2021 – Present: Justice Ambassadors Youth Council, Monitoring & Evaluation 

Over a decade ago, I started working with Dr. Geraldine Downey, one of the directors of Columbia University’s Center for Justice, on the introduction of social and community justice topics into Columbia’s core curriculum. Several years later, I became part of a volunteer team supporting the brilliance of Jarrell Daniels, a formerly incarcerated scholar and community leader, as he developed curriculum for his program Justice Ambassadors Youth Council (JAYC). JAYC is rooted in the concept of policy-by-proximity and incorporates the voices and lived experiences of marginalized people into the development of government policies and community-based solutions. It operates through a collaborative seminar in which government executives and impacted community youth to engage in personal and policy change; its mission is to to drive policy change, support healthy adolescent development, and reduce youth involvement in criminal legal system through a holistic approach.

As an extension of an NSF INTERN grant, I was able to continue to support JAYC (and several related projects) onsite, focused primarily on grant writing, strategic development, and monitoring and evaluation of the 4th and 5th programmatic cohorts. During my time as an NSF INTERN, we successfully applied to Columbia World Project to continue our work. Read more about our team and the ongoing project here: https://worldprojects.columbia.edu/measuring-impact-youth-justice-initiatives

2020 – Present: Collective Confinement Creative Journaling, Intervention Development

As international and US domestic travel came to a halt in March of 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, what I thought would be a short trip to my hometown in NC for my grandmother’s funeral became a much longer stay. A close friend of mine found herself likewise unexpectedly extending her time in Paris, France, where she worked as a dancer. Over multiple long phone calls, we discussed the importance of documenting the current moment in history and the value having both accountability and community to engage with creatively during a global crisis.

Pulling in a diverse, global network of individuals, we created “Collective Confinement” as a informal arts intervention to support individual and community well-being during the height of Covid-19’s uncertainty. At six time points, participants submitted artistic reflections – of all formats and varieties – to document their lived experiences. At the project’s conclusion, we interviewed participants to better understand their perspectives on the format and function of the intervention itself, as well as its impacts on various elements of their life (e.g., meaning-making, healing/catharsis, solidarity, perspective-taking). We currently look forward to publishing our findings in both academic and non-academic venues.

2019: Artful Ties – Using Art to Build Conflict Free Communities, Monitoring & Evaluation 

In December of 2019, I was selected by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State to attend a State Department Alumni conference on Art, Culture, and Transforming Conflict. During the conference, I established connections with the director of the Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, VA. Together with several other conference attendees, we successfully applied for funding from the U.S. Department of State to to develop a series of three workshops teaching community leaders how to develop, implement, and evaluate programming that uses the arts to engage communities and promote conflict resolution within these communities.

Although the program was impacted by the onset of Covid-19, we were able to successfully hold each of the three workshops (virtually), engaging various community leaders and artists. In each workshop, I provided an overview of realistic and pragmatic monitoring and evaluation strategies that could be implemented alongside of the various arts initiatives. Through this work, we hoped to better support the sustainability of artistic initiatives over time as well as increase their potential attractiveness to funding sources.

2019: Bridge4Unity, Monitoring & Evaluation 

Early in my graduate career, I was invited to collaborate on the evaluation of programming conducted by a local organization called Bridge4Unity. Bridge4Unity was committed to dismantling racism through interracial dialogue and cultural exchange. At the time of the evaluation, their primary program focused on two exchange weekends for individuals coming from diverse geographies and racial/ethnic backgrounds. Bridge4Unity facilitated face-to-face dialogues with the goal of creating a safe space for thoughtful discussion of experiences and perspectives on race and race relations in the United States.

For the evaluation, we designed a survey for participants that captured important concepts recognized in research on intergroup contact generally, and on intergroup dialogue more specifically. The final evaluation summary report considered how Bridge4Unity’s work had potential for breaking down barriers, creating shared perspectives, and motivating attitudinal and behavioral change. It additionally identified specific areas of the strengths and weaknesses for the program.

Read more about Bridge4Unity ongoing work here: https://www.handsacrossthehills.org/bridge-4-unity

2016: Border to Border Program, Monitoring & Evaluation 

My first introduction into monitoring and evaluation began during my time in Armenia as a Community and Youth Development (CYD) volunteer. Beyond serving on the broader Peace Corps monitoring and evaluation taskforce (working to develop the metrics for overall CYD Armenia goals) as well as supporting USAID in evaluating small grant applications of other volunteers, I also served as program manager for Border to Border. Initiated several years prior, the program was popular with American volunteers as an opportunity to travel the country, teaching a healthy living curriculum in rural villages and towns.

However, the actual value and impact of the program on the Armenian students and communities it served was unclear: It became the overarching goal of the 2016 program to evaluate the programmatic impact, considering both the educational value of the lessons as well as the overall experience of the program. Close to 1,000 pre/post surveys were administered to students by hand (all of which had to be packed in and out for the duration of the walk). A final assessment illustrated not only increases in post-test learning scores, but also overall programmatic satisfaction and value by students and community partners.

Read more about the current BtoB initiative here: http://bordertoborderarmenia.weebly.com/