The BCC Compass – April 2022

Board of Child Care is committed to a healthy culture where everyone can engage with joy and purpose.  In order to achieve this kind of brave space, the agency relies on feedback from you. From Open Forums to anonymous comments provided in our online system and lots of things in between, I hear you and learn from you. This week, we kick off our semiannual, online employee survey – an important tool in measuring employees’ commitment, motivation and sense of purpose in their jobs and their views and attitudes toward our organization.

The survey is incredibly valuable, as it provides insight into what our employees need and want. It also helps me and other Board of Child Care leaders shape future policies and practices that remove barriers and build momentum so we can do our special work from an improving foundation. Some of the things we changed because of staff feedback include: more vacation time, more health insurance options and improved lighting in our communities to enhance safety. Asking staff for their ideas helps make BCC better in lots of different ways!

This year, in keeping with our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Strategic Plan, the employee survey will give us additional insights into how people identify and where the agency needs to focus to continue our journey with honoring differences, acknowledging uniqueness and amplifying all voices.  Our EDI committee helped us add several new questions to the survey, including:

• Do you identify as transgender?
• What is your family status?
• What is your sexual orientation?
• Are you a person with a disability?

We also added new statements where employees can share if they strongly agree, agree, neither agree nor disagree, disagree or strongly disagree, including:

• People are treated fairly regardless of their gender identity.
• I believe I work in an inclusive workplace regarding class, gender, identity, race, religion, age and sexual orientation.
• I believe staff members are treated fairly at the Board of Child Care.
• When I speak up, my opinion is valued.

To protect employees’ identity, survey responses are anonymous. Employees can also select “prefer not to specify” on certain questions.

While I may not have the opportunity to personally meet every BCC employee, I spend hours reviewing each survey response to understand how we can make our employees’ lives and organization great. Thank you for providing feedback. I am hearing you.

Earlier this month, we also hosted our first ever Clinician Appreciation Day. It was tons of fun with more than 50 talented clinicians and interns gathering for a day of team-building, gratitude-sharing, restoration, crafts and food. Each participant also received two hours of paid time off for self-care. Self-care helps build our resilience so we can do our special work, enriching communities one family at a time.

The event was just one of the many ways we intentionally foster belongingness that feeds a deep sense of purpose and joy at BCC. Thank you, clinicians, for being part of our team!

Warmly,
LA Spagnola
President & CEO

The BCC Compass – March 2022

One year ago in West Virginia, we launched our Open Forums initiative – an opportunity for members of our BCC family to share ideas and maintain a culture where we can learn and grow together.

After an engaging discussion, forum participants were motivated to continue these crucial conversations and foster genuine relationships with one another.

That’s why I am incredibly excited that this year, we are implementing bi-annual Open Forums at each of BCC’s six campuses. It’s yet another way our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan 2022–2025 is helping our organization enhance a culture of assessment and accountability for inclusivity at every level.

The idea for these forums was born out of our racism town halls, which were held at our Early Learning Program in Washington D.C.

Here’s how the Open Forums work.

Before each event, leaders of individual campuses meet with EDI Committee members to learn about potential discussion topics and how to constructively receive feedback from staff.
Recognizing some topics may be hard to discuss or trigger emotional reactions, staff members start each forum by reviewing the “safety commitments.” These commitments help participants provide support to each other and give and receive feedback in a healthy and respectful manner.

Then, the discussions begin. After each forum, leaders take what was discussed and come up with solutions to address concerns and improve inclusivity.

For example, during a recent forum at BCC’s Mechanicsburg, PA campus, staff members said they wanted more education to better support LGBTQ+ youth who are transitioning. We are now incorporating intensive training based around the LGBTQ+ community and affirming care for leadership and staff.

To make it easy for all staff to attend the forums, we will offer both in-person and online options.

It’s amazing to see our staff courageously express what they want and need to feel connected to the people we serve and each other.

Our commitment is to amplify all voices. With these forums, we hope to create a safe space where people can open their minds and hearts to endless possibilities.

To learn when your next Open Forum takes place, please reach out to your senior campus leader.

Warmly,
Laurie Anne “LA” Spagnola
President & CEO

The BCC Compass – February 2022

Understanding change – how it happens and why it’s needed – can be hard.

As humans, we naturally crave what’s familiar to us. While we can stretch ourselves, leaving our comfort zones is, well, uncomfortable.

That’s why true, long-lasting change takes time.

One of our goals in the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan 2022–2025 is to enhance engagement and intercultural development.

We have laid the foundation for this goal over the past few years, hosting events like our Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations and conducting trainings around bias and LGBTQ issues.

These events and trainings have built upon each other and created uplifting and enlightening experiences for our community. But to achieve deeper intercultural engagement, we need to do more.

Over the next three years, we have committed to sponsoring quarterly, “all staff” professional development events, educational workshops and activities that will raise awareness of inclusion, diversity, equity, biases and microaggressions. One example of this is the anti-black racism workshop we hosted in 2021. More than 200 staff members participated in this workshop, and we look forward to seeing continued interest as we plan our events for 2022.

We will also add more training opportunities for leaders by partnering with EDI experts outside of BCC. These training sessions will benefit the entire organization, as leaders will share the knowledge gained with their teams. The sessions will also be recorded and loaded into our learning management system for all staff members to access.

As we collaborate with more partners, we will continue to curate our library of learning with course content and resources that highlight diverse perspectives, practices and methodologies by various cultures.

This work will take time, but it will be time well spent. Remember: long-lasting change doesn’t happen overnight. The change that sticks is the change that is persistent.

What ideas or topics would you like to see addressed during our professional development events or training? I welcome your feedback!

Warmly,
Laurie Anne “LA” Spagnola
President & CEO