Recognizing power to release it

Alyssa Anwar, Christian White, Claudia Catalano, Deborah Mutschler, Larisa Mendez-Penate, Lindsey Sagasta

Essentials for Childhood management team, Massachusetts Department of Public Health

We worked with Deb, Claudia, Larisa, Christian, Alyssa, Jess and Lindsey to design and facilitate a community leadership advisory team for the state’s Essentials for Childhood efforts, a CDC grant focused on promoting safe and nurturing relationships and environments for children. The goal was for this community advisory group to work with the grant management team to review data, inform the initiative's multiple workstreams, and guide grant decisions.

Setting up this new model for decision-making and collaboration required the management team to work through the balance between their intention to share power – and the realities of what it means to do so. We saw them wrestling with their own positionality in thoughtful and considered ways and prioritizing the role of community advisors consistently in how they planned.