Dr. Janelle's Bio
Dr. Janelle Posey, LCSW
Dr. Janelle Posey, LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker, educator, and co-owner of Magnolia Wellness, LLC, located in New London, Connecticut. Through Magnolia Wellness, Dr. Posey merges holistic and African Indigenous healing practices with psychotherapy to create a well-rounded and culturally grounded healing experience. A trained trauma and EMDR therapist, she specializes in working with women and individuals experiencing race-based stress.
Dr. Posey is deeply committed to fostering cultural competence within the mental health field. She provides training and consultation to professionals seeking to expand their knowledge of culturally responsive and trauma-informed care.
She is also the founder and president of the Southeastern CT Naturalistas, an organization originally created as an online forum to help people of color learn how to care for and embrace their natural hair. The Naturalistas later grew into a beloved community event, “Embrace Your Crown,” celebrating natural Black hair and beauty through workshops, local Black vendors, and live entertainment.
In March 2020, Dr. Posey founded the CT BIPOC Mental Health & Wellness Initiative in response to the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and racism. She recruited a multidisciplinary healing team to facilitate virtual healing forums through Zoom, providing free spaces for discussion, connection, and collective healing for communities of color.
Building on this work, Dr. Posey led the creation of the CT BIPOC Mental Health and Wellness Conference (August 2025) a statewide gathering featuring 11 transformative workshops, 3 thought-provoking panels, 6 community-led poster presentations, a healing QT BIPOC Caucus, and an array of vendors and wellness resources. The conference has become a vital space for collaboration, learning, and empowerment across Connecticut’s BIPOC wellness community.
Dr. Posey has been teaching Race, Ethnicity, and Culture at Mitchell College for the past two years, where she inspires students to examine the intersections of identity, history, and power. Since 2014, she has also provided lectures, workshops, and trainings on mental health, social justice, Afro-Indigenous spirituality, and intersectionality to organizations throughout Connecticut and across the U.S., including the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
Dr. Posey holds a Bachelor’s in Social Work from the University of Texas at El Paso and a Master’s in Social Work from the University of New England, with a concentration in individual, group, and family therapy. She earned her Doctor of Social Work from Simmons University in Fall 2023, where she focused her research on advanced clinical practice, social justice, and gendered racism.
A proud American Psychological Association Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship Program Fellow (2023–2025), Dr. Posey continues to advance culturally rooted, community-centered approaches to healing and mental wellness.
