DECOLONIZING AND RE-INDIGENIZING EVALUATION:
A LEARNING CIRCLE
Wednesday, January 26th
11:00am - 12:30pm via Zoom
The purpose of this learning circle is to re-center Indigenous worldviews and ways of understanding in program evaluation and build upon work led by Indigenous peoples to reclaim research and evaluation processes. The imposition of western worldviews in evaluation practice, as an instrument of colonization, has perpetuated systems of harm by ignoring, discounting, and actively oppressing Indigenous understanding and knowledge.
This opportunity is open to Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants who are actively committed to or already working with and within Indigenous communities.
A reading list is provided below and participants are asked to carefully read the materials before attending. The learning circle will be a discussion of the readings, co-facilitated by Dr. Shelly Valdez and Jill Stein who have worked in partnership for over 16 years.
To center Indigenous voices in this learning circle, at least 10 of 15 participants will identify as Indigenous.
Class size is limited to 15 participants. Please do not register unless you are certain you will attend. If you register and cannot attend, please cancel your registration so that someone else can attend in your place. We will generate a wait-list.
Reading List
Nichols, R., & LaFrance, J. (2006). Indigenous evaluation: Respecting and empowering Indigenous knowledge. Tribal College Journal, 18(2), 32–35.
Click here: TCJarticle_Respecting-Empowering.pdf
Robertson, P., Jorgensen, M., and Garrow, C. (2004). Indigenizing evaluation research: How Lakota methodologies are helping “raise the tipi” in the Oglala Sioux Nation. American Indian Quarterly, 28(3 & 4), 499–526.
Click here: Indigenizing_Evaluation_Research_How_Lak.pdf
Valdez, S. (2004). Reflections on Indigenous evaluation: A Native perspective. Native Pathways.
Click here: Reflections.Indigenous.Eval.2004SV.pdf
About the Facilitators
This work will be co-created among all participants and led by two highly experienced co-facilitators:
Dr. Shelly Valdez is a member of the Pueblo of Laguna Tribe, located in central New Mexico, and of Hispanic descent. Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education, Master of Arts in Bilingual Education, and PhD in Multicultural Teacher Education focusing on research in the area of Science Education. She has worked in the area of education for over 38 years and currently owns and manages an educational consulting business, Native Pathways (NaPs), located in central New Mexico. An important component of NaPs is worldviews in science, primarily focusing on Indigenous science. Shelly’s interest and passion for Indigenous science has influenced her approaches in the field of education and her partnerships. For the past 18 years, she has been privileged to work with various communities, programs, and corporations in the area of evaluation. She brings an understanding of evaluation from a Native perspective in which she advocates for making a conscious effort, like in science education, to explore evaluation from various worldviews, in this case ‘Native Ways of Knowing.’ Shelly’s vision for the future is to continue to be an active participant and an advocate for influencing worldviews in evaluation and educational opportunities for Indigenous people.
Jill Stein is Principal Researcher of JKS Consulting, based in Corvallis, Oregon, and brings more than 15 years of experience in audience research and evaluation in informal learning contexts. She has worked with a broad range of institutions, including science museums and centers, cultural heritage and history museums, tribal museums, historic sites, art museums, and children’s museums. Her focus areas include the role that culture plays in learning, evaluation practices that attend to diversity and equity, and cross-cultural partnerships. Jill has been the lead evaluator on numerous projects funded by NSF, NASA, and IMLS around bringing together Indigenous knowledge and western science in informal learning settings and engaging Native youth in STEM through their cultural knowledge systems. A key example is Native Universe: Indigenous Voice in Science Museums, in which she served as one of the lead evaluators for formative and summative evaluation focused on understanding how institutional change can be supported around the inclusion of Indigenous voices and perspectives in science museums. Jill is currently a PhD Candidate in Applied Anthropology at Oregon State University.
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