A Center Transition Conversation

Harry’s Departure

Harry Lawson, Jr., Director of Human and Civil Rights, is departing after more than ten years in the role. This is the listening instrument that gathered honest input across the Center so Rocío can lead the transition with care and intention.

Executive Summary

Harry Lawson, Jr., Director of Human and Civil Rights, is departing after more than ten years in the role. He has served as the institutional backbone of the Center; the person who held the most historical knowledge, maintained the strongest external relationships, and functioned informally as a buffer between staff and senior leadership.

His departure creates two distinct gaps: a structural gap (decisions, accountability, workflows he held informally) and a relational gap (staff losing a trusted, deeply relational leader). Rocío, as Senior Director, commissioned this instrument to gather honest input so she can lead the transition with more care and intention. She will be one of the ~40 people receiving it.

Survey purpose

1.

Capture Authentic Voice

Beyond checkbox responses to real insight.

2.

Surface Hidden Patterns

What drives behavior and commitment.

3.

Inform Strategic Action

Data-driven recommendations for leadership.

4.

Enable Honest Dialogue

Space for nuanced, unfiltered feedback.

Rocío Inclán

Meet Your Host

Rocío Inclán

Senior Director, Center for Racial and Social Justice, National Education Association

Harry’s departure is a real transition for our Center, and I want to lead through it with as much care and honesty as I can. That starts with hearing from you. I’m asking a few questions to understand what this moment brings up for you and where you see the most pressing needs.

— Rocío

Offering for How to Use This Report

  • This site is an internal CRSJ tool, prepared at Rocío’s commission, to support strategy, reflection, learning, and the ongoing practice of accountability through the transition that follows Harry’s departure.
  • The information shared here is not intended to assign blame, shame, accuse, or create a record for individual “gotcha” use. It is intended to help the Center understand the structural and relational gaps the transition makes visible, and to move toward more aligned and accountable practice.
  • Because this report includes staff reflections, facilitation noticings, and analysis of internal dynamics, it should be engaged with care. It should not be shared outside of the Center without collective consent. Using this information outside of its intended purpose risks prioritizing individual interest over collective care and may reinforce some of the same dynamics this report is trying to help the Center interrupt.
  • By entering this site, you are committing to use the report as a tool for learning, strategy, reflection, and shared accountability. You are also committing not to excerpt, circulate, or use the information in ways that could harm colleagues, isolate individuals, or remove the analysis from its intended context.