancy for the school board in Pontiac before moving to New York.  Rhonda worked as a secretary and did temp work until she acquired a job as a camera utility person.  Finally, she was hired as a production assistant on The Cosby Show and later became a camera assistant.

“A midwife is brought in the moment a woman finds out she is pregnant.  Formerly, midwives were well respected women in the community.  They guided pregnant women up until the time they gave birth and even afterwards up to 7 days. Midwives do more than aid birth.  They are spiritual guides, consultants, and advisors as well. Women also called Doulas to assist the family. They cook ,clean and take care of the household in order to aid the pregnant woman, some eventually become midwives. Do we have that now?   Fortunately, midwives are coming full circle as women weigh their choices and consider natural child birth.”

                                               Bringin’ In Da Spirit

*Documentary*

Through the use of first person narrative and rare archival images, this documentary provides a moving glimpse of the women who have skillfully brought scores of children across the threshold of existence. Narrated by Phylicia Rashad, this evocative and passionate film celebrates women.

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                                          Village Session (Panels) I

                                           “Saving Our Babies”

     Panelist: Barbara Feeman MPH, Shafia Monroe CM, & Katheryn Hall D. Div. M.P.H.

Barbara Freeman-Maney, MPH is the Executive Director of the Phoenix Birthing Project, Inc, a community based nonprofit organization in Phoenix, Arizona. The mission of the Phoenix Birthing Project is to encourage better birth outcomes in the African American community by providing support to teens and women before, during, and after pregnancy, and has served as the only African American maternal and child health agency in the state of Arizona since its inception in 1991. Barbara pursues her personal interests by volunteering as a docent for the Phoenix Art Museum, plus she enjoys playing golf, traveling, journaling, and entertaining.

Katheryn Hall D. Div. M.P.H. is the Founder and Director of The Center for Community Health & Well-Being, Inc. The Center is a holistic health and social service agency that houses a comprehensive women's health care clinic, including substance abuse services; The Barber Shop (employment, parenting education and social support for fathers); Saturday Morning Beauty Salon (pregnancy prevention for adolescents); The Academy of Dreams (risk reduction for teens) and the nationally acclaimed Birthing Project Sister Friend Program. The Center is also the home of The Birthing Project, an international association and resource center for improving birth outcomes for women of color. 

                        Prenatal Outreach for Premature Prevention

Join in this village session as we explore the research, implementation and success in reaching out into the community to serve women, assisting them to grow healthy babies with healthy weight and succeed in healthy birth outcomes through community outreach. We will learn some of the major and common causes of prematurely and strategies for premature prevention. This session will be lead by experts in the field of infant mortality and prematurely prevention in the black community.

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                                       Village Session II Panel

              “International Midwifery; Midwifery Across the Seas”

Panelist: Nonkuloleku Tyehemba, CNM, Sister Denise Desil RM, Shafia Monroe CM, Carlotta Crawford CNM, Sandra Abdullah CNM, Barbara Douglas CNM

Midwives will share the traditions and knowledge on birth practices and maternal health issues from the African Diaspora. Panelists include delegates from the recent research and training expeditions in Sierra Leon, Honduras and Haiti. These midwives will share their experiences in working with women and their families with little of nothing, and how to address prenatal issues under adverse conditions.

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                                         Village Session III Panel

                            Intuition: A Midwife's Most Valued Tool

Panelists:  Barbara Douglas CNM; Makeda Kamara CNM; Shafia Monroe CM, Sarahn Henderson DEM, Sandra Abdullah CNM, Nonkululeku Tyehemba CNM 

Certified, Licensed and Direct-Entry Midwives will discuss birth experiences in which their intuition helped to save mamas and babies from potentially critical situations. They will explain how they learned to balance the use of ob/gyn knowledge, experience with their insight and discuss ways for student midwives and apprentices to develop their intuition and incorporate it into their practice.