2018 YNPN National Conference & Leaders Institute

A key part of the Discovery Center for Evaluation, Research, and Professional Learning’s mission is to “promote equity in opportunity, access, and outcomes for all learners.” Until recently, Discovery Center staff had not deeply and purposefully explored how their work reflects this mission. In this session, I will share insights from individual and collective efforts to explore culturally competent and responsive research and evaluation practices, and how these efforts have sparked personal and professional changes within our organization. More specifically, I will share ways Center staff have challenged one another to explore internal biases and beliefs, and how these efforts have influenced the ways we interact with one another and our clients, particularly with regard to disrupting systems of inequality and injustice. I also will share candid experiences from my own self-reflective journey toward cultural awareness, including steps I am taking to better understand my role as a leader at the Center, the responsibilities I believe I have in supporting my colleagues, and the new understanding I have of the larger systems that sometimes restrict equity, diversity, and inclusion practices. Pending interest from participants, I will discuss how the Center is currently applying what we are learning through our research and evaluation practices, and how we plan to exemplify to others, our commitment toward equity and systematic change. Although the Center’s work is steeped in educational research/evaluation, the implications of our equity and social justice work, and the ideas proposed in this presentation have potential benefit to audiences from various backgrounds.