Our Valuable Team Members
Sten Walker is the Program Manager for NAMI San Diego’s Children, Youth, & Family Liaison team. His personal experience and family members’ experience with mental health issues drive to ensure that one day everyone will have full access to the resources necessary for dealing with mental illness. StenWalker@namisd.org
Mina Arthman is the Lead Trainer within NAMI San Diego’s CYFL. Having personal experience with mental illness, Mina avidly shares NAMI’s mission to educate, support, and advocate for those living with mental illness and their loved ones. She is incredibly passionate about making therapy accessible to everyone, creating safe spaces for members of the LGBTQ community, and helping survivors of sexual trauma. While obtaining her degree in psychological science from CSU San Marcos, Mina helped establish a mental health awareness and suicide prevention program. She also worked as a teaching assistant for multiple classes, including Developmental Psychopathology. Additionally, Mina has dedicated time to helping individuals living with mental illness obtain jobs and navigate the education system. Mina has over a decade worth of experience working with children, youth, and families, across educational, community, and research settings. MinaArthman@namisd.org.
Within NAMI San Diego’s CYFL, Micaela Cunningham is a Community Development Specialist Trainer and coordinates the NAMI on Campus High School Club Program. She is a voting member on the TAY Council as well as the CYF Behavioral Health System of Care Council. She applied for the position at NAMI San Diego due to her own experiences as a Transition Age Youth (TAY) with a mental health diagnosis. She likes being able to lend her voice and view on all things TAY related in the Children’s System of Care. She hopes to make a difference in the lives of Transition Age Youth through presentations and groups doing work that is important to Micaela at NAMI San Diego.
MicaelaCunningham@namisd.org
MicaelaCunningham@namisd.org
Rogena is firm believer in NAMI San Diego’s mission to support, educate and advocate for people dealing with mental illness. Besides her personal lived experience, she has extensive volunteer experience within the San Diego mental health community. These opportunities include time with KickStart, an early intervention program for adolescents with Schizophrenia, and Sharp Hospitals Inpatient and Outpatient Behavioral Health programs, which further ignited her passion. As the Tech/Community Development Specialist, she supports enhancement to oscER, oscER Jr and alfrEDU apps program by updating content and assisting in substance use disorder (SUD) research and information gathering. Aside from this, she plays an integral role in promoting the apps in the community; Rogena is passionate about educating and training the public in order to expose them to the plethora of beneficial features available to them from using these applications.
RogenaAbdelrahman@namisd.org
RogenaAbdelrahman@namisd.org
Melissa Penaflor is a Community Development Specialist Trainer within NAMI San Diego’s CYFL. Her dream follows NAMI’s mission statement to be able to support, educate, and be an advocate for those who suffer from mental illness. Her community relationships with some of her family and friends as well as her own personal experience has impacted her to want to reduce mental health stigma. Her previous experience working in an elementary school gave her a desire to educate the public on mental health to hopefully reduce stigma. She has previous experience with Suicide Prevention during her time at Cal State San Marcos by volunteering with their Suicide Prevention Program. She hopes to make a difference in the lives of those she comes across whether at work or in her personal life.