The National African American Child and Family Research Center (NAACFRC)
2024 Community-Engaged Research (CER) Conference:
CER Pathways to Equitable Programs and Policies
June 6, 2024 | 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM EDT | Hybrid
Shirley Massey Executive Conference Center
Morehouse College
Atlanta, GA
The purpose of the NAACFRC CER Conference is to present a program that builds research capacity, specifically in community-engaged research, in African American communities. Community-engaged research is defined “not by the methods used, but the principles that guide the research and the relationships between researchers and the community.” This research may range from involving community members in an advisory capacity to community members as leads and/or equal partners in the research.
Within this conference we will showcase community-engaged research including innovative research approaches, stories of successful research collaborations, and lessons learned within the following program tracks:
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Head Start/Early Head Start
Childcare Assistance
Conference Topics
Please see the agenda for full program session descriptions.
- Parent-Power: Community-Engaged Research with Parents to Advance Equity in Services for African American Children and Families
Hear from agency, program staff, and parents about the role of parents in research to improve programs and ensure services are equitable through positive outcomes.
- Safe First Steps: A Community-Based Approach to Supporting Families Exposed to Trauma and Violence
The Safe First Steps program shares information with early childhood providers, schools, and families about the strategies that can be implemented to reduce re-traumatization and promote recovery from intergenerational trauma and exposure to adverse childhood experiences.
- “We as a Country Should Provide”: The Impacts of Guaranteed Income on Racial and Economic Justice
This session will present the initial 12-month findings from a pioneering Guaranteed Income initiative in three sites across Georgia, focusing on Black women in two distinct treatment groups, one receiving a consistent monthly income and another receiving an initial lump sum followed by a reduced monthly amount against a control group.
- Exploring the Experiences of Black, Low-Income Parents’ Access to Quality Early Childhood Education
Through in-depth interviews, this study explores how income levels impact Black parents’ lived experiences regarding access to quality ECE programs. Implications of this study’s findings will benefit policymakers, administrators, and decision-makers with the positional power to impact change related to access to quality ECE programs.
- Geography, Resources, and Outcomes: Unraveling Federal Early & Primary Care Disparities in the U.S.
Using data from the 2019 National Survey of Early Care and Education, explore the role of geographic context (region, urban density, poverty density) in the U.S., as well as teacher job demands and resources in the quality of early care and education (ECE) workforce (e.g., teachers, teaching assistants, instructional aides, director) interactions with children and their caregiving attitudes.
- Studying an Equity-Focused Universal Preschool Program: Lessons from a Research Partnership
Learn about a research-practice partnership grounded in equity to study a county-wide universal preschool program with perspectives from the policy and research leaders of the partnership, as well as time to reflect upon ways the lessons learned can inform their own collaborative research.
- (Re)Conceptualizing Current Measurements of Accessibility for Black Family & Children in ECE
Comprehensive data collection from various sources and a case study on an optimally accessible program reveals that current policies inadequately include Black children and families. Policy recommendations emphasize recognizing anti-Black ideologies, prioritizing equity, removing targeted barriers, and fostering cultural inclusivity for systemic change in early learning spaces.
- Incorporating Lived Experience into Federal Research Practices
This session will describe how a community advisory board (CAB) can fulfill the need to engage people with lived experience in federally funded research and evaluation, how to convene a CAB in the federal research context, and lessons learned from the perspectives of one project’s CAB members, research firm staff, and federal staff.
- Emerging Scholar Showcase
NAACFRC Emerging Scholars, doctoral and medical students who have been mentored by NAACFRC co-investigators, will share their research in early care and education and the wellbeing of African American children and families.
- Community Pilot Project Program Showcase
NAACFRC pilot project program grantees, who are leaders in community-based organizations in diverse sectors, share their research.
![Latrice_Rollins - National African American Child and Family Research Center Latrice Rollins](https://www.naacfrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Latrice_Rollins.png)
Moderator
Latrice Rollins, PhD, MSW
Director, NAACFRC
Special Guests
![Jackson-William-cropped - National African American Child and Family Research Center Jackson-William-cropped](https://www.naacfrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Jackson-William-cropped-200x200.png)
William P. Jackson, Ph.D
Chief Dreamer
Village of Wisdom
![Cooksey-Charli-cropped - National African American Child and Family Research Center Cooksey-Charli-cropped](https://www.naacfrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Cooksey-Charli-cropped-200x200.png)
Charli Cooksey, M.A.
