Zoë J. Schefter
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
PROFILE
Intuitive and passionate about elevating women and children to their authentic state of wholeness, integrating the mind, body, soul, and beyond. Women’s (and men’s) circle facilitator, priestess and medicine woman, traditional community student midwife, community mental health worker, and health care researcher, navigator and reformer, I am dedicated to taking a multimodal approach (from psychospiritual practice, utilizing the power of story, and excavating subconscious ancestral patterns within both the body and mind to on-the-ground change-making work) to create an empowered, sustainable future for our youth. I imagine a world where every child understands what reciprocal, secure, resourced, trusting relationship feels like, i.e. a secure attachment with their caregiver. And I know how to build this kind of world, it is very much within our reach: through holistic ancestral birth reclamation as well as deconditioning and rewiring the mind-body system out of capitalism, colonialism, racism, misogyny, and scarcity. I am passionate about masterful community creation and stewardship, cultivating open spaces for deep reflection and creative growth, generating grassroots and sustainable systems change, treasuring our women, children and youth, guiding individuals into deep engagement with the arts, culture, story, and crafting of identity, and finally, continually reminding individuals of the power they have always inherently held within. Trauma-informed with a fierce devotion to an empowered, interconnected, decolonized lens.
EDUCATION
Certified Somatic Therapist 2024-Present
The Somatic Institute for Women
Accredited by the Institute of Complimentary Therapies
Certified Social Justice Mediator 2024-Present
Vital Village, Boston Medical Center
Academic Program in Holistic Psycho-spiritual Ancestral Midwifery 2023-Present
The Matrona Foundation
College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, MA
Bachelor of Arts, Biology; Pre-Health 2014-2018
GPA: 3.75, Magna Cum Laude, Member of Phi Beta Kappa
University of St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland 2017
Studied abroad for one immersive year in Scotland
SKILLS & EXPERIENCE
· Skilled at relating to and uplifting others in a non-judgmental, kind, compassionate manner
· Intuitive problem solver and comfortable in mindful, grounded leadership roles
· Motivated by the resilient human spirit and our capacity for connection
PROFESSIONAL & ACADEMIC WORK HISTORY
Behavioral Health Care Manager, Brookline Center for Community Mental Health 2024-Present
· Implemented a pilot model of healthcare called Collaborative Care at a Brookline Pediatrician’s office with aims of reducing provider burn-out, reducing medication over-prescribing to youth, building community referral networks, building community among traditionally very independent providers, moving towards systems of shared responsibility and storytelling, and offering a weekly space to share wisdom within the healthcare system, dissolve power dynamics, and inspire a collaborative approach to problem-solving the mental and behavioral challenges in child lives. This program includes collaboration with schools as well, thus giving all of the important figures in children’s lives a voice and an opportunity to collaborate in how best to facilitate their wellbeing.
· Co-facilitated a weekly therapeutic group for children called “Regulation Station,” with the goal of educating children on easy tools to regulate their nervous system in the face of anxiety and worry
· There are initiatives to bring this model to the Obstetric/Midwifery space
Clinical Research Specialist, Boston Children’s Hospital 2021-2024
· Educated and enrolled children and their families into clinical research studies focused on understanding
and addressing quality of life struggles of children and adolescents dealing with chronic
debilitating headaches that keep them from attending school, participating in sports and activities
· Conceptualized, researched, analyzed, and wrote various research papers studying the pediatric pain experience from a bio-psycho-social lens, with my specific interest lying most in psychosomatic, identity, and systemic implications of pain, namely the psychological pain that could stem from restrictive programming to behave within societally-expected gender roles and how this likely manifests in physical pain syndromes within our youth
Clinical Research Coordinator, Boston Children’s/Mass General Brigham Hospitals 2018-2021
· Enrolled pregnant women with a cardiovascular condition into a clinical study to develop a standardized method to assess and categorize risk in this patient population in three areas of care: obstetrics, cardiology, and anesthesia from a medical perspective
· Assisted in facilitation of the monthly Pregnancy Conference, where we united various hospital employees from different disciplines all integral to highly managed medicalized birth, including obstetricians, cardiologists, and anesthesiologists and many others. We also brought together medical staff members of different hierarchical positions within the institution, including clinical directors, attendings, residents, fellows, nurse-practitioners, nurses, research assistants, and shadowing students. We discussed in detail the various risks to be aware of for each individual pregnant patient and how much technological monitoring was required, from the perspective of the primary attending obstetrician and cardiologist.
