Phase 2: Implementation

The road to our organizational REI assessment

In 2020, we partnered with the Center for Urban and Racial Equity to map out a racial equity and organizational change process, complete with an organizational assessment and racial equity trainings. This August, CURE presented their findings and recommendations, which we then used to create an action plan. The organizational assessment consists of:

• an anonymous staff survey (April)
• three focus groups with current staff, former staff, and clients (May and June)
• seven interviews with management team members (May and June)
• a review of all policies and procedures

Leveraging insights from the CURE assessment, the Race Equity Work Group (REWG) established four focus areas to advance REI agency-wide: 

1. Staff Safety, Equity & Voice
2. Client Care, Resource & Voice
3. Staff Education, Training & Tools
4. Community Responsibility

If we don't talk about race, why are we here?

This summer, Chief Strategy Officer Keiren Havens sat down with Board leaders Chelsea N. Arthur, MS, and Cheryl Matricciani, CPA, Esq. to discuss representation, racial equity, and their hope for the work ahead. "We cannot move forward until we understand and reconcile our shared, ugly past," Chelsea reflected. "Learn that history and use that fire to drive the work forward."

Read the full conversation >

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