Founder & CEO
WE Power St. Louis
![Amanda-Coleman-cropped - National African American Child and Family Research Center Amanda-Coleman-cropped](https://www.naacfrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Amanda-Coleman-cropped-200x200.png)
Amanda Coleman, PhD, MA
Deputy Division Director, Division of Children and Family Development, OPRE
![Curenton-Stephanie-cropped - National African American Child and Family Research Center Curenton-Stephanie-cropped](https://www.naacfrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Curenton-Stephanie-cropped-200x200.png)
Stephanie Currenton, PhD
Executive Director, Center on the Ecology of Early Development
Guest Speakers
Darrell Armstrong, DDiv-hc, MDiv, EdS, Founder, Faith-leaders Allied and Aligned to Institute Trust in the Home (FAAITH)
Leslee Barnes, Director, Preschool and Early Learning Division, Multnomah County
Ebonee Bell, Member, Multnomah Idea Lab
Tyrone Bell, MPH Pillars Initiative, NAACFRC Community Pilot Project Program
Keon N. Berry, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Sociology, Morehouse College
Cassandra Bolar, PhD, Co-Investigator, NAACFRC
Briana Bostic, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Baltimore Education Research Consortium
Kesha Canda, Member, Multnomah Idea Lab
Sando Zou-Capuzzi, Young Parent Leader, Center for the Study of Social Policy
Breanna Chachere, MPH, 2022 Emerging Scholar, NAACFRC
Mikayla Charles, MPH Pillars Initiative, NAACFRC Community Pilot Project Program
Kim Clum, Senior Social Science Research Analyst, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation/ACF/HHS
Amanda Coleman, PhD, MA, Deputy Division Director, Division of Children and Family Development, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation/ACF/HHS
Charli Cooksey, MA, Founder & CEO, WEPOWER
Alex Crosby, MD, MPH, Vice Chair and Professor, Community Health and Preventive Medicine, MSM
Stephanie M. Curenton, PhD, Executive Director, Center on the Ecology of Early Development, Boston University
Tiffany Cuthbert, M.Ed, MNM, Founder, Executive Director, Pillars Initiative, NAACFRC Community Pilot Project Program
Jennifer Daniels, PhD, MSW, National Poverty Fellow, Institute for Research on Poverty, OPRE/ACF/HHS
Parker Gilkesson Davis, MPP, Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
Desha Elliott, PhD Student, Clark Atlanta University
Parthenia Fields, Member, Community Advisory Board
Avis Files, Director, Family and Supportive Services, Pathway
Ife Floyd, MPP, Director of Economic Justice, Georgia Budget and Policy Institute
Shedrick Garrett, MA, 2023 Emerging Scholar, NAACFRC
Dr. Lynda Gibson, PhD, Director, Psychological Services Center, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Leah Hamilton, MSW, PhD, Principal Investigator of the Family Economic Policy Lab, Appalachian State University
Alycia Hardy, MPA, Vice President of Policy and Research, National Black Child Development Institute
Kissie Hunt, Executive Administrative Assistant, Coastal Plain Area EOA, Inc.
Fatoumata “Fatima” Kane, Program Analyst, Youth Power, Parent Power Initiative, Center for the Study of Social Policy
Brianna Lemmons, PhD, Diana R. Garland School of Social Work, Baylor University
Ericka Lewis, PhD, LMSW, School of Social Work, University of Maryland
Anthony Lizarraga, MS, 2023 Emerging Scholar, NAACFRC
Robert Mayberry, MPH, MS, Co-Lead, Capacity-Building, NAACFRC, MSM
Marla McDaniel, PhD, Senior Fellow, Center on Labor, Human Services, and Population, Urban Institute
Patrick McFarlane, Government Relations Manager, Child Care Resource Center
Brian McGregor, PhD, Co-Investigator, Criminal Justice & Health, NAACFRC, MSM
Jordan Murphy, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC, Executive Director, Girassol Wellness, NAACFRC Community Pilot Project Program
Aaron Quick, MSW, PhD Student, Clark Atlanta University
Arthi Rao, PhD, Co-Investigator, Georgia Institute of Technology, NAACFRC
Bridget Ratajczak, MA, Child and Family Development Supervisor, Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning
Megan Reid, PhD, Social Science Research Analyst, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation/ACF/HHS
Latrice Rollins, PhD, MSW, Director, NAACFRC, MSM
Amber B. Sansbury-Scott, M.Ed., 2023 Emerging Scholar, NAACFRC
Christian Slacks, Parent, Head Start Policy Council Member, Coastal Plain Area EOA, Inc.
Anthony D. Smith II (Aremu Mbande), MS, 2023 Emerging Scholar, NAACFRC
Nina Smith, PhD, Co-Investigator, NAACFRC
Simone Smith, MSW, LMSW, PhD Student, Clark Atlanta University
Allison Stephens, PhD, M.Ed., Director, Networks and Policy, HOPE National Resource Center
Jareese Stroud, Co-Lead, Capacity-Building, NAACFRC, MSM
Tanya Thomas, PhD, Executive/Head Start Director, Coastal Plain Area EOA, Inc.
Ebony Tolbert, Family Peer Ambassador, Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning
Rodney Washington, PhD, Co-Investigator, Early Care and Education, NAACFRC
Ashley Watts, MPA, EdD Student, Educational Policy, Marymount University
Voycetta Marie White, Member, Multnomah Idea Lab
All general and breakout sessions will be experienced
in-person and also broadcasted live through zoom.
Benefits of Attending
- Build your professional network
- Share timely, relevant research with a diverse audience
- Share knowledge and experiences
- Ideation
- Build Collaborative Partnerships
Travel
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