About Our Conference
Our Mission
The Knoxville Black Maternal Health Conference is an annual event dedicated to addressing and improving the state of Black maternal and paternal health in Knoxville and beyond. This event brings together local researchers, birth workers, holistic practitioners, business owners, advocates, and other professionals dedicated to maternal health and wellness.
Through a series of engaging presentations and discussions, the conference aims to:
- Raise awareness about the status of Black health within Knoxville and the surrounding areas
- Provide valuable educational content and insights for the community and key stakeholders
- Connect attendees with local and regional resources, including women’s health providers, alternative healing modalities, regenerative medicine, and womb care
- Establish funding and support for ongoing advocacy and initiatives in Black maternal health and reproductive rights
- Open to the public, the conference provides an important platform for advancing health equity and support for Black families in the health sector.
Details for the next Knoxville Black Maternal Health Conference will be announced soon. Stay tuned for updates!
MEET OUR Curators
Alexis Alsup
Doula & Student Midwife, Empowered Doula Services
Alexis Alsup is a proud native of Knoxville, Tennessee, as she is a Certified Birthing Doula and founder of Empowered Doula Services. Further honing her expertise through specialized training in traditional herbal medicine for pregnancy and the postnatal period, she is currently pursuing studies as a student midwife, with the aim of becoming a licensed Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) in Tennessee. Her dedication to this path is driven by a deep passion for providing comprehensive and holistic care to birthing individuals and their families. It is her heartfelt commitment to serve families of all races, with a special emphasis on African American women who have faced disproportionate challenges during childbirth. She eagerly anticipates continuing to empower families to have the birthing experience they truly deserve. She is an activist and the founder of the Knoxville Black Maternal Health Conference, who successfully championed the passage of the maternal health legislation SB1832/HB2226.
Femeika Elliott
WOMB PRACTITIONER, FOODWAYS EDUCATOR & SPIRITUALIST
FOUNDER OF MEIK MEALS’ LOTUS PROGRAM
Femeika is the founder of Meik Meals (2019) a multifaceted health foods brand and The Lotus Program (2022) an in-home meal nourishment wellness company for women and mothers post birth. She brings her background of 8 years in whole foods education, sacred medicine and ancestral practice with over 10 years in the social work field. She is passionate about health, food justice and black equity as she founded the Rooted East Knoxville Collective in July 2022 a food and land justice collective.
Femeika is incredibly passionate about serving her community, bringing awareness through food, education and women’s health as the preservation of culture and ancestry inspire her work as she is the founder of the Lotus Program Experience– a holistic women’s wellness & maternal health practice. She is an activist and the founder of the Knoxville Black Maternal Health Conference as she championed the passing of maternal health legislation SB1832/HB2226.
