Deena Class, Ph.D Email & Phone Number

Pittsboro, NC, US

Chapel Hill, NC, US

• In collaboration with the NCBG Core Planning team, guide the Garden's groundbreaking Stakeholder-Informed Interpretive Master Planning process that will map future interpretive displays, communications, and materials.
• Leverage previously-conducted community & stakeholder research to ensure the Garden's IMP prioritizes meaningful engagement with communities historically underrepresented at the Garden (e.g., Native Americans.

Chapel Hill, NC, US

• Teach occasional weekend in-person courses and workshops in NCBG's Plants and People thematic area on a range of creative topics (natural dyeing and ecoprinting, herbal soapmaking, etc.) to help folks connect with and.

Chapel Hill, NC, US

Chapel Hill, NC, US

• In collaboration with the NCBG Core Planning team, lead a community and stakeholder assessment to inform the Garden's Interpretive Master Plan that will guide their interpretive displays, communications, and materials.
• Design community & stakeholder research to better understand the needs, desires, and opportunities for meaningful engagement with communities historically underrepresented at the Garden (e.g., Native Americans.
• Provide an actionable set of recommendations and insights for the Interpretive Planning team to integrate into their larger strategic plan to help the Garden meaningfully engage a diverse swath of community members and.

• 2023 – Present: Volunteer with local public school and PTA to establish and enhance gardening and beautification programs, including: - Spearheading a Junior Master Gardener club for elementary school students..
• 2022 – Present: Partner with the North Carolina Botanical Garden (NCBG) to provide consulting services on community and stakeholder research, interpretive communications, community engagement strategies, and.
• 2021 – Present: Transitioned focus to growing medicinal, dye, and aromatic plants to support expanded teaching efforts. Grew the appropriate plants and delivered workshops on natural dyeing, herbal product creation.
• 2020-2021: Cultivated medicinal herbs and formulated allergen-friendly skincare products; taught skincare formulation processes through community workshops.

Chapel Hill, NC, US

- Word and Plant is collaborating with the NCBG Foundation to help manifest a revamped vision, mission statement, and Strategic Roadmap to guide NCBG's strategic initiatives over the next 3-5 years.- The backbone of this engagement is a robust internal stakeholder engagement process comprising dozens of in-depth discussions with all NC Botanical Garden.

Washington, DC, US

• Part of a panel of expert practitioners in IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility) impaneled by the Astrophysics Division within NASA
• Provide guidance and concrete recommendations on proposals, policies, and plans submitted as part of scientific proposals to the Astrophysics Division

• Service in support of a community dedicated to growing the practice of horticultural therapy and therapeutic horticulture through promoting professional education, sharing best practices, and facilitating a peer.
• Served on the Community Engagement committee to help ensure an inclusive, welcoming, and culturally competent approach to community building in the HT space.

Washington, District Of Columbia, US

• Helped guide and thoughtfully grow Coforma's approach to qualitative and quantitative research, analytics, and insight development to ensure we generate equitable, inclusive, and trauma-informed solutions that support.
• Guided a cohort of talented research leaders in the quest to bring rigorous research, grounded in behavioral and social sciences, to the fast-paced work of cross-functional creative, engineering, and product management.
• Led the growth of a human-centered research practice and organization that excels at crafting human-focused and innovative solutions.
• Served as a champion for a consistently strong, participatory, ethical and trauma-informed research practice.
• Advocated for and enable team success and work in partnership with leaders across Coforma and our clients to create more opportunities for values-driven work.
• Provided mentorship, direction, and guidance for the research team by modeling, teaching, and operationalizing rigorous research processes and standards.

Alexandria, Virginia, US

• As the research lead for Aptive's Strategic Engagement group, I lead a diverse team of researchers, Ux designers and developers to "design the right thing and design it right." Our team works across multiple federal.
• Inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA) in federal government workforce development and service delivery;
• All aspects and areas of User/Customer Experience (Ux/Cx, Human Centered Design, etc.) research for both internal and external facing efforts in a range of sectors (health care, law enforcement, etc.);
• Communications and outreach to the Veteran community to enhance uptake of VA benefits and health services (PACT Act-related health services, transition services, etc.);
• Refreshing and enhancing communications and processes around workforce recruitment (OPM, Veterans Health Administration, Customs and Border Patrol, etc.);
• Stakeholder research to inform reports and statistical publications for the National Science Foundation's NCSES.

Washington, DC, US

• Design, lead, and conduct applied communications and implementation research for the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA): Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention-- Suicide Prevention Program (OMHSP-SPP).
• Distilled complex research findings into actionable insights and reports tailored to client and internal team needs including preparing two Congressional reports in FY2021.
• Designed and led qualitative and quantitative research with thousands of Veterans and their loved ones to inform policy, communications, outreach, and implementation, including research under the Hannon Act that.
• Strived to provide actionable research insights to client and communications teams in creative manners such as with audience personas, journey maps, gap analyses, SWOT analyses, etc. tailored to team needs.
• Supervised, trained, and mentored research team members.
• Leveraged primary and secondary research to support business development.

