Don’t Be Like Myers-Briggs: Measure Your Impact When I started my doctoral program at Vanderbilt, I certainly didn’t expect to get into a … heated discussion, shall we say? … with the professor of my first course. We were discussing characteristics of effective leaders, and our professor mentioned that the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, one of… Continue reading Don’t Be Like Myers-Briggs: Measure Your Impact
Now is the time. Fear. Uncertainty. Frustration. Isolation. In recent conversations with districts across the country and in analyses of surveys for clients, these words have come up a lot. Families, educators, and community members are feeling a whole lot of unpleasant things as we grapple with how – or if – we can simultaneously… Continue reading Now is the time.
Why is it so hard to get a survey translated? I admit: I didn’t think it was that hard to get a survey translated. Over the past few weeks, I learned just how wrong I was — and ate a big piece of humble pie in the process. With colleagues, I’m working on a landscape… Continue reading Why is it so hard to get a survey translated?
We have to do better. I still remember how scared I was during the 2015 riots/uprising in Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray. I understood the pain and outrage in the black community over the death of a young, black man in police custody, but looking back, I didn’t really get the depth of the collective… Continue reading We have to do better.
The COVID Slide Last week, I watched a powerful webinar from Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center about health inequity and COVID-19. One of the first speakers, Dr. Nwando Olayiwola, started to talk about vulnerable populations but quickly corrected herself. She called them, “populations that have been made vulnerable.” What a difference such a small change… Continue reading The COVID Slide
How Muay Thai Helped Me Re-Think Evaluation I’ve been training in Muay Thai (kickboxing) for a few years. I am always learning something new and being pushed outside of my comfort zone … and I love it. However, I am and have always been a perfectionist. It’s something I’ve struggled with my whole life:… Continue reading How Muay Thai Helped Me Re-Think Evaluation
Resolving Data Fears in Evaluation I had some great conversations this week with colleagues about establishing a culture of data in organizations and training organizations who are new to evaluation and data. These conversations reminded me about one of my favorite old blog posts, that I originally wrote for the National Association for Family, School, and… Continue reading Resolving Data Fears in Evaluation
My Most Powerful Reads of the Decade I love to read. Curling up with a good book and getting lost in the story for hours is pure bliss for me. Of course, adulthood prevents this from being a regular occurrence, but I still treasure the time I spend reading and the lessons I learn from… Continue reading My Most Powerful Reads of the Decade
What I Learned from a Not-So-Great Year I know I’m in good company when I say that I’m not sad to say goodbye to 2019. I also know that the challenges I faced this year pale in comparison to the experiences of so many others whom I have read or heard about throughout the year.… Continue reading What I Learned from a Not-So-Great Year
Evaluating Our Thanksgiving Dinner This was an unusual Thanksgiving for my family. My parents have always hosted Thanksgiving at their house; it is one of the few family traditions that remains since my Grandma passed away. All was set to continue as usual this year, until last week, when my Grandpa — the effervescent, 89… Continue reading Evaluating Our Thanksgiving Dinner