Adéyínká M. Akinṣulurẹ-Smith

Adéyínká M. Akinṣulurẹ-Smith, is a Sierra Leonean born, Ph.D licensed psychologist. She is Board Certified in Group Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. A tenured Professor in the Department of Psychology at the City College of New York, the City University of New York and at the Graduate Center, cared for forced migrants, as well as survivors of torture, armed conflict, and human rights abuses from around the world at the Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture from 1999 to 2024.  

Over the years, her advocacy, clinical work, research and teaching have focused on three specific areas: experiences of forced migrants, survivors of human rights abuses and armed conflict; mental health interventions in low resource settings; and mental health consequences of service provision. Dr. Akinṣulurẹ-Smith served on the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on the Psychological effect of war on children and families who are refugees from armed conflicts residing in the United States. She has participated in human rights investigations in Sierra Leone with Physicians for Human Rights and the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone, Human Rights Division. Most recently, in January 2024, Dr. Akinṣulurẹ-Smith was appointed as the inaugural Mabel Shelby Fellow at the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, the City College of New York for research on topics related to women’s and gender studies.