A Conversation with OMNI’s First Research Fellows
Devanae Allen
Research Fellow
Christina Chavez
Research Fellow
Kim Anh Tran
Research Fellow
Jean Denious, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
OMNI’s Research Fellowship was launched in 2022 with the mission to create more real-world early career opportunities for people with diverse identities and backgrounds. Our Research Fellows are full-time OMNI employees for 24 months, gaining exposure to research and evaluation, project management, community engagement, and working with real clients. Learn more about the Research Fellowship here.
Jean Denious (she/her): Let’s start by asking… If you had to sum up your first year as a Research Fellow at OMNI in one word, what would that word be?
Christina Chavez (she/her): Hmmm! I'm stuck between two words. I would say novel. It was very exciting to me to be exposed to all of these work opportunities that I've never had before, from report writing to focus groups to literature reviews… It's never really the same thing every day. It's always different projects. So it's always super exciting for me and exhilarating. And my second one was opportunity because there're so many opportunities to just keep learning, keep growing, really honing those soft skills to elevate them into hard skills …
Devanae Allen (she/her): I was thinking invaluable. I feel like I've been given a lot of experience during the first year. And many different aspects, like quantitative and qualitative [methods], report writing, and even just note taking and sitting in on client meetings and seeing how my colleagues handle those interactions. And I've gotten the opportunity to go to in-person events. So I just feel like everything is an invaluable experience [that] I'll be able to take with me in my career beyond this.
Kim Anh Tran (she/her): I think my word would be collaborative. Being able to work on different teams with different people, and seeing how we try to support each other, has been really great in helping me utilize more of my communication skills.
Jean: Those are great examples, and I love that the three of you tapped into different elements of the experience. It's been a year now and as you reflect back on that, what do you think best prepared you for the experience of being a Research Fellow?
Kim: My background is in public health, and I got to have a lot of research experience when I was in college. I think the Research Fellow role at the time made sense for my career trajectory, and being able to utilize and apply what I learned in my education has been really helpful. My work at OMNI on Virginia-based projects in substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery gave me a lot of good opportunities to just learn and grow, but also to ask questions and be able to engage with the work using that lens of public health.
Devanae: I would say my experience in school is what I think best prepared me for this role. While completing my undergraduate studies, I was a research assistant for a professor in the sociology department, and I completed my senior thesis which was a qualitative content analysis. I feel like both of those prepared me and are what exposed me to research and specifically social science research, which I was not interested in before those experiences.
I'd say also, I was involved in student leadership. So with tasks like note-taking, collaboration, and teamwork… I had all those project management skills built up. So, I could jump into helping with things like budgeting or time tracking and organization.
Christina: I would definitely agree with Devanae. It was something that I figured out and discovered in my undergrad years in my research class in sociology. I just fell in love with the whole process of collecting data and building reports out of it. You’re seeing what you can make out of gathering data from a study of individuals in a real-world setting. I would definitely recommend more research classes to people who are interested in this field. I feel like that definitely prevents you from being a deer in headlights.
Jean: I love that you all spoke about your educational experiences, because, you know, there are differences in how we then apply that in a workplace setting and in a consultancy. But those foundational components of social science training and knowledge building remain really relevant.
Jean: My next question is has anything surprised you, or was different from what you expected in your experience as an OMNI Research Fellow? This could be in terms of OMNI specifically, or just generally what it looks like to do work in social science research and evaluation.
Devanae: For me, the consultancy side of the experience was something that was completely new. Engaging with clients and building those relationships, meeting with advisory groups, and community engagement... I think all of that was maybe not surprising, but just new to me. I think perhaps because I just didn't really know that those aspects are a part of social science research. But it’s a good new experience. I've enjoyed opportunities I've had to engage with communities. I love talking to the community and seeing everyone engage with data. Seeing that puts a lot of meaning in it for me. Social science research gives meaning to numbers, is how I look at it. To actually directly interact with people who are actually doing the work that we are evaluating was something that was really meaningful. It just wasn't really like I expected. But it was a nice surprise.
