Core Value Award Winner – Impact – July 2021

Impact Drives Lasting Change

We seek to make lasting change in the lives of those we work with by providing services that are inclusive, measurable, and durable. We maximize our impact by investing in staff and board development. Feedback presents the opportunity for action, which enhances and strengthens our programs and their outcomes.
Epiphany eagerly expressed her desire to help with EDI initiatives and use her talent and skill to promote equity and safety for her colleagues. Epiphany used her voice to advocate for BCC to acknowledge Juneteenth as a holiday. She interviewed her co-workers, presented research, and spoke confidently on the behalf of others. Her voice impacted and encouraged the decision to make sure that the liberation of Black Americans was celebrated and acknowledged.

Congratulations Epiphany and thank you!

 

 

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Core Value Award Winner – Empathy – July 2021

Listen and Respond with Empathy

Empathy will guide our programming and culture at all levels. A supportive work and program environment means valuing the voices of all people, ensuring equitable representation, and growing a desire to know and understand others. We recognize that with empathy we will better understand what type of care and encouragement to provide.

As Campolina’s Front End Lead TSS, she creates an environment that is supportive and welcoming for both staff and youth. She offers encouragement to all and always makes herself available when she is needed. Recently, Campolina received a new resident who was struggling with the transition. Nasheena had been one of the first to realize he was struggling and she made sure to talk with him one to one to better understand his needs and wants. She continued to check in with him daily to ensure he was not struggling and remind him that he had someone he could talk to.

Congratulations Nasheena and thank you!

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Core Value Award Winner – Relationships – July 2021

Foster Relationships Within our Community

Openness and honesty with all stakeholders make for both the best program outcomes and team culture. Inclusive practices are the building blocks for trust. We create space for conversations that grow transparency about our decisions, promises, and understanding of one another.

Tiffani Williams organized a diversity potluck, which is one of LA’s activities for Diversity Month. She invited me into House 9 where I lead a discussion