Arlington, Virginia, US

Responsible for the formulation, design and execution of a qualitative study to better understand the needs and desires of potential U.S.-based donors to an international non-governmental organization working in the area of pediatric HIV/AIDS.

• Technical consulting in public health and development spanning the project cycle with special focus on operational research, monitoring and evaluation, project start-up and implementation (including drafting of.
• Technical writing for varied audiences from mass media communications to policy briefs and peer-reviewed journal articles;
• Expert editing of technical documents, dissertations and articles in a range of disciplines including development economics, epidemiology, political science, sociology, anthropology, etc...

Washington, DC, US

• Research and Analysis of health financing, conceptualization and preparation of "Health Financing Profiles" for various Latin American and Caribbean countries;
• Research and Analysis of health systems with particular attention to healthcare service coverage, quality and accessibility for disadvantaged groups and the indigent;
• Research and drafting of a white paper for the World Bank Group technical meeting on cholera in Haiti (April 11, 2014);
• Preliminary research on the sustainability of health sector results-based financing (RBF) approaches in several sub-Saharan African nations.

Trento, trentino-alto Adige, IT

• Dissertation: "The Socio-Political Economy of Antiretroviral Treatment as HIV Prevention" (A case study in Maputo, Mozambique)
• Put together, trained and supervised a team of local physicians to carry out interviews in the Central Hospital of Maputo (pediatric HIV) and the Health Center Malhangalene (adult HIV) as the fieldwork portion of PhD.
• Fieldwork explored the effects of HIV prevention communications campaigns on treatment seeking and adherence for adult and pediatric patients and their clinicians in Maputo, Mozambique;
• Sought and obtained Health Ministry, Bioethical Committee, City Health Directorate and Health facility approvals for the research to be carried out in a clinical setting;
• Background research included: health financing, human resources for health, health system capacity building, health policy, etc.General Research interests: Public Health; Public Health Communications; Global Health.

• Visiting researcher with Staff Group 3 (Human Resources and Local Development)
• Presented Research in Progress seminar at ISS (6 May 2010)
• Presented working paper at the ISS Annual Development Dialogue, June 2010

Bologna, Italia, IT

• Served as an academic tutor for students in the Master’s program in international Development, Innovation and Change (MiDIC) including advisory responsibilities for project work on a range of topics in economics.
• Served as a liaison between professors, the program director, university administration and students
• Organized and conducted workshops for Master’s students
• Co-organized conferences
• Co-managed partnership relations between the Master’s program and its partner programs in South Africa, Argentina and Germany
• Responsible for Master’s website upkeep as well as building conference-specific websites for conferences arranged during the academic year

Singapore, SG

• Developed and supervised international operations staff, ensuring their progress was closely monitored
• Acted as operational contact to external clients including Fortune 100 companies, United Nations organizations, The World Bank and others
• Managed emergency medical and security assistance cases for international business travelers, diplomats and expatriates for governmental, corporate and NGO clients
• Upon invitation, participated in the company’s Accelerated Development Program which conducted seminars and training in finance, account management, leadership, and management, among other topics

- Taught English as a Second Language (ESL) to Brazilian students (business & conversational).- Intensively trained Capoeira and Brazilian dances (Maculêlê, Dança do Fogo, Puxada de Rede, Samba, etc.).- Taught Capoeira with Cordão de Ouro, Campinas, SP, focusing on outreach and empowerment for Brazilian girls and young women.

• Designed and provided direct Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE) and cessation programs to high school students throughout Humboldt County
• Worked as a research technician with the UCLA program Project Ex - a teen cessation program using nicotine replacement therapy along with a behavioral program in high school cessation groups
• Developed alternative activities and referrals for high-risk students (including students in juvenile correctional institutions)

• Completed 60+ hours of rape and sexual abuse crisis counseling training
• Provided counseling to adult and child survivors of sexual assault and their families
• Provided accompaniment to law enforcement interviews, forensic medical exams (SART) and court proceedings for adult and child survivors
• Maintained daily, monthly and annual office documentation to ensure continuity of grant funding

• Mentored and tutored high-risk youth ages 3-15
• Provided service learning, referrals and community service opportunities for children and adults from disadvantaged families
• Initiated and compiled a quarterly community newsletter and co-organized community events (e.g.: Annual Multicultural Festival)

Certificate, Therapeutic Horticulture

Integrative Health Coaching, Health And Wellness, General

Phd, Local Development And Global Dynamics (Economics, Sociology, Political Science & Law)

Ma, International Development Studies (Economics, Law & Political Science)

Ba, Liberal Interdisciplinary Studies

Transfer, General Education