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Diversity/Affirmative Action Plan

Arkansas Chapter

National Association of Social Workers

July 2008

The Arkansas Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is committed to providing diversity in all aspects of its operations. Diversity being defined as the inclusion of differences and similarities from all categories of members and covers such areas as disability, gender, age, ethnicity, geographic origin, and sexual orientation. When diversity is used in this document it includes but may not be limited to these groups.

The Arkansas Chapter NASW affirms its commitment to diversity goals and policies that result in diversity being encouraged, promoted and celebrated throughout all levels of the association during the normal course of the association’s business and programs. We will take proactive steps in addressing the issue of diversity.

It is the goal of the Arkansas Chapter NASW to promote and value diversity as a strength of the organization. We are committed to promoting greater understanding of the importance of diversity in strengthening the overall quality of life in diverse communities.

The Arkansas Chapter NASW shall adopt policies and programs to reflect, increase, promote, support, and sustain the diversity of the membership at all levels of the association.

The Arkansas Chapter NASW plan will be monitored for proper implementation by the Executive Director.

Goal #1

Implement diversity policies and programs at all levels of the association.

1. Incorporate diversity issues into conference sessions, workshops and learning resources for members and staff.

2. Include diversity training during orientation for new board members during the annual retreat.

3. Encourage individuals with diverse backgrounds and capabilities to choose careers in social work.

4. Assure participation of women and minority speakers at all major conferences.

5. Promote a diverse leadership for the Arkansas Chapter NASW

Goal #2

Communicate diversity as an organization value in publications and communications.

1. Publish the organization’s diversity plan on the web site to reinforce our commitment

2. Publish diversity articles in our communications with members.

Goal #3

Participate in public forums and legislative efforts to advocate for social justice for diverse populations.

1. Actively participate in coalitions to further the efforts for non-discrimination against minority populations.

2. Monitor and respond to legislative initiatives that affect minority populations.

3. Identify opportunities to advocate for issues that affect the well being of minority communities.

Goal #1 Implement Diversity policies and programs into conference sessions, workshops and learning resources for members and staff.

Strategy	Benchmark	Timetable	Outcome
Incorporate diversity issues into conference sessions, workshops and learning resources for members and staff	Work with conference and continuing education committees to assure appropriate content Hold Diversity Caucus during annual conference	Ongoing Annually	Culturally competent information with be presented to members and non-members on an ongoing basis Members will have an opportunity to join together to discuss minority issues and develop a plan to respond to current issues

Include diversity training during orientation for new board members during the annual retreat	Communicate the chapter Diversity/Affirmative Action Plan to board members and identify areas in which they can be effective	Annually Ongoing	Board members who are educated about diversity and a team of members who can become more active around diversity issues

Encourage individuals with diverse backgrounds and capabilities to choose careers in social work	Use the chapter video at high school career days and other appropriate venues to encourage members of minority communities to enter the social work field	Ongoing	More students and potential social workers will be exposed and motivated to become professional social workers

Assure participation of women and minority speakers at all major conferences	Work with conference committee to assure that women and minority speakers are invited to present at conferences	Ongoing	Exposure of minority speakers and their perspectives to conference attendees.

Promote a diverse leadership for the Arkansas Chapter NASW	Actively recruit individuals of minority populations to become leaders in the association	Ongoing	A more diverse leadership pool

Goal #2 Communicate diversity as an organization value in publications and communications

Strategy	Benchmark	Timetable	Outcome
Publish the organization’s diversity plan on the web site to reinforce our commitment	Publish plan on web site	Immediately	Everyone who hits our web site will be exposed and aware of the goals of our diversity/affirmative action plan

Publish diversity articles in our communications with members	Write and/or research articles on diversity and publish them in our monthly enews to members	Quarterly	Members who are more educated on the issues that affect minority populations

Goal #3 Participate in public forums and legislative efforts to advocate for social justice for diverse populations

Strategy	Benchmark	Timetable	Outcome
Actively participate in coalitions to further the efforts of non-discrimination against minority populations	Continue to actively work with the Kid’s Count Coalition, Arkansas Families First and the GLBT Egroup Forum on issues affecting minority populations	Ongoing	A stronger voice to advocate for issues affecting minority populations

Monitor and respond to legislative initiatives that affect minority populations	Legislative Committee will monitor bills during the legislative session and identify those that affect minority communities Use Capwiz to enable members to easily respond to issues identified by the Legislative Committee for action	Ongoing Ongoing	Bills will be identified early in the legislative process and this will allow timely response by the association Easy and immediate action by members to respond to issues affecting minority populations

Identify opportunities to advocate for issues that affect the well being of minority communities	Members of the Board of Directors, committees and the general membership may bring issues to the attention of the Board for action	Ongoing	Open forum for input from members and action by the Board of Directors