
BEAM (The Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective) is a national training, movement building, and grantmaking institution dedicated to the healing, wellness, and liberation of Black and marginalized communities. BEAM envisions a world where there are no barriers to Black healing. In pursuit of this vision, BEAM has made it their mission to remove the barriers that Black people experience while gaining access to or staying connected with emotional healthcare and healing. BEAM achieves this through Healing Justice-based organizing, education, training, grant making, and advocacy.
Team Members

Graciela Cain
they/them
CMHEP Role: BEAM Junior Consultant, CMHEP Collaborative
Graciela began their career supporting grassroots organizations in the South, and became passionate about sex education through their past work with queer youth around HIV advocacy. They are committed to developing coalition around building safe futures for queer and trans folks, specifically in the South, and addressing housing injustice among marginalized communities. Graciela is also passionate about being a student and a musician, as well as reading. They love to use music, art, and a “Do It Yourself” approach to deepen connections and promote understanding of movement work.

L’Oréal McCollum, MSW, LSW, M.Ed.
she/her
CMHEP Role: BEAM Lead Consultant, CMHEP Collaborative
L’Oréal holds 15+ years of experience in community health and wellness, training and education, the healing arts, social activism, public affairs, communication media, and entertainment. She is an alumna of Widener University’s M.Ed./MSW program in Human Sexuality Studies and Clinical Social Work. In addition to her work with BEAM, she is an adjunct faculty member of Temple University’s Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Department.

Yolo Akili Robinson
he/him
CMHEP Role: BEAM Ancillary Support, CMHEP Collaborative
Yolo began his career in public health supporting Black communities as an HIV/AIDS counselor. He then branched into violence prevention, working as a family intervention counselor with Black men and boys for Men Stopping Violence. In addition to his emotional health work, Akili has written for numerous publications including the Huffington Post, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Ebony and Everyday Feminisms.