Shari Miles-Cohen, PhD, is presented with this Presidential Citation for her leadership and commitment to human rights issues through mentoring, scholarship, and service to the profession.
Miles-Cohen is an effective leader, administrator, author, and advocate. She specializes in the application of psychological science to ensure that the issues facing women and girls and people of color are effectively addressed in the field, and that psychologists, especially women psychologists and psychologists of color, are prepared to effectively lead on these issues. Her scholarship includes the international arena, promoting the interface between research, action and policy related to equity, inclusion, and leadership, especially pertaining to women and girls.
For almost 15 years at APA, Miles-Cohen guided intersectional human rights initiatives that help prevent discrimination and improve health and welfare. She has most recently served as senior director of APA’s Human Rights Team. Her portfolio included ethnicity, race, and cultural affairs; sexual orientation and gender diversity; and women’s issues. In the position she was responsible for leading the project team that focused on APA’s role in dismantling systemic racism. The work identified psychology’s role in helping to expose, understand, and ultimately dismantle racism operating across all levels in education, science, health care, work and economic opportunities, criminal justice, children, youth and families, and government and public policy. They were responsible for two groundbreaking resolutions that were passed by the 2021 APA Council of Representatives: Apology to People of Color for APA’s Role in Promoting, Perpetuating, and Failing to Challenge Racism, Racial Discrimination, and Human Hierarchy in the United States and the Role of Psychology; and APA in Dismantling Systemic Racism Against People of Color in the United States. The apology resolution passed by an unprecedented 100% unanimous vote.
Miles-Cohen has passionately directed the APA Leadership Institute for Women in Psychology (LIWP), APA’s flagship leadership development program for women, since its inception. The APA LIWP aims to enhance the individual and collective leadership capacity, reach, influence, and impact of women psychologists to foster the advancement of human rights, fairness, diversity, and inclusion through the application of psychological science. Approximately 400 mid-career women psychologists have participated in the leadership program and have been inducted to the community of LIWP Leaders.
Miles-Cohen also developed APA’s I am Psyched! Initiative, which includes the first-of-its-kind multimedia exhibit exploring the history and current contributions of women of color psychologists.
Prior to joining APA, Miles-Cohen used her strategic and thought leadership to advance women’s and progressive issues as the executive director of several national and international non-governmental organizations. She led the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, the Union Institute Center for Women, the African American Women’s Institute at Howard University, and the Women’s Research and Education Institute, and was a Congressional fellow. Miles-Cohen holds a PhD in personality psychology from Howard University.
Miles-Cohen has co-edited three books, including Eliminating Inequities for Women with Disabilities: An Agenda for Health and Wellness. She is a contributing author for both volumes of the PROSE Award winning APA Handbook of the Psychology of Women (2019).
Because of her extensive scholarship, research, dedication and commitment to human rights, women’s issues, racial justice, and service to APA and the profession of psychology, it is my honor to award Shari Miles-Cohen, PhD with this 2021 Presidential Citation.