Diversity Equity Inclusion & Belonging - July 15, 2024
By Amanda Ranowsky
Goodwin Living has always sought to be a place of welcome and belonging for everyone. In 2020, that desire led to the creation of a committee dedicated to promoting diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) within our organization. As the DEI committee marks its four-year anniversary, we take time to celebrate all the committee has advanced with the support of team members, residents and Goodwin Living At Home members.
Jeanne Hobbs, Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) and Benefits Manager, became chair of the DEI Committee in October 2023. She took on the role after Goodwin House Alexandria Associate Executive Director Theresa Thomas came to the end of her tenure as DEI chair, during which the committee made many achievements. In this Q&A with Jeanne, we reflect on those accomplishments and look forward to the goals the committee hopes to achieve in the coming year.
Jeanne: One of the first big successes of the committee was to successfully advocate that Martin Luther King, Jr. Day be included as a paid holiday. The Committee felt that lifting the day to being a paid holiday gave standing to the contributions people of color— and specifically Rev. King—have made to our national story.
This recommendation was presented to senior management and ultimately the Goodwin Living Board of Trustees, as approving it would result in a significant financial commitment to add a holiday to the budget. It was unanimously endorsed by senior management and the Board and adopted in 2021.
From that seminal moment, the committee has focused on efforts to invite and inspire everyone in the Goodwin Living community to learn more about diversity, equality, inclusion and belonging.
A tool to prompt these conversations is our “Friday Thoughts”. Created and launched shortly after the DEI committee was formed, “Friday Thoughts” features personal essays from team members, Goodwin Living At Home members and residents of our senior living communities willing to share their experiences and reflections on DEI-related issues.
Bringing paper to presence, a group of residents at Goodwin House Alexandria gather every Monday for what they call “Bring Your Own Conversation.” This group is a forum for people to talk about topics from these “Friday Thoughts.” I think about 40 people attend regularly. We’re hoping that idea can carry over into our other campuses and maybe in other formats as well.
Another huge win is that people actually come to me now and say, “I have an idea for Friday Thoughts.” It’s not always been easy to get people to write these articles for us, so it’s wonderful to be in a place where more people are eager to contribute.
The committee has placed a focus on equity* and doing what we can to ensure everyone has the same opportunities and the resources to reach those opportunities. Those efforts have helped us to increase diversity among residents of our senior living communities to include more older adults of color from all regions of the world. Related to this goal, in 2022, Goodwin Living joined the Northern Virginia Black Chamber of Commerce (NVBCC) to be a resource for more older adults of color. Just yesterday, July 30, NVBCC and Goodwin Living hosted “Aging Well”, an afternoon-long event for older adults of color to introduce them to resources for help with aging.
We’ve also had more team member career growth, which is a direct result of our efforts to make all team members aware of new opportunities within Goodwin Living. As a result, we’ve seen an increase in promotions, as well as increased diversity in our leadership—in our Board of Trustees alone, we’ve seen members who represent a diverse background increase from 21% to 38% of the Board makeup since 2020.
*We’ll be exploring Equity in our next issue of Friday Thoughts!
Jeanne: We can only bring in inclusion and belonging when we really understand each other, so that learning and education has really been our focus.
We’ve made some great strides in learning about our team members through “Lunch and Learn” sessions and the Friday Thoughts essays. We see an opportunity to keep offering with these initiatives because constant learning is the foundation of DEI.
We’re really excited about our newest project, called “Shared Experiences.” Shared Experiences are conversations organized around specific subjects. They offer a chance for team members, residents and members to share something special to them. During Ramadan, we held sessions at all three campuses. where team members and residents could talk about Ramadan together. A few team members dressed in their beautiful clothing and were very proud to stand up and talk about not only the definition of Ramadan but also about what their family does to mark this holiday.
The second “Shared Experiences” was about people’s names, and we saw even more people attend this one! Everybody was excited to talk about their names and what they meant and to learn about what other team members’ and residents’ names mean. Our third session in August invites people to share their stories of immigrating to the United States. We’re eager to see what new insights we can from that session.
Jeanne: Our focus is always on inclusion and belonging and we want to make sure that the work we’re doing is moving that needle in the right direction.
Education is our primary goal. One of the best ways to learn more about other people is to talk together, and we hope to find more ways to invite people to have these conversations.
Additionally, we want people to feel comfortable to come forward and say when they hear or see something that bothers them. I think so many stereotypical and offensive remarks come about because of a lack of understanding rather than an intention to hurt someone. By focusing on education and conversations, we can help more people to be aware of things that could be offensive to others.
And you know, there’s always room to improve, so if people have any suggestions or questions or concerns, I hope they’ll bring them to us. I, personally, would love to sit down and talk about whatever it is they want to discuss.
Jeanne: I’d only been on the committee for a few months when I became the chair, so there was a lot to learn — a lot of reading and many conversations with people. I’ve always had an interest in DEI, especially working where we work. I love the diversity that we have here.
I wouldn’t say becoming the chair changed my perspective on DEI, but what it did do was give me more resolve. Becoming the chair was an opportunity; it’s also a responsibility. We want to be a place where people feel they belong. We want people to come to us and say “yes, this is a place where I want to live or receive care” or “this is a place where I want to work” and you can’t have that if you don’t have that community of belonging.
I have this incredible opportunity now to work with the committee, and we’re going to make that happen.
As we celebrate the fourth anniversary of the DEI Committee at Goodwin Living, it’s clear that our commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion has profoundly impacted our organization. Through initiatives like educational sessions, policy updates and group discussions, the committee has worked tirelessly to create a sense of belonging for all residents, members and team members. With Jeanne Hobbs at the helm, the committee looks forward to continuing its mission and making Goodwin Living a place where everyone feels welcomed and valued. Here’s to many more years of progress and inclusion!
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As Marketing & Communications Specialist, Amanda Ranowsky partners with colleagues throughout Goodwin Living to tell our stories and raise brand awareness. From printed collateral to digital marketing, Amanda covers many bases. Before joining GHI, Amanda worked for a small, family-owned business where she gained experience in content marketing. Amanda’s creative expression extends beyond the office. She is an active member of community theater and chorus groups.
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