Dear Friends,

When I think about 2021, I feel proud of how nimble and adaptable we have been as an organization, especially in times of continued uncertainty and the changing reality of the pandemic. For The Practice Space, this past year was marked by a sense of transition and an improved capacity to take on an exciting future. In many ways, 2021 was an "in between world", with online and in-person programs, new and experienced team members, familiar projects and brand-new ventures. In a world that longed to go "back to normal", we were able to prepare for our next stage as an organization, honoring our roots while not dwelling on the past.

Personally, my fire and drive has always come from our relationships with participants, supporters, partners, and the team. They make our organization powerful. In June 2021, we started our first Junior Board of Directors, made up of past youth participants ages 15 to 25, who have already played an essential role in strengthening our programs. As we finished writing the manuscript for our book on Expression-Driven Teaching this past year, we had the pleasure of interviewing participants, reviewing their original story and poem submissions, and reading the foreword authored by the Junior Board. Each personal account pointed to the incredible impact we have had on elevating underrepresented voices, helping people believe that their voice matters and enjoy what is possible. As one of our teen participants puts it, "I have grown so much when it comes to speaking up for myself and others. Now it’s all I want to do."

Throughout the year, we also continued to build relationships with new partners, who enable us to connect our work around personal growth to larger change efforts, including expanding our school-based work, joining the Alliance for Girls, and partnering with women-led sports apparel company, Title Nine Sports. The second year of our educator cohort continued to deepen our impact on teacher practice, while also teaching us so much about the resilience and strength required by teachers in the current educational context. By the end of 2021, we were fortunate to add four more team members focused on marketing, development, operations, and content, as well as three new Board members to our now majority-women Board.

We have accomplished so much since 2017, and I am excited about the incredible growth that is now possible. We have adopted a new three-year strategic plan and as I write this, we are getting ready to move our office space to downtown Richmond and preparing for our in-person 5-year anniversary celebration. I cannot wait for what comes next and am grateful to all of you for making this possible.