GSEP Spotlight: Kendy Faye (MA '23)

The Pepperdine GSEP Spotlight Series highlights students and alumni whose journeys reflect Purpose, Service, and Leadership in action. We are proud to feature Kendy Faye (MA in Clinical Psychology, MFT ’23), a perinatal trauma therapist, full-spectrum doula, and doctoral scholar whose work transforms reproductive care through trauma-informed practice, research, and advocacy.

Kendy’s work is shaped by a lineage of visionaries, mentors, and communities who continue to inform her practice. Her clinical and scholarly work is guided by a commitment to reproductive justice and a vision for accessible, empowering support across pregnancy, birth, postpartum, and loss. While at Pepperdine, she co-led a multidisciplinary research initiative on birth trauma under the mentorship of Dr. Jaz Robbins. Their work, now integrated into GSEP’s trauma curriculum, was presented to graduate cohorts, national audiences of perinatal health professionals, and a USAID-affiliated global task force. This project reflected Kendy’s commitment to bridging research and practice in ways that bring greater visibility to the unique experiences of the perinatal population.

In clinical practice, Kendy serves individuals and families seeking redemptive and empowering experiences after trauma. Her work is shaped by 18 years of international experience across five continents, including a formative clinical internship at the Transgender Health and Wellness Center, where she engaged deeply with liberation-focused modalities. Kendy’s approach blends therapeutic insight with cultural humility and a profound respect for each person’s right to be an active participant in their healing. As both clinician and scholar, she advocates for spaces where individuals can be witnessed with reverence and recognized as living archives of wisdom.

Pursuing her MA in Clinical Psychology as a full-time solo parent deepened Kendy’s awareness of the systemic barriers many families face in accessing mental health support. This experience sharpened her resolve to advocate for more accessible, relational, and responsive systems of care. She brings this commitment into her work as a research-activist, amplifying community-driven solutions to improve perinatal outcomes.

Grounded in the belief that perinatal mental health is the cornerstone of collective wellbeing, Kendy remains anchored in a vision of emancipatory care that tends to the roots of generational harm and repair. She is committed to passing forward the encouragement, wisdom, and support she has received by nurturing healing futures across generations.