Dr. Tierra T. Ellis is a Licensed Clinical & School Psychologist who proudly considers herself a servant leader. She is the CEO of Ellis Psychological Services and co-owner of Authentically Black Services LLC. She is also a Community Psychologist; she is the Founder and Executive Director of Psyches of Color, Inc., a progressive nonprofit organization that uses strengths-based and culturally relevant approaches to provide mental health support – to at-promise Black and Latinx adolescents and young adults – to decrease the stigma of mental health and promote radical healing. She is a current Professor of Psychology at Pepperdine University and a recent graduate of the Youth Justice Leadership Institute Fellow (YJLI) within the National Juvenile Justice Network (NJJN).

Dr. Tierra is a member of Psychologists for Social Responsibility where she serves on the Abolition Working Group team. She completed a 2-year psychology clinical postdoctoral fellowship at the APA Accredited Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) where she specialized in Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine. She earned her Doctorate Degree in School Psychology at Howard University and completed her predoctoral internship at the APA-Accredited trauma-informed site, Egyptian Public and Mental Health Department, within the Illinois School Psychology Internship Consortium (ISPIC). Dr. Tierra also completed a 3-year fellowship with NOAA Center for Atmospheric Sciences (NCAS) within the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration while at Howard University. Dr. Tierra graduated from Arizona State University where she obtained two degrees in Psychology and African and African American Studies and a minor in Dance.

Dr. Tierra published a chapter in the book, Students with Parents Involved in Substance Abuse or Dependence (2020) and is currently completing a chapter in the book, Social Justice in Supervision and Field Experiences (in preparation). Her scholarship includes dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline, destigmatizing mental health in Black and Latinx communities, culturally relevant interventions for Black and Latinx adolescents and young adults, and the representation of Black students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Dr. Tierra is super passionate about creating and integrating culturally relevant approaches such as Hip-Hop culture and psychotherapeutic treatments for which she is committed to expanding in the mental health field.