IBJ's THRIVE CENTER TAKES FORM IN GID LAB

“A space that will hold what our hearts carry every day!" is the vision of the Thrive Center, set by Carol Mitchell, founder and CEO of the Institute for Black Justice (IBJ), bringing into definition a multi-year design process facilitated by the Global Innovation and Design (GID) Lab. The Thrive Center emerged from a 2022-23 design sprint for the IBJ facilitated by the GID Lab, that resulted in a "Third Space Hub" proposed at the 2023 Freedom Summer Symposium. At its inception, the Hub was envisioned to be a culturally relevant space serving a variety of needs for families, children, and young adults.  

“How might we create a family and youth services center that promotes the capacity to thrive?” was the design challenge that marked a second phase of planning across two design thinking workshops on November 15, 2023, and February 1, 2024, with intensive bridge work in between to drill down on the specific needs that would drive programming and space. The workshops included ice breakers and affinity mapping while orienting participants to the time-constrained process of moving ideas to action, while continuously disrupting conventional ways of thinking that produces limited solutions. The GID Lab's Dr. Divya McMillin facilitated rounds through the iterative design process including ideation and prototyping, while design assistant Jessika Gill provided summaries of past work as well as project work in real time through her visual maps. The IBJ has created highly successful programs such as CHIMES and ACES through its partnership with the GID Lab since 2021.

During the Thrive Center workshops, the IBJ team worked within a landscape of 127 ideas which moved into three workstations on Naming, Vision, Mission; Key Stakeholders; and Programs and Services. All three workstations were tasked with constructing timelines and assessment metrics. Working at these stations, IBJ participants brainstormed target users and specific programs the center could support, and charted key areas for development such as fundraising, venue/programming partnerships, and service partnerships. Key insights emerged throughout the workshop as participants discussed timeline and milestones, resource allocation, and community engagement strategies. GID Lab interns Cecil Susi, Jannat Musawi, Anuvir Dhaliwal, Suweyda Abdi, Mak Pennington, and Isabelle del Castillo worked with Program Operations Specialist Janeil Engelstad and Managing Director Kate Nikolaeva to take notes, photographs, and support hospitality. 

At the end of the February 1 workshop, the IBJ team had defined services in the areas of childcare, financial wellness, and career development. Mitchell noted that in addition to serving people of color, IBJ serves low-income, white community members, and this needs to be considered as IBJ develops its Integrated Services Delivery model. The Thrive Center aims to have a soft opening in June 2025.