ABOUT US
Born from a deep love for place, people, and possibility.
Inspired by the legacy of community-led resistance and communal care across the U.S. South, Latin America, and the Caribbean, we believe that powerful and joyful solutions come from those most impacted by the outcome.
Research, in our hands, is not just a tool for understanding. It's a method for honoring and building.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
OUR FOUNDER
Keara Cormier-Hill, M.Ed.
Qualitative researcher, facilitator, and licensed social worker.
Across more than ten years, my work has moved between counseling, teaching, community programming, participatory research, program evaluation, and human-centered design.
I have facilitated collaborative projects to work with teenage girls to improve access to high-quality education in the Dominican Republic, with Dominican-Haitian families to advocate for public services and educational resources in bateyes, with newcomer students in the U.S, arriving from Latin America with interrupted schooling to advocate for adequate education spaces, and with families in disinvested Houston neighborhoods to open new paths for families’ engagement in school district decisions.
I’m experienced at creating space for sensitive, but important conversations, especially where economic vulnerability, historic marginalization, and justice are at play.
I’m based between the U.S. (Houston) and Colombia (Medellin) and I work professionally in English and Spanish.
Massachusetts School Social Worker / School Adjustment Counselor License, K–12
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary EducationChild Protection Certificate
Harvard François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human RightsCertified Trauma Specialist — Trauma-Focused Intern Training (T-FIT)
SAMHSA / National Child Traumatic Stress Network
EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
Bachelor of Arts in Sociology
Harvard College · Universidad de La HabanaMaster of Education in Prevention Science and Practice
Specialization in Adolescent School Social Work and Adjustment Counseling
Harvard Graduate School of EducationCertificate of Advanced Study in School Social Work and School Adjustment Counseling
Harvard Graduate School of Education
WHAT WE HOLD TO
Five things we don't negotiate.
Collaboration
Innovators, funders, stakeholders, designers, and community members from any walk of life — with equal weight given to every contribution.
Social justice
We exist to fight for the oppressed, stand for truth, and contribute to equal protection and opportunity across economic, political, environmental, wellness, educational, and social rights.
Community ownership
Storytelling and design undisputably driven by who will be most impacted by the designs
Creativity
We privilege approaches that break the wall between professional and participant, and that make the research itself feel like something worth being part of.
Plurality
We seek out different voices, especially those in the minority in decision-making rooms — across ethnicity, gender, age, ability, and education.
Excited to close the gap between designed by and designed for?
