Niema Ismael is the Founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Wellness & Parenting Support Center (WWPSC), a Minnesota nonprofit dedicated to empowering women, children, and families through culturally grounded mental health services, and parenting programs. With a strong passion in trauma-informed care, maternal mental health, and family systems, Niema leads with a deep commitment to improving behavioral health access for Somali communities.

Her leadership is grounded in both lived experience and professional practice. Over the past five years, she has worked in mental health care, community-based research, and health equity advocacy. Her experience includes positions with M Health Fairview and close collaboration with faculty researchers at the University of Minnesota.

As Professional Development Chair for the Minnesota Counseling Association and a member of the Executive Committee for SoLaHmo Partnership for Health and Wellness, Niema continues to shape conversations around culturally responsive care. Through programs such as Let’s Heal Hooyo (Mom), Infant & I, and Dareen (Feeling) Circle, she has created healing spaces where Somali women, families, and youth can reclaim wellness without shame.