Jean: I really relate to that. One of the most rewarding things to me in my early years at OMNI was interacting with the people who were going to be using the data to make real decisions. And of course, that's how it should be.
Devanae: Yeah, it's nice. Before, you were just behind a computer, just doing everything. But here we have interactions with everyone who's a part of it, which is really nice. I don't think I really knew that would be a part of this type of research career.
Christina: I completely agree. I was also going to mention the consultancy aspect, and also how before I started, I read about OMNI’s core values, but I never realized how important inclusion was to OMNI, and how much OMNI goes out of its way to really build those connections with clients and within the staff. I thought “Oh, it is just going to be a job I'm getting after grad school. It's just a professional environment. We're just gonna be building reports. Hand it to the client. That's it.” But it's been such a rewarding experience to see how much OMNI cares about the clients and see how passionate we are about the work that we're doing. And it shows.
Jean: Awesome. What about you, Kim?
Kim: I think for me it's nice to see that it's not just research. But there's relationship building involved. There is professional development. There are BIPOC groups and JEDI groups and just seeing the ways that we're trying to be intentional and connect with each other, and seeing how transparent the Executive Management Team is in trying to inform us about what they're doing, or how the business is going, or the numbers. As a Research Fellow, I'm like, “Oh, I didn't think I had to know this, but it's nice that there is that availability of information for us to understand what's really happening right? And then, having different people that are here to advocate for us, it also feels like we're not just Research Fellows per se. But we are a part of the team, and OMNI wants to nourish our growth and understand what we want out of the Fellowship. So there are a lot of opportunities to not feel limited and I think that gives a lot of space for us to just explore and grow and feel like there are things that we're still learning for the first time in the work environment. But it's not like we're alone in it, either.
Jean: I'm really happy to hear you all share that because that was important to us in developing the Fellowship program. The work we do is so interdependent and collaborative, as you mentioned, Kim. And relationships are really paramount.
Jean: Has the Fellowship experience changed how you all think about the next steps in your career?
Devanae: It has definitely piqued my interest in public health. I know I definitely still want to have a career in social science research, but going into the Fellowship I wanted to pursue a master’s degree in educational research and evaluation. And now, working on a lot more public health projects, I’m thinking, “Well, this piques my interest. I want to look into what that might look like as a career.” So I would say it made things a little bit less clear for me, but in a good way, because I have more topic areas I'm interested in now.
Kim: The Fellowship has helped me explore so many different areas that I'm interested in because there are opportunities to be shadowing people, and those give me opportunities to think about “What do I want to do in my career? And if it is in research and getting a master’s degree, what is the pathway? How will that look?” Understanding that I can talk to any of you about it has been really helpful.
Christina: My goal was to be a sociologist. I had a professor in my undergrad years tell me not to choose what's going to pay the most when you're older, but to grab onto what you're passionate about, do what makes you excited every day. Our work at OMNI is what makes me excited every day. I just love being in the thick of it, having this stress put on us, and seeing us come out of it strong as a team. This is definitely a workplace I thrive in.
Jean: I'm like you. I think that that's part of what keeps me really excited and engaged, and I like always trying to meet another challenge.
Jean: As the very first class of OMNI Research Fellows, having now completed your first year with us, what advice would you give to new Fellows to get the most from their experience?
Devanae: I would say don't be afraid to ask questions any time you need help with anything. If I need help I'll ask questions all the time non-stop. So don't hesitate to ask questions when you need clarity, especially when you're doing something new, and don't be afraid to ask for support. I feel like everyone is very supportive and helpful, with meeting really quickly on Zoom to show you something or just sending a Slack message back to you real quick. So don't be afraid to ask for support.
And I would also say, don't be afraid to jump into something you haven't done before. That's the whole point of the Fellowship. I have a rule for myself where I say yes to everything that's offered to me here, because I want to learn, and I want to work with people. I want to work on new projects. I say yes to nearly everything. I don't know how to do it, but I want to give it a shot. So jump into all the new opportunities because that's how you learn.
Jean: I love that so much, Devanae. That is good advice for anyone coming to OMNI. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to try something new. Don't be afraid to get something wrong. And asking questions is so helpful to the rest of folks because they want to understand what you need or maybe something is unclear in the guidance that they're providing. It helps cultivate that culture of supporting each other.