· Lead a quality improvement initiative for all pediatric (and eventually adults) who received their implantable cardiac device (pacemakers, ICDs, implantable loop monitors) at Boston Children’s Hospital where I facilitated annual and bi-annual follow-up through personal phone calls, emails, text messages, and post cards. Patient population involved individuals all across New England, and the role necessitated coordination of care with various care providers (nurses, nurse practionioners, physicians) at partnered hospitals across New England.
Chemistry Lab Teaching Assistant, College of the Holy Cross 2018
· Guided younger students through the exploration of fundamental laws of matter on the molecular level
· Created space for fun, exploration, and collaboration within a highly left-brain, technical subject
· Graded chemistry lab notebooks and was a resource for students throughout the semester
Vet Tech Intern, Integrative Animal Health Center 2017
· Discovered how sensitive and receptive animals are to our energy and intention when handling and caring for them
· Witnessed the honoring of the animal world from within a medicalized lens with holistic modalities integrated including acupuncture and physical therapy
· Observed and assisted with various surgeries including neuter and spays, knee replacements, tooth extractions
· Learned appropriate animal restraint techniques through experience for in-office procedures as well as before and after surgical procedures
Microbiology Research Assistant, College of the Holy Cross 2016
· Grew genetically-modified bacteria within an anaerobic chamber to observe whether this genetic modification could fortify the cohesive bonds that develop between bacteria when they grow within a biofilm. This is important as one approach to sustainable production of biofuels is to utilize bacteria growing upon an electrode attached to a solar panel. Any enhancement of that attachment power could potentially boost the efficiency of solar panels.
· Results were presented at the annual Holy Cross Research Conference
ABSTRACTS, POSTER PRESENATIONS AND EXHIBITS
American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2019
Zoë J. Schefter, BA; Amy Z. Walsh, RN; Anne Marie Valente, MD; Elizabeth S. DeWitt, MD; Vassilios
J.Bezzerides, MD, PhD; John K. Triedman, MD and Douglas Y. Mah, MD. (2019, November). Implantable- Cardioverter Defibrillator Use in Adult Congenital Heart Disease Patients. Poster session presented at the 2019 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Abstract)
American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2020
Fred M. Wu, Bradley J. Quade, Zoë J. Schefter, Abigail Moses, Cara L. Lachtrupp, John C. Markley,
Kimberlee Gauvreau, Katherine E. Economy*, Anne Marie Valente*, on behalf of the STORCC Investigators *Joint senior author. (2020, September). Placental Pathology in Pregnancies Complicated by Maternal Cardiac Disease: A Study from the Standardized Outcomes in Reproductive Cardiovascular Care (STORCC) Initiative. Poster session presented at the 2020 virtual American Heart Association Scientific Sessions (Abstract)
American Headache Society Annual Scientific Meeting 2023
Zoë J. Schefter, Allison Smith. (2023, June). Exploring Openness to Treatment in Pediatric Headache: Unveiling Gendered Decision-Making Patterns. Oral presentation to be presented at the 2023 American Headache Society Scientific Meeting (Abstract)
PUBLISHED RESEARCH ARTICLES
1. Schefter, Zoe & Knapp, William & Helou, Elsie & Jay, Kathleen & Epstein, Michael & O'Leary, Edward & Tam, Felicia & Upadhyay, Shailendra & Boss, Bridget & Giddins, Niels & Dionne, Audrey & Burke, Kerry & Rotondo, Kathleen & DeWitt, Elizabeth & Kane, David & Tsirka, Anna & Mah, Douglas. (2025). A Quality Improvement Initiative to Optimize Follow-Up in the New England Area for Pediatric Patients With Cardiovascular Implantable Electronic Devices. Journal of cardiovascular electrophysiology. 36. 10.1111/jce.16594.
