About this session

Saturday, 10:20 AM - 11:50 AM

Advancing Developmental Science through Anti-Racist Practices: A Conversational Roundtable

Historically, developmental sciences have often studied racially and ethnically marginalized children and families using deficit-based approaches, perpetuating a cycle of othering. To combat the lack of diversity and deficit-based perspectives in developmental science, there has been a push for increasing racial and ethnic representation in our samples. While increasing racial and ethnic representation is essential, it is only a piece of the puzzle. As such, there is an imperative need for comprehensive, diverse, and equitable approaches in developmental science, particularly those that place anti-racism at the forefront. Our discussion will thus be centered around pursuing and applying strategies to champion anti-racist principles across the multifaceted landscape of developmental science, reflecting SRCD's commitment to advancing the field while increasing diversity and fostering inclusivity. This conversational roundtable will, therefore, delve into an array of essential topics necessary to implement anti-racist frameworks in developmental science, including innovative community outreach strategies that various researchers have used to facilitate engagement with historically marginalized communities. A critical piece in building an anti-racist developmental science includes diversifying our workforce, which requires dismantling the hidden curriculum and using anti-racist pedagogical practices to prepare our emerging scholars to approach their research with an anti-racist lens. In alignment with SRCD's strategic goals, our roundtable’s goal is to advance developmental science, integrate diversity, engage members and communities, and create a space for meaningful dialogue and collaboration, thereby cultivating actionable insights. These efforts will all contribute to SRCD's vision of shaping an inclusive, equitable, and impactful developmental science community. Led by Afro-Latina scholar and graduate student Dominique La Barrie, who advocates against racism through academic and public engagement initiatives, the roundtable spotlights strategies for broadening developmental research to encompass the experiences of marginalized families.
Panelists will share their experiences fostering anti-racist environments in research, pedagogy, mentoring, and the steps taken toward inclusivity, equity, and respect in working with marginalized communities. Questions will delve into specific actions and implementation of anti-racist practices in their work. Attendees can actively participate in the conversation through questions and discussion.
Sample questions:
1. How can developmental scientists implement anti-racist practices for inclusive and respectful studies on the diverse experiences of marginalized children and families?
2. What pedagogical strategies do you use to help emerging scholars incorporate anti-racism in their research?
3. When you present your work, what efforts do you take to highlight diversity beyond sampling?
4. How can researchers implement anti-racist approaches when limited to undergraduate participants?
The panel comprises diverse scholars actively contributing to anti-racist research programs and initiatives. Biographies of each panelist follow.
Dr. Isha Metzger is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Georgia State University, Adjunct and Graduate Faculty at the University of Georgia, and Affiliate Research Faculty in Public Health at Yale University. Dr. Metzger is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist with a PhD in Clinical-Community Psychology from the University of South Carolina. As Director of The EMPOWER Lab, Dr. Metzger focuses on “Engaging Minorities in Prevention, Outreach, Wellness, Education, and Research” and is aimed at understanding risk factors (e.g., racial discrimination) and leveraging resilience factors (racial socialization) to adapt evidence-based treatments to increase service utilization and engagement and improve outcomes including anxiety, depression, racial trauma, PTSD, risky sex, and substance misuse for Black youth, families, and adults. Dr. Metzger teaches Graduate and Undergraduate students and, as Owner of Cultural Concepts, LLC and a TF-CBT certified trainer, offers award-winning instruction and consultation to students, professionals, and organizations nationwide.
Dr. Violeta J. Rodriguez is an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in the clinical-community psychology area. She completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Georgia (UGA), her predoctoral internship at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and her masters in Measurement, Research, and Evaluation at the University of Miami. Her research focuses on the psychometrics of parenting and family constructs, with an emphasis on making these measures more representative of ethnoracially minoritized youth and their families, as well as validating or adapting mental health measures in underserved populations in a global health context. Her research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and the Ford Foundation. While at UGA as a graduate student, she founded the Racial Trauma Task Force, work that she has now taken over at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
Dominique Parris is the Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at Child Trends, the nation’s leading research organization focused solely on improving the lives of children and youth. Ms. Parris leads Child Trends’ comprehensive equity initiative, shaping the organization’s culture and climate, policies and practices, and approach to producing high-quality research. In her time at Child Trends, Dominique has played an integral role in the organization’s growth and development into a more equitable, anti-racist workplace and research partner. Her vision is to ensure that Child Trends conducts impactful research each day produced by researchers who demographically reflect and understand the broad diversity of experiences of children and families in the United States. Ms. Parris holds an MEd in social justice education from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Wellesley College.
Dr. Shawn Jones is a licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Professor in the Counseling Program in the Psychology Department at Virginia Commonwealth University. Before relocating to Richmond, Dr. Jones was a National Science Foundation SBE Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. He received his doctorate in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis on Children and Families from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As director of the AYA Research Team, Dr. Jones seeks to support the wellbeing of Black youth and their families by better understanding culturally relevant protective and promotive factors; translating basic research into interventions that harness the unique strengths of the Black experience; and disseminating this research to be consumed, critiqued and enhanced by the communities the work intends to serve.

