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Work with CommunityConnective

Our goal at CommunityConnective is to help organizations create lasting, transformational change that impacts everyone involved. This means that while a checklist of tasks is a part of the process, the process itself is what brings about transformation. Our processes include conversations, skills development, opportunities for deeper learning and understanding, and relationship building to facilitate this kind of transformation. Through working with us, you will be set up to continue to move racial equity forward at your organization.

 

We have 3 main types of work we do. However, if there is something you are looking for that isn’t described here, please reach out and ask us if it is something we are able to provide. We will either be able to help or will be able to share names of other people who do that sort of work. 

Racial Equity Planning

Many organizations come to us looking to change their organization in order to be more aligned with anti-racism and racial equity. We have created a comprehensive process that we are able to tailor to the needs of each organization. Below are the 3 components of that process.

Racial Equity Assessment

We start the racial equity planning process with a racial equity assessment to help you understand where you are now. Assessments can be shaped to fit your scope and budget, but often include an analysis of existing policies and procedures as well as a combination of interviews, focus groups, and/or surveys with groups like the board, staff, constituents, and partners. Based on your chosen scope, we can develop an appropriate plan and timeline.

Following the assessment period, CommunityConnective will share insights to help you understand how current policies and procedures support or hinder racial equity goals (or other types of goals) as well as how board, staff, constituents, and coalition partners view the organization in relation to those goals. We submit a written report that shares the themes of what we learned through our assessment, what these findings mean, and our recommendations for possible focus areas as the organization plans for the future.

Racial Equity Workshops

In order for your organization to fully embrace the role race plays in your internal and external work, it will be critical to embark on a learning journey. Therefore, we encourage organizations to include workshops as a part of their planning process. 

All of our workshops are three hours long, are capped at 25 live participants, and take place over Zoom. We can also work together to figure out the best plan for sharing recordings with your team if that is desired.

We offer a series of three or four core workshops that will set your team up for success as you work to align with the values of racial equity. The topics we cover include vocabulary and concepts, the history of race/racism in the United States, and helping your organization connect that history to where we are today by exploring the characteristics of default whiteness and white supremacy culture so that you have a framework to help you spot racism in action and begin to flip the script.

We are also able to provide other facilitated trainings and learning opportunities on a number of different topics included below. 

Creating a Racial Equity Plan

Following the assessment and workshops, organizations are ready to engage in creating a plan to embed racial equity throughout the organization. Through a highly collaborative process we draw upon what was learned in the assessment and workshop phases of the project to outline priorities, goals, and objectives that align with that learning. Additionally, we work with the organization to create an implementation plan that includes accountability measures, timelines, success measures, and more to ensure that the plan actually happens and doesn’t simply gather dust sitting on the shelf. 

Strategic Planning through a Racial Equity Lens

One of the purposes of a strategic planning process is to consider important questions and make decisions about an organization’s priorities that can then be used as a guide for moving forward. These strategic priorities are determined and then used as a framework to create goals that will serve as reference points over the life of the plan.

 

Although creating a strategic plan is a process that has been well explored, layering on a racial equity lens requires additional skills and competencies. In order to be successful, a strategic planning team will need a solid and shared understanding of racial equity and some comfort engaging in an emergent process. Each step in this type of project incorporates the practical guidance of a strategic planning process while centering racial equity. CommunityConnective pioneered this process initially through the creation of a conference in 2018, “Envisioning Equity: Strategic Planning for Inclusive Organizations” and we have been told by potential clients that they were unable to find any others facilitating strategic planning through a racial equity lens. 

Facilitated Trainings & Learning Opportunities

We are able to provide facilitated trainings and learning opportunities on a variety of topics, either as a part of a planning process or as a separate component for an organization.The workshops described above in Racial Equity Planning (vocabulary and concepts, history of race/racism in the US, and default whiteness/white supremacy culture) can be requested as a separate engagement without the planning process. Below is a partial list of other possible facilitated trainings and learning opportunities we can provide. However, if you have additional topics you are interested in, please reach out to ask if we are able to accommodate your needs. 

  • Building accountability
  • Antidotes to white supremacy culture
  • Consensus decision making
  • Conflict resolution
  • Coaching (for leadership or other staff)
  • Racial identity caucuses
  • Racial healing circles

Client Testimonials

I have had the pleasure of working with Heidi, Prerna, and rebecca for the past three years, and I cannot emphasize enough how invaluable their contributions have been to the education and progress of our organization. Their dedication and commitment to our mission have been truly remarkable.

During 2020, post the murder of George Floyd, my organization was in dire need of external assistance to sort through the many emotions flowing through staff. With the help of Heidi Massey’s expertise in social justice and racial equity, her anti-racist work was just what we needed at the time we needed it most. Not only did Heidi help plan the structure and assisted with the facilitation of our racial caucuses, her work started the healing process that was essential in changing the workplace culture around race and building allies. We are more than grateful to have partnered with Community Connective and truly value Heidi’s expertise.

I’ve had the pleasure of learning from and partnering with Heidi in a variety of ways over the last 10 years – in one to one and small group sessions, workshops, panels, and more! She is a highly skilled, versatile, and conscious facilitator and thought leader in the equity, social justice, and leadership spaces. Heidi’s knowledge base and experience is deep, and she also partners well with other facilitators to ensure the voices and lived experience of diverse participant groups are present. Every learning experience I’ve had with Heidi has been transformative.

They nurtured my belief that vulnerability is an important value of a leader when changing the culture of an organization that seeks to embody diversity, equity, and inclusivity. Working with Prerna and Heidi through our coaching sessions helped to pay more attention to my inner voice, to trust my intuition, to be open to make mistakes, and to respect the pace of inclusive processes during the construction and implementation of policies and decision-making.

Work With Us

To get in touch with us please fill out our contact form. We will get back to you within 48 hours Monday through Friday.

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