The Testing, Evaluation, Assessment & Measurement (TEAM) Institute is one of five efforts launched by Dr. Jhan Doughty Berry as part of the ETS Diversity Portfolio. TEAM gathers students in the latter stages of their graduate program for a two-day learning and professional development experience and provides opportunities for learning and development that extend beyond the Institute.

This summer I joined nine other fellows from around the country as we participated in TEAM 2017. We participated in six different sessions over a two-day period. On day one, Dr. Jay Campbell, Executive Director, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) presented to us a general overview of NAEP and current and future trends in assessment. Next, Felicia DeVincenzi, Strategic Advisor, Core Compentency in Assessment, spoke to us about the nature of assessment at ETS. The most exciting and informative session was presented by Sydell Carlton, Assessment Specialist III. Sydell presented on the test fairness review process at ETS from her 59-year career at the company! It was great to speak to and learn from someone who has had so much experience in assessment at one company.

For day two, Dr. Tabitha McKinley, New Jersey State Coordinator for NAEP, presented an overview of the online tool, the NAEP Data Explorer. Finally, Christopher Lopez and Monica Hopkins gave a presentation on strategic staffing at ETS. This was especially of interest to me because we got an insight into what types of things certain departments at ETS (and similar companies) like to see in potential candidates resumes/CVs.

Overall, it was a great experience. I connected and networked with researchers and staff and had the opportunity to talk about my work from last year’s internship with others who were interested in similar topics.