Our conversation roundtable discussion aims to shift the paradigm towards comprehensive, diverse, and equitable strategies through an anti-racism lens in response to the historical deficit-based approaches in developmental science. Recognizing the necessity for inclusive developmental science, we explore actionable steps to champion anti-racist principles across research, mentoring, and community engagement. We aim to create a space for meaningful dialogue, reflecting SRCD's strategic objectives of advancing developmental science, integrating diversity, and engaging members and communities. We will contribute to SRCD's vision of shaping an inclusive, equitable, and impactful developmental science community by fostering dialogue and collaboration. This roundtable highlights the importance of diverse perspectives and provides insights for advancing developmental science in an anti-racist direction.
Dominique La Barrie, Afro-Latina scholar and senior graduate student at the University of Georgia, will lead this discussion. The roundtable will feature a diverse group of panelists committed to integrating anti-racist practices and perspectives in their research. Panelists include Dr. Isha Metzger, Assistant Professor at Georgia State University, Adjunct and Graduate Faculty at the University of Georgia, and Affiliate Research Faculty in Public Health at Yale University; Dr. Violeta J. Rodriguez, Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign; Dominique Parris, Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion at Child Trends; and Dr. Shawn Jones, licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Professor at the Psychology Department at Virginia Commonwealth University. The discussion will delve into pedagogical strategies, outreach programs, and workforce diversification, emphasizing the imperative to dismantle hidden curricula and instill anti-racist lenses in emerging scholars. Our conversation roundtable discussion aims to shift the paradigm towards comprehensive, diverse, and equitable strategies through an anti-racism lens in response to the historical deficit-based approaches in developmental science. Recognizing the necessity for inclusive developmental science, we explore actionable steps to champion anti-racist principles across research, mentoring, and community engagement. We aim to create a space for meaningful dialogue, reflecting SRCD's strategic objectives of advancing developmental science, integrating diversity, and engaging members and communities. We will contribute to SRCD's vision of shaping an inclusive, equitable, and impactful developmental science community by fostering dialogue and collaboration. This roundtable highlights the importance of diverse perspectives and provides insights for advancing developmental science in an anti-racist direction.
Dominique La Barrie, Afro-Latina scholar and senior graduate student at the University of Georgia, will lead this discussion. The roundtable will feature a diverse group of panelists committed to integrating anti-racist practices and perspectives in their research. Panelists include Dr. Isha Metzger, Assistant Professor at Georgia State University, Adjunct and Graduate Faculty at the University of Georgia, and Affiliate Research Faculty in Public Health at Yale University; Dr. Violeta J. Rodriguez, Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign; Dominique Parris, Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion at Child Trends; and Dr. Shawn Jones, licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Professor at the Psychology Department at Virginia Commonwealth University. The discussion will delve into pedagogical strategies, outreach programs, and workforce diversification, emphasizing the imperative to dismantle hidden curricula and instill anti-racist lenses in emerging scholars.

Session moderator
Dominique Luisa La Barrie, University of Georgia

Panelists
Dr. Violeta J. Rodriguez, PhD, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign , United States
Dr. Isha W. Metzger, Ph.D., Georgia State University , United States
Dr. Shawn Christopher Tracey Jones, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University , United States
Ms. Dominique Parris, Child Trends , United States

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