Partner Spotlight: Indigo Cultural Center & Homeless Children’s Network

Last year, we partnered with Indigo Cultural Center for our 2023–2024 organizational evaluations, and with their support, we showcased our programmatic impact with intention–grounded in transparency, cultural humility, and deep respect for the communities we serve. As we continue to work with the Indigo team for our 2024-2025 evaluation cycle, we’re strengthening our commitment to shared learning, and community-driven impact.

Indigo Cultural Center is a BIPOC-led evaluation and research organization specializing in infant and early childhood mental health development. With the leadership of Executive Director Dr. Eva Marie Shivers—an African American, cisgendered woman—their team blends Black, Mexican American, Filipina/Filipino American, and white perspectives to co-design equity-centered evaluations with community partners.

Our 2023–2024 Evaluation Partnership

Last year, Indigo helped us to:

• Assess Program Effectiveness by examining deeply our mental health, early childhood, and family support services.

• Illuminate Impact through quantitative and qualitative data that highlighted our programs’ outcomes for families.

• Foster Transparency by sharing clear findings with board members, funders, staff, and the community—demonstrating our accountability.

Our 2023–2024 evaluation cycle embodied HCN’s dedication to transparency—celebrating achievements, confronting challenges, and charting our path forward.

A Partnership Built on Shared Values

From our very first meeting in 2023, we recognized how closely Indigo’s four core principles mirror our own:

1. Interdependence

2. Justice

3. Healing

4. Love

The Indigo team brought energy, expertise, and shared purpose to every conversation.

As we begin to roll out surveys and focus groups with community members who receive our services and partner with us, we wanted to take a moment to share a little bit more about our special partnership with Indigo Cultural Center.

Q&A with Indigo 

Q: What is it about HCN that speaks to you and makes you want to continue collaborating?

Indigo: “From the very first meeting, we were stoked to work with HCN. There’s a level of beautiful, Black-centered, nonconformist experimentation and commitment to values at HCN that inspires us. From program names to integrating art and artists, to benefits for your employees, to expanding how families impacted by housing insecurity are seen and served—HCN sets a higher standard for community service and workforce support. It’s an honor to witness and help tell that story.”

Q: What makes Indigo’s evaluation approach unique?

Indigo: “Over 18 years, we’ve refined a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) model—aligning evaluation design, implementation, and dissemination with partners’ ongoing services for continuous quality improvement. As part of the infant-mental-health ecosystem, we try hard to embody elements of the Consultative Stance  (Johnston & Brinamen, 2006): Mutuality of Endeavor; Centrality of Relationships; Considering All Levels of Influence; and Patience & Holding Hope. We co-create, communicate frequently, share learnings from other states, and tailor everything to each partner’s context. And we have fun along the way!” ​

Q: How do Indigo’s philosophy and values align with HCN’s?

Indigo: “Interdependence, justice, healing, and love guide every aspect of our work—from research evaluations to community healing events. We see those same values shining through HCN’s programs and people. We’re also shifting toward a more Africentric approach in our Phoenix programming; seeing HCN’s visionary Africentric community mental-health work has inspired us to be bold and unapologetic in our own visioning.”

How Indigo Shapes the Way We Learn and Grow

Working with Indigo Cultural Center has enhanced the way we approach evaluations. Their commitment to Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) means that evaluation is not something done to us—it’s something we build together. Our staff, educators, and families are deeply involved at every step, from drafting survey questions to interpreting the findings and identifying next steps. That shared ownership has allowed us to act quickly on what we’re learning, making real-time changes that strengthen our programs.

Indigo’s process is also deeply informed ,by the Consultative Stance, a framework grounded in the field of infant and early childhood mental health (Johnston & Brinamen, 2006). Every interaction with them is shaped by mutuality of endeavor, centering relationships, relationship-building, systems thinking, and a deep sense of patience and hope. It’s not just about outcomes—it’s about how we get there and who we bring with us.

In a city like San Francisco—with its creative spirit and complex social challenges—Indigo knew a standard approach wouldn’t work. Together, we developed a process that was reflective, culturally grounded, and even joyful. We held art-based focus groups, created space for storytelling, and used visual tools like sketching to surface ideas and experiences that don’t always come through in data alone.

As Sarah Griffiths, HCN’s Data and Evaluation Program Coordinator, shared:

“Working with the Indigo team has been so transformative in my learnings as a young professional in this field! Getting the opportunity to work with an evaluation firm that places real intentionality behind decolonizing mental health - as a practice, and not just as fanciful words that sound 'nice' - is encouraging when I think about the value of culturally-rooted, holistic, trauma-informed services for marginalized populations that have been harmed by systemic inequities. Working with the Indigo team has helped me redefine and understand inclusive and alternative methods to quantify "success" within community mental health-focused programs.”

Evaluation is not a box to check. It’s how we learn, how we grow, and how we stay accountable to our community. With Indigo Cultural Center as our partner, we’re building a more inclusive and reflective model for community-based evaluation—one that centers culture, transparency, and healing at every step.