Blueprint 2020 Essay

From Hollywood to the the social sector, diversity, rather the lack thereof, has been a topic of conversation. Although many organizations have begun to advocate for diversity, more work must be done. Across the social sector,women and people of color remain severely underrepresented in leadership positions. Organizations must become intentional about creating a diverse workforce and implementing inclusive policies that foster positive work environments. When employees feel represented and included they are happier and more likely to contribute to fulfilling the organization's mission.

Dr. Cephas Archie is the Diversity & Inclusion Program Coordinator for Houston Community College (HCC), where he assists in the implementation of the colleges 7 + campus Diversity & Inclusion Plan. Collaboratively working with all institutional stakeholders – both internal and external, Dr. Archie spearheads the institution’s diversity and inclusion efforts for the near 81,000 students, faculty and staff. As an employee of the Office of Institutional Equity at HCC, his efforts are accompanied by the college’s Diversity & Inclusion Council.

Project Blue Book in 1952 marked the first governmental effort to investigate the existence of UFOs. Hysteria among the public concerning UFO sightings prompted the creation of the project by the United States Air Force. The various sightings of unidentified aircraft in U.S. airspace concerned the government, as the timing of the sightings coincided with the societal panic induced by the Red Scare. Air Force investigators quickly grew irritated of pursuing nonsensical UFO civilian reports for a 15-year period. In 1966, the Air Force contracted a group of scientists to research all aspects related to UFOs in an effort expedite the conclusion of Project Blue Book. The committee of independent scientists led by Edward Condon published a report

In a speech in February 2013 President Barak Obama said, “One of the things that I really strongly believe in is that we need to have more girls interested in math, science, and engineering. We’ve got half the population that is way underrepresented in those fields and that means that we’ve got a whole bunch of talent…not being encouraged the way they need to.” It been three years since President Obama has made that statement and the underrepresentation of women in science, technology, engineering and math as known as STEM majors is still a big problem today. The STEM workforce is crucial to Americas global competitiveness and groundbreaking capability. The people who work in the STEM field make up nearly half of the United

Diversity has been a hot-button topic for many of today’s companies. Diversity programming and initiatives are regularly implemented by organizations of all types and sizes. As it relates to an organization’s human resources operation, diversity will continue to be an ever-changing term as the work towards equitable treatment for all continues.

She has worked with women who are entering fields all across the STEM spectrum and was able to touch on personal stories from her students along with her own experiences as a woman in the workforce. The leader in her character is displayed as she touches on the powerful emotions she experiences when working with some of the most gifted STEM women that we should expect to make strides in the future. Women such as those she works with at the Douglass Project only have one ceiling to break through. It has nothing to do with their talents and capabilities, but rather everything to do with the negative stigmas in our society. For the sake of these women, speaking to Beth has pushed me to use my voice even more than I ever have before. I also hope to share certain pieces of this interview with a woman who is passionate about science, but maybe doubts her ability to do well in the field based on these stigmas. Overall, having this interview with Beth has strengthened my passion for being an advocate on the solutions needed to combat this

Whether you are a business manager or a CEO, a new employee or a seasoned worker, a teacher or a student, this book offers something new for everyone in a field where almost nothing new has been offered in such a long time. Simply doing more and more of what we have been doing for so long, in the name of diversity and inclusion and equity, won't get us where we need to be. It isn't more diversity that we need. What we need is a better and different diversity, one that unpoisons the well, and one that works equally for all of us, whether among ourselves or among

Women have struggled in establishing their rightful place in the STEM environment because of this image of a family where the mother is the chief caretaker of the children. Society believes that a woman’s first priority

Diversity in the workplace has always been an interesting topic to explore. When studying the topic, one is able to see how minorities and women do not get the same job opportunities at career growth as non-minorities. The lack of diversity in the workplace can definitely keep a company from reaching its full potential. Our guest speaker Patrick McKay explored different topics dealing with diversity in the workplace that shed light on why trying to diversify the workplace occasionally fails. McKay also mentioned how it is important to be mindful of the location you choose to live when beginning your career. In the article Doing Diversity Right, Derek R. Avery and Patrick F. McKay explain how “managing diversity” in the workplace is vital in today’s workplace. Over the years there has been a greater emphasis put on insuring diversity within the workplace. McKay and Avery explain the importance of creating a diverse environment in which companies promote. It is not enough to solely recruit minorities or women but also the environment of the workplace must allow the individuals to thrive. In the article Warning! Diversity recruitment could Backfire, Patrick McKay and Derek Avery explain how companies should implement diversity into their company programs. Having a company culture that embraces diversity is the key to successfully diversifying a company.

Diversity is what makes people different, not just culturally but in human differences. Having a multitude of differences in the workforce gives an organization the ability to use many ideas to reach a common goal. A person could say that a diverse group of people together in one room can accomplish greater achievements than a room filled with the same types of individuals. Managers understand the concept of diversity, and how important diversity is to the success of a company’s ability to implement programs that continue to develop a harmonious and diverse workplace. The recognition that diversity is a reality in the workforce has generated an enormous amount of activity over the years among leaders in business, government, and civil

The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult. In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and conflict. Supreme Court justices disagree on the virtues of diversity and the means for achieving it. Corporations spend billions of dollars to attract and manage diversity both internally and externally, yet they still face discrimination lawsuits, and the leadership ranks of the business world remain predominantly white and male.

They stressed further: “Aside from the leadership provided by CEOs and diversity officers, management of diversity should be embraced by the entire leadership team and not perceived as the exclusive domain of the HR function.”

population. Companies need to focus on diversity and look for ways to become totally inclusive organizations because diversity has the potential of yielding greater productivity and competitive advantages (SHRM, 1995). Stephen G. Butler, co-chair of the Business-Higher Education Forum, believes that diversity is an invaluable competitive asset that America cannot afford to ignore (Robinson, 2002). Managing and valuing diversity is a key component of effective people management, which can improve workplace productivity (Black Enterprise, 2001).

I believe, that understanding and achieving diversity is the key to understanding the complex demands society and the marketplace place on businesses today. I also believe, when organizations leverage the contributions of their total workforce, they not only survive they succeed. So, how do we get there? Experience has shown, programs that work have taken time to develop and communicate the vision have the most success. I personally, as a manager and future business leader will be shaping messages and keeping diversity at the forefront of the minds of my peers and rank and file employees.

In the article, “Making Difference Matter: A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity,” the authors David A. Thomas and Robin J. Ely state that the discrimination-and-fairness paradigm and the access-and-legitimacy paradigm are the ”perspectives that have guided most diversity initiatives to date.” (p. 80) Thomas and Ely took these two paradigms and came up with the learning-and-effectiveness paradigm, which combines the best of the discrimination-and-fairness paradigm and the access-and-legitimacy paradigm to create a paradigm that genuinely shows care to learn and understanding of diversity.