February 17: Tawanda Murray

Tawanda Murray is a presenter for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and is a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist (CPRS) in the state of Tennessee. She holds a certificate for Recovery Practices, as well as CPSS training in Leading and Coaching for Supervisors. She serves on the Nashville Community Advisory Board and served two terms on the Blue Care Behavioral Health Advisory Regional Board (Nashville, Knoxville, Memphis and Chattanooga).

Ms. Murray has been Certified in Mental Health First Aid (Adult and Youth). She wrote a curriculum of recovery named I Am Recovery that passed scrutiny in a drug court in 2015 and has been reviewed by Juvenile Justice, Centerstone, and Transition from Jail to Community (TJC) in Nashville. The program is registered with the Secretary of State and a registered 501C3 organization.

Ms. Murray sponsors women in recovery and for several years has been facilitating recovery meetings in the women’s prison in Nashville, Tennessee. She has acquired 38 hours in Criminal Justice. Ms. Murray serves on the Tennessee Recovery Housing Transformation Leadership Team and is an active member of Meharry Medical College’s Elam Center Recovery Advisory Board and the Davidson County Community Advisory Board. She completed a documentary for Morehouse College and has a YouTube video on her curriculum and her journey into recovery. She feels that her journey’s greatest accomplishment is her ongoing ability to help others. Ms. Murray was Guest Speaker for the Core-Civic Prison 3 -day National Conference and a Panelist for the Mayors Nashville Addiction Summit on Opioids. Ms. Murray was the 1st Parent- Mentor for the Nashville Juvenile Justice Safe Babies Program. She as well serves as a member of the Tennessee Association of Recovery Court Professionals and the Tennessee Association of Alcohol, Drug, and other Addiction Services (which she was selected as 2019 Volunteer of the year.) Ms. Murray is now pursuing her Bachelor of Arts in Behavioral Studies and has been Certified as a Life Coach and holds Family Coaching Certification.