Projects

Fourth Generation: Affordable Housing from the front lines

As the Fourth Generation Advisory Board's Education Chair, I organized events designed to inform and engage members and get them up to speed on critical issues facing Minnesota. I brought in front-line, direct service staff members who work in the housing sector for a speed-dating style education event.

Pillsbury United Communities workshops

Public Allies, an initiative of Pillsbury United Communities, invited me to provide intensive 2.5-hour workshops on Black women in nonprofits, ways to achieve greater organizational diversity at the leadership level in nonprofits, how to battle racism and racial microaggressions in the workplace and how to be an ally to individuals of marginalized groups.

St. Stephen's Human Services' Rapid Re-Housing Team (pictured left to right: Risikat Adesaogun, Brittany Clauer, Sara Wenzel, Audrey Preston, Shari Staples & Margaret Garrett)

Critical Time Intervention pilot and analysis

I worked with a small team to develop an intensive case management program pilot using foundational aspects of the widely-accepted Critical Time Intervention (CTI) case management model. I compiled data from the 9-month pilot and made recommendations to the leadership staff about aspects that worked and areas for improvement.

I also worked with a partner to create a Critical Time Intervention Peer Support Group for Direct Support Providers in the metropolitan area. St. Stephen's Human Services received $400,000 dollars from Hennepin County to continue providing intensive case management, (including CTI) services to families experiencing homelessness.

Dan Jasper, Vice President of Public Relations, Mall of America

An inside look at Mall of America's Enhanced Service Portal

I designed and executed an event for the Public Relations Society of America Minnesota Chapter (MNPRSA). Strategic Communications representatives from around the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area gathered at the private event to learn about the Mall's expansion efforts, social media management and customer engagement.

Homelessness: A snapshot

A colleague and I developed a short training on eliminating bias while working with the chronically homeless population and presented the materials to a group of attorneys at Dorsey and Whitney, LLP, located in Minneapolis, MN. The training was a part of a full-day workshop entitled, Eviction Defense: Intro for Pro Bono and Emeritus Status Attorneys.

Northern Metals enforcement

I worked with a team of enforcement staff, engineers, air modelers, attorneys, and environmental justice advocates to help hold a major Minneapolis polluter accountable for breaking the law.

We hosted numerous public meetings and community listening sessions, met with elected officials, affected residents, and local activists to gather information that would eventually lead to a $2.5 million settlement with the company, including an agreement to relocate as well as direct a portion of the settlement funds to address public health issues in the area.

Minnesota State Fair: Public Relations on a stick

I helped organize an event with the Minnesota State Fair marketing and communications team. Local media and public relations professionals came together to network and learn about how the State Fair team manages their engagement efforts with the fair's 2.5 million annual visitors.

Journal of Organizational Culture, Communications, and Conflict

Stratification, Communication Tactics, and Black Women: Navigating the Social Domain of Nonprofit Organizations

My research study of Black women working in Minneapolis/St. Paul nonprofit organizations was presented at the Allied Academies' Winter 2013 Internet conference and accepted for publication in the Journal of Organizational Culture, Communication and Conflict.

Adesaogun, R., Flottemesch, K., & Ibrahim-Devries, B. (2014). Stratification, communication tactics, and black women: Navigating the social domain of nonprofit organizations. Journal of Organizational Culture, Communications and Conflict

Lead pollution and environmental justice

I gave a presentation on lead pollution to the seventh graders of Franklin Middle School, located in North Minneapolis. The students took part in soil sampling at their homes and in surrounding areas and sent the materials in for testing.

The results were hundreds of times higher than acceptable baseline rates for lead. This talk was part of an ongoing curriculum about environmental justice and historical inequities in policymaking.