2. Schefter ZJ, Smith AM. Exploring downstream effects of gender roles in healthcare decision-making and relationships within systems: A cross-sectional analysis of openness to treatment in pediatric headache. Journal of Psychosomatic Research. 2024; 179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychres.2024.111611
3. Brown, JY, Drakeley, S, Duncan, M, Knapp, WP, Schefter,ZJ, Barker,N, Rouse, CE, Maron, B, Edelman, E, Valente, AM, Economy, KE. Moderate Intensity Exercise in Pregnant Patients with Cardiovascular Disease: A Pilot Study. American Heart Journal. 2023 April.
4. Smith, Allison & Silvia, Megan & Rogan, Hannah & Schefter, Zoë. (2023). Avoiding lights and sounds: validation of the PhotoSensitivity and PhonoSensitivity Avoidance Behavior Scales (PHOTO-SABS & PHONO-SABS) in pediatric headache. Children's Health Care. 53. 1-20. 10.1080/02739615.2023.2189117.
5. Karian, Victoria & Morton, Hannah & Schefter, Zoë & Smith, Allison & Rogan, Hannah & Morse, Brenna & LeBel, Alyssa. (2023). OnabotulinumtoxinA for Pediatric Migraine. Pain Management Nursing. 24. 10.1016/j.pmn.2023.04.006.
6. Karian,K, Yu-Hsing Chang, C, Schefter,ZJ, Lebel, A. Can Botox Reduce Self-Injurious Behavior in Young Patients with Chronic Head Pain and Autism/Developmental Delay? Autism Open Access. 2022; 12(8)
7. Smith AM, Schefter ZJ, Rogan H. Aligning with Patients and Families: Exploring Youth and Caregiver Openness to Pediatric Headache Interventions. Children. 2022; 9(12):1956. https://doi.org/10.3390/children9121956
8. Wu, FM, Quade, BJ, Carreon CK, Schefter, ZJ, Moses, A., Lachtrupp, CL, Markley, JC, Gauvreau, K, Valente, AM, Economy, KE. Placental Findings in Pregnancies Complicated by Maternal Cardiovascular Disease. JACC Adv. 2022 Mar, 1 (1) 1–11.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacadv.2022.100008
LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCE
Co-Chair of the Women’s Alliance Employee Resource Group, Boston Children’s Hospital 2023-2024
➢ Organized and facilitated community-building and networking events across the enterprise
➢ Wrote and circulated the monthly newsletter highlighting upcoming events of interest, weaving in storytelling and education, with the intention to build safety and interconnection within a traditionally hostile environment for women
Spontaneous Celebrations Volunteer, Jamaica Plain, MA 2022-2024
➢ Facilitated arts and crafts sessions with local children during our weekly Friday Pot Luck dinners to encourage community care and resourcing for mothers in the area
➢ Encouraged volunteer recruitment and assisting organization of the Wake Up the Earth Festival, a festival to bring the community together to honor the Earth through art, music, anti-racism, ceremony, cultural reclamation, celebration of the feminine, and community
Trevor Project Counselor, Online 2020-2021
➢ Conducted suicide risk assessments for LGBTQIA+ individuals who reached out seeking additional mental health supports
➢ Developed counseling and suicide risk assessment skills through the Trevor Project training, including but not limited to: validating, normalizing, and reflecting. Overall, I embodied what it means to be a safe and loving person to connect with during a dark time for many individuals who utilized our services
Eldergrow Team Member, Boston MA 2020-2021
➢ Worked to bring small, portable community green spaces in the form of roll-away cart gardens to our elders living in nursing homes in the area
➢ The mental and physical health benefits of the Earth-human connection is well studied, with evidence illustrating that a simple window to the outside world installed within hospital rooms is enough to reduce the dose of medications necessary to ease patient pain. This speaks to the inherent power of the deep feelings of psychological safety that are elicited when we ground ourselves with the cycles of nature, the pace at which life is inviting us to progress.
Rosie’s Place Volunteer, Boston MA 2018-2019
➢ Prepared and served meals to marginalized women in my community to stand for community care
➢ Distributed essential products to local under-resourced women including sanitary napkins and contraceptives
Co-chair of Senior Science Advisor Committee, College of the Holy Cross 2017-2018
➢ Counseled students on how to most empower themselves during their time in school, particularly how to plan to study abroad while also managing demanding science and pre-health courses
➢ Led a group of like-minded student advisors with strong science backgrounds to facilitate growth and resource utilization in our younger peers