PYD & Social Justice: A conversation with Dr. Michelle Boyd

Dr. Michelle Boyd’s conversation with us on April 8 was, in one word, superb! She was engaging and inspirational. Collegial and supportive. Her comments constituted a roadmap for career building in the service of enhancing the lives of diverse young people. Everyone in attendance learned so much, and were all deeply impressed.

I so appreciated hearing how Dr. Boyd-Brown has applied her learning and experiences from her time at IARYD to the work she is doing now. She is a true bridge builder between the key stakeholders involved in PYD and applied developmental science. I particularly appreciate her vision and commitment to taking a long view to bridging the worlds of policymaker, practitioner, and researcher. Thank you for sharing your wisdom with us!
Elizabeth Dowling, Ph.D.

Michelle’s talk provided a solid grounding in how to incorporate an equity perspective in all aspects of research from design to dissemination. It also offered valuable insight for students considering a research career outside of academia. She was an engaging speaker and facilitator.
Becky Fauth, Ph.D.

Dr. Boyd-Brown shared her experiences in advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice through professional learning and development, and particularly how they intersect with PYD. I particularly appreciated her emphasis on having a strengths-based vision to promoting thriving for all young people. Her work serving the federal government toward these aims was fascinating to hear about. Her discussion of a strengths-based vision also led to a really interesting discussion of how to promote strengths when some social justice approaches might lend themselves to fostering a victim identity and associated deficits. Dr. Boyd-Brown certainly gave us a lot to reflect on and a vision to work toward!
Jonathan Tirrell, Ph.D.