Policy Activities at NCFR, Highlighting the 2020 NCFR Annual Conference

Jennifer Crosswhite, Ph.D., CFLE, Director of Research and Policy Education
/ Fall 2020 NCFR Report

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It’s that time of the year again: preparing for the NCFR Annual Conference. This year, we are spending extra time preparing for a virtual conference! The Conference Program Planning Chair, Brad van Eeden-Moorefield, Ph.D., and the Conference Program Planning Committee have pulled together another amazing conference with many excellent, high-quality sessions, including plenaries, special sessions, invited presenter symposia and workshops, and more.

The theme for this year’s conference, Family Expansions, Expanding Families: Contouring Family Science’s Negative Spaces, “places a particular emphasis on taking time to reflect and look for elements of family life that not only are present or emerging, but also those that become visible with the use of a new or yet to be discovered perspective or vantage point,” as stated in the call for proposals.

The goals of the 2020 conference are to better understand the dynamic and fluid nature of families in this new decade. We will use dialogue, engagement, and presentations of scholarship to articulate a set of inclusive priorities and practice, including:

  • research priorities,
  • evidence-supported practices,
  • policy priorities, and
  • educational and pedagogical priorities.

I want to take this time to call your attention to some of the many policy sessions that will occur during this year’s conference. Be sure to check out the conference program (ncfr.org/ncfr-2020/schedule) for a full list of policy and policy-related posters and sessions not listed here—and all the other sessions too. Some sessions will be presented live, some presentations will be recorded, and all sessions will be available to access on demand. Live sessions will become on demand after the live presentation. Check the conference program to learn more about which sessions are live.  

Wednesday, Nov. 11

  • Contouring Negative Spaces: Attending to Underrepresented Topics in Research on Foster and Adoptive Families, a Family Policy Section symposium
  • Surfacing the Language of Family Privilege in the Media, Policy, and Family Science: A Critical Workshop for Systems Change, a Feminism and Family Studies Section workshop
  • Immigration Policy and its Impact on Families and Communities, an International Section symposium

Thursday, Nov. 12

  • Translating Your Work to a Broader Audience: A Workshop for Researchers Whose Work is of Practical and Policy Significance, an invited presenter workshop organized by the Family Policy Section
  • Community and Place as Context, an interactive paper session from the Family Policy Section
  • Going Public: Recommendations for Engaging in Public Scholarship, Translational Research, and Advocacy Efforts, and invited presenter symposium organized by the NCFR Students and New Professionals Group

Friday, Nov. 13

  • The Fight at Home: Understanding the Contexts of Stressful Experiences for Military Families, a Family Policy Section symposium
  • Linking Healthy Relationships Research and Practice—Findings From the Marriage Strengthening Research and Dissemination Center, a Family Policy Section symposium
  • Understanding Family Processes in the Context of Policy, an International Section paper session
  • Disseminating Bootcamp: Turn Your Scholarship Into Public Engagement, an Education and Enrichment Section workshop

Plenary Sessions

In addition to the above sessions, the scheduled plenaries are sure to inspire us to think critically about the implications of family policy and how the research can and should have an impact on policies at the federal, state, and local levels. See page XX for details on the plenary sessions.

  • Wednesday: Raising Equity: Helping Families Navigate Systems of Oppression, Kira Banks, Ph.D., and Amber Johnson, Ph.D.
  • Thursday: Global Health Disparities Among Families in the COVID-19 Pandemic, Ndidiamaka N. Amutah-Onukagha, Ph.D.; Anis Ben Brik, Ph.D.; and Rosario Esteinou, Ph.D.
  • Friday: The Manifestations of Microaggressions Within Families: Intersectional Identities, Power, and More, Kevin Nadal, Ph.D.

A final session to highlight is the Inclusion and Diversity Committee’s special session Environmental Justice in Family Research, Teaching, and Scholarship on Wednesday, Nov. 11.

Be sure to check out all of the excellent sessions offered throughout the virtual conference related to policy, advocacy, social justice, and more. You can find a full list of these sessions and more in the annual conference program.

Remember, don’t miss a single session in which you are interested. All sessions will be available on demand this year!

The 2020 NCFR Annual Conference is sure to generate multiple ideas, connections with new and familiar colleagues, future conference proposals and research collaborations, and new perspectives when interacting with your colleagues duri