Hello! We are Nisaa Kirtman, Vidhya Shanker, and Elizabeth Taylor-Schiro – Co-Chairs of AEA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Working Group. This Summer marks two years of our group working collectively, intentionally, and systematically to critically examine and build capacity for diversity, equity, and inclusion in all of AEA’s policies, programming, and practices. This week for AEA 3365, we wanted to take this opportunity to re-introduce our group to the broader membership, and share out about some of our progress, pauses, and learnings – as well as create space for input and participation from other members.
First things first…
Who Are We?
The DEI Working Group was convened in 2021, originally consisting of of 16 AEA members, including three co-chairs and six liaison spots for the Disabilities & Underrepresented Populations, Indigenous Peoples in Evaluation, LGBTQ+, Multi-ethnic Issues in Evaluation, Feminist, and LatinX Responsive Discourse Topical Interest Groups (TIGs); two board liaisons; and two staff members. It organizes its efforts around six charges that came out of recommendations from the 2018 Membership Engagement, Diversity & Leadership Development (MEDLD) report.
What Are We Doing?
The six charges that organize our efforts are as follows.
#1: DEI Statement
To recommend for adoption by the AEA Board a contemporary statement on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion that will frame the operational and governance work of AEA. The statement will define what diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to AEA, and address the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion at all levels of the association.
#2: Executive Director’s “State of the Association” Report
To review existing indicators and measures of DEI and identify gaps, which will form the basis of the Executive Director’s annual monitoring report on DEI to the Board of Directors. The report will serve as a basis for action plans by BOD and staff.
#3: Indicators & Measures
To recommend indicators and measures of DEI relevant to the governance of AEA to be used in future evaluation of board performance.
#4: Policies & Procedures
To systematically examine AEA policies and procedures through a lens of DEI.
#5: Investigate and Report
To follow up on and investigate inequity concerns across all elements of AEA and report results to the executive director (to report to the board) for resolution.
#6: Respond
To respond to ad hoc requests from the AEA Board, AEA staff, Evaluation Policy Task Force, or other entities for statements regarding evaluation and issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. This may include writing articles for AEA’s newsletter or developing and facilitating sessions for AEA’s annual conference.
As a collective, the DEI Working Group collaborates to address charges five and six, as issues and opportunities arise. However, to address the other charges, the DEI Working group has divided into three smaller sub-groups to advance work on charges one, three, and four, with charge two integrated into these three sub-groups.
What happens next?
This week the Working Group is sharing out our progress and conversations from the past year. Follow along to hear more about where we are, contemplate with us as we think about where we’d like to go, and reflect collectively on not only what/who we bring to this work but also what/who this work brings to AEA and the field of evaluation – including opportunities for more membership involvement!
The American Evaluation Association is hosting DEI Week with our colleagues in AEA’s DEI Working Group. The contributions all this week to AEA365 come from working group members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this AEA365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the AEA365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an AEA365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to AEA365@eval.org. AEA365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluators. The views and opinions expressed on the AEA365 blog are solely those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the American Evaluation Association, and/or any/all contributors to this site.