Tawara D. Goode, MA

Center for Child and Human Development, Georgetown University

Ms. Goode is an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. She has been on the faculty of the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development (GUCCHD), for the past 30 years and has served in many capacities, currently serving as the Center Director. She has degrees in early childhood education, and education and human development, and over 32 years of experience in the field.

Ms. Goode is Director of the National Center for Cultural Competence (NCCC) at GUCCHD. The mission of the NCCC is to increase the capacity of health care and mental health care programs to design, implement, and evaluate culturally and linguistically competent service delivery systems to address growing diversity, persistent disparities, and to promote health and mental health equity. Ms. Goode has been actively involved in the development and implementation of programs and initiatives in the area of cultural and linguistic competency at local, national, and international levels. These efforts address the needs of diverse audiences including health care, mental health, developmental and other disabilities, social services, early childhood/special education, community/advocacy organizations, professional societies/organizations, and institution of higher education. Ms. Goode is nationally recognized as a thought leader in the area of cultural and linguistic competency and has conducted research on cultural and linguistic competence and its role in addressing health care disparities and is currently involved in a collaborative effort to create validated instruments to measure cultural and linguistic competence in health care settings.

Ms. Goode has and continues to serve on numerous boards, commissions and advisory groups at the local, regional, and national levels. She has published articles, monographs and policy papers on such topics as the evidence base and policies that support cultural and linguistic competence, the role of cultural and linguistic competence in addressing health and mental health care disparities, community engagement, and family-centered care, cultural and linguistic competence and the medical home, and community-based service delivery models for culturally and linguistically diverse children at risk for and with developmental and other disabilities.