We close our staff meetings by placing our hands together and saying “Teamwork makes the dream work!” We know we cannot do our work except as a committed team of diverse people. Open Doors Kalamazoo is participating in the Stronger Communities Diversity and Inclusion pilot project, a collaboration of the Michigan Nonprofit Association, NEW: Solutions for Nonprofits, and Nonprofit Network. The primary objective of this pilot project is to advance organizational diversity, inclusion, and equity by completing a comprehensive process which includes these five phases:
1) Assessment
2) Training
3) Developing a Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan
4) Implementation of the plan
5) Evaluation
This process is leading us to deeper connections among our board and staff members. We have also gained a clearer sense of the importance of inclusion as we have listened to each others’ stories about being excluded. We have created a Diversity and Inclusion Committee that will lead us in developing and implementing an annual plan to broaden and strengthen our diversity. We want our staff and board to include strong representation from all the groups of people we serve.
Because “Teamwork makes the dream work!”
Open Doors. Ja