Director of Development and Alumni Affairs
PLYMOUTH - She's hardly a newcomer to the area, but it has been quite awhile. And on her return she comes very well recommended.
In 1980 Milene (Ferrazza) Jeffirs spent her senior year at Plymouth High School as an exchange student from her native Brazil. At the end of that year she returned home to pursue what would be a very illustrious career in psychology.
Several years ago she reconnected with old friends from the PHS Class of 1980, and struck up a friendship with one in particular. Earlier this year she married Greg Jeffirs and moved back to the town that she admits had always been a special place to her.
"I'm still re-discovering Plymouth," she said. "A lot is the same, a lot has changed. I love living in a small town, I love living in the countryside and the way people will stop and say hello to you on the street. I'm still learning things and wondering how people will respond to what I do."
And what she does, she does very well.
Milene's spent much of her career working with a non-profit peace education organization, serving as it's International Director. With her specialty in group process - helping groups of people to work well and effectively with each other - she soon found a passion and a need in her own country.
"Nobody was doing any work to stop bullying in Brazil," she said. "There was no work on conflict resolution and it was something that I knew was very much needed."
While bullying amongst school age people gains a lot of attention, it's a problem across all groups in society. Milene's program became effective not just in schools but in the workplace.
"It happens everywhere, I think I get more requests and emails from adults in the workplace than anywhere else," she said. "It happens everyday, everywhere. It's a power struggle issue and many people who experience it are afraid to say it happened."
The program called "Connections; An Anti-Bullying Program" works on just that concept - helping members of large groups to come together and make the connections necessary to solve the problem.
"Bullying has to do with power and misused power. We all have power and choices on how we use it," she said. "So often in our world there is such a huge space between us all and that space gives us room for judging and labeling others. When we relate to each other we break down those barriers and have empathy and compassion for each other and that doesn't leave room for those negative attitudes."
The program has been wildly successful in schools and businesses in Brazil gaining national media attention and just before she returned earlier this year Milene won the "Prêmio Nossa Gente" (An Award for Our People) given by the Jornal de Londrina for her work in the field.
"I was so very happy the day I found out, I never dreamed I would be honored that way," she said. "I just remember how hard it was to start, and so hard to get people to listen to me. It made me feel so glad that somebody finally heard me.
"This is my cause. I know what it feels like to be bullied and nobody should ever have to feel that way. I'm very happy about all the people I've been able to help. I have a real drive to end this behavior because we just can't do that to people."
She also hopes to bring her program to this country.
"It's the kind of program that translates to any language and culture," she said. "I've done some work here with groups already and it's been amazing. The program has tools and I want to get those tools in people's hands."
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