2025-10-21 –, UVM Alumni House Silver Pavilon
Data are only as powerful as the trust they carry and the communities they serve. In this talk, I’ll explore how building authentic partnerships transforms not just what data we collect, but how they are interpreted and acted upon. At a time when data shape decisions across every sector, it has never been more important for us to use data responsibly. When grounded in trust and collaboration, data have the power to illuminate our most complex challenges and break down silos to drive meaningful change.
In this talk I will walk through the Vermont Prison Research and Innovation Network (PRIN) as an example of a community-centered approach to data and research. Incarceration remains one of the most pressing and complex challenges in the United States, with deep and lasting impacts on health, equity, and community well-being. Yet, despite their scale and impact, prisons remain among the least transparent and most understudies public institutions in the US. PRIN seeks to address this gap by building a data infrastructure rooted in collaboration, trust, and accountability. Through co-creating prison climate surveys with incarcerated individuals and correctional staff, this work demonstrates how embedding lived experience and community partnership at every stage of the data cycle can produce more accurate, relevant, and actionable data. By centering collaboration and meaningful partnerships, we can move beyond transparency toward accountability and innovation - reminding us that data, when used with care, can be a force for real and lasting change.
Abby is an Associate Professor of Statistics at the University of Vermont, where she directs the Justice Research Center. She is an applied statistician who leverages the power of data to bring communities, policy makers, and researchers together for meaningful change.