Christina: My advice would be definitely don't be afraid to advocate for yourself. This is definitely a great opportunity coming straight out of undergrad, realizing everything that OMNI has to offer. Take advantage of it. Really hone in on what you want to get out of it, because no one is going to do it for you. And it's really exciting that we are given two years instead of one year because that opens up the door even more for us and two years are definitely needed to actually come out of this stronger.
Kim: I would also say asking questions, but also know that you're supported, and you are able to say how you feel, but also be patient with yourself at the same time. Know that it is a process to onboard, to understand the teams, the dynamics, the communication styles, all of the tools that we use, and how you manage your time and organize your projects and tasks. So take the time to explore what it all looks like for you, and also, yes: don't be afraid to be proactive, and to fully engage yourself in the team. And try your best to feel comfortable and speak on what you need from the team for better collaboration and utilization of your skills.
Jean: I love that. Being patient, giving yourself the time needed to get yourself situated.
Jean: Lastly, what advice would you give to organizations and educational institutions, or OMNI specifically, that are invested in creating meaningful opportunities for people at the beginning stages of their careers?
Christina: Honestly, I feel like right now we're dealing with a generation that doesn't really know what it wants to do. Our decisions change on a daily basis, on a monthly basis, and I think that exposing undergraduate students to a career option early on will definitely open more opportunities for OMNI and other companies as well because everyone's trying to navigate what they want to do. And we won't know what we want to do until we do it. That’s a really big thing that OMNI has opened our eyes to. I think it's a really good thing to expose people at a young age to so that they'll know, “What are my next steps?”
Kim: I think what's interesting is that the Fellowship is for BIPOC individuals, or those with marginalized identities, and so by being intentional about who you hope to engage, I think it's important to know how to support us, or to have BIPOC groups already in place, which OMNI does. I think that's something that helps with our integration into the workforce and something that I hope institutions and other nonprofits take into account: how to fully support us. I feel like OMNI cares about us when we have a self-care month and are finding ways to do wellness. So make sure that we feel like we're cared for, that we matter, and are valued, and that our thoughts and opinions are important and that we're not just “Fellows” or “young professionals,” but that we are a part of the team, and we are valuable members of the company.
Devanae: My mind went to the undergrad years. I feel like exposing students to these types of opportunities or getting them more experience in social science research in school is important. Thinking back, if I’d never been presented with the opportunity to do a senior thesis, I don't think I would have ever pursued research. I didn't really know what I was getting myself into and when I agreed to the opportunity I just thought, “Oh, I should do this, it’s a great opportunity for me to do before I graduate.” So presenting more opportunities to students. And exposing BIPOC students to these types of career paths is, I think, particularly important. Because I think without my professor reaching out to say, “Hey, I think you'd be a great fit for this opportunity, do you want to do it?” I don't think I would have ever pursued this type of career.
Jean: Yes, it’s connected to the point you were making, Christina. You don't really know what you might want to do until you actually get to experience it a little bit.
Jean: What else do you want to share? You all have so much insight to share from your year here, and I would love to hear anything else that you think would be important to convey.
Christina: What I would say to others considering these types of opportunities is to step out of your comfort zone. Don't stay with what you're comfortable with, because that's not how you're going to learn and how you're going to grow and find new strengths in yourself that you never knew you had. Try something that you've never known you had an interest in, something that's going to be difficult. Because it's rewarding when you succeed in the end, and you come out even stronger.
Kim: I think it's also good to make a learning plan, which we got to do when we first came to OMNI. Find ways to be organized in your thought process and your experiences, and what you hope to gain. But also take the time to try new things and be curious.
Devanae: I would say also give yourself grace while you're learning. Take in the whole experience knowing you're not going to know how to do everything. It's a Fellowship! Take the time to learn, and, learn about yourself and grow your skills. Know that everyone is here to support you and help you grow throughout the Fellowship.
Jean: I think that that's wonderful advice for anybody! Thank you three so much. I really appreciate you taking the time today to have this conversation!