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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

 

I believe that fully realized equity in the workplace (and in society) requires access to a financially feasible, high quality education; housing and food security; affordable and comprehensive healthcare (including preventive measures); thoughtful hiring practices; continual training and Professional Development; consideration of potential physical *and* cultural barriers; and an inclusive definition of diversity (encompassing nationality, race, religion, age, gender identity/expression and sexuality, ability/disability, culture, and socio-economic status).

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Volunteer work, Memberships and Board Service

  • Volunteer SideWalker at the EquiCenter in Honeoye Falls, helping special needs youth participate in the organization's therapeutic horsemanship and riding programs (Winter 2023, Spring 2024)

  • Member of the Southern Poverty Law Center civil rights organization (1993 – 2024)

  • Member, Human Rights Campaign (since 2022)

  • Board of Directors, Gay Alliance of the Genesee Valley (1996 – 1999)

    • Executive Committee

    • Public Relations Chair

    • Search Committee for Executive Director

    • Friend of the Community Award 1999

 

Specialized Training

  • Introduction to Web Accessibility, W3Cx EdX (2024)

  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Summit, presented by the Rochester Business Journal (2024)

  • Diversity and Inclusion LinkedIn Learning path (2020)

    • Confronting Bias

    • Unconscious Bias

    • Bystander Training

    • Skills for Inclusive Conversations

    • Communicating across Culturally Sensitive Issues

    • Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

    • Communicating Across Cultures​

 

Site-specific Advocacy

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  FFRPL

     I volunteered to serve on the Library’s Task Force to create 'Understanding Black Experiences,' an online anti-racist resource; and initiated and created extensive, consolidated 'FFRPL/Rochester Public Library Celebrate Black History Month' web pages as a community guide to programs and resources.

     I expanded FFRPL's recognition of December holidays to encompass Winter Festivals of Light: Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Christmas.

     I volunteered to help plan, promote, and present the annual Anthony Mascioli Rainbow Dialogues from the program’s inception in 2018; helped create marketing materials for the 'Evelyn Bailey Shoulders to Stand On Endowed Fund' at FFRPL. View/download the 2023 STSO brochure. View/download the 2024 STSO brochure.

     As a volunteer on Central Library’s Exhibits Team, I helped select, present and promote diverse exhibitions, such as Punjab: Land of Five Rivers (on view December 2021 through March 2022); A Place for All People: Introducing the National Museum of African American History and Culture (Smithsonian’s online version, due to COVID, February 2021), The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s exhibit, Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race (on view March through September 2020); and Stonewall: 50 Years Out (on view 2019).

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  Jewish Community Center

     I expanded the breadth of content offered as well as the diversity of the presenters and the audiences that attended.

     Programming that I curated included a Fiction Panel with an author whose work depicts the intersection of Jewish and Indian culture, alongside one who wrote a novel based on the true story of "the Chinese Schindler" (Dr. Ho Fengshan), who helped Jews in Vienna escape the Nazis and emigrate to Shanghai.

     I expanded antisemitism programming for a more broad-based discussion of The End of Bias: A Beginning, How We Eliminate Unconscious Bias and Create a More Just World; facilitated by a female BIPOC diversity inclusive director.

     I secured the photography exhibit, "Humans of Israel,' portraits by Israeli photographer Erez Kaganovitz and selected/curated all images on view. The exhibit depicted people of diverse ethnicities, nationalities, races, backgrounds, ages, religions, and gender/sexual identities.

     View the Authors + Innovators brochure.

 

  Memorial Art Gallery

     I suggested the concept of presenting an LGBTQIA+ program as part of the MAG’s long-running 'Family Days' Series that celebrated minority cultures and provided free programming and access to the Gallery. Pride Celebration Day was launched as part of MAG’s annual programming (under the new name 'Celebration Series') soon after my departure.

 

  Nazareth College Arts Center

     I created a designated LGBTQIA+ ‘Safe Space’ in the Arts Center Director’s office.

     I curated five high profile Subscription Series of diverse programming, representing a variety of perspectives from around the world, including Canadian (and specifically, Nova Scotian), Russian, African (and specifically, South African and Burundi), Spanish, Latin American, Scottish, Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese, Cuban, and Argentinian theatre, music and dance.

     In addition, I selected and presented the Thodos Dance Chicago company’s 'A Light in the Dark,' a unique Helen Keller story ballet, as well as monologues of soldiers’ writings in the Bill Massolia/Griffin Theatre Company’s production 'Letters Home.'

     I also introduced the first collaboration between the Arts Center and the College’s Division of Health Sciences, with special training for students and faculty by nationally acclaimed illusionist Kevin Spencer on using the arts for Physical and Occupational Therapy.

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  Rochester Arts & Lectures

     For the 13 Seasons (78 lectures) that I curated along with my business partner, 58% of the guest artists we selected were women; publicly identified as a minority; and/or the central message in their body of work advocated for/represented a minority perspective.

     We managed the ‘Encounters with Excellence’ scholarship program, enabling 14 traditionally underrepresented RCSD students to attend every lecture – and receptions with the authors – for free. The students received complimentary, signed copies of each guest speaker’s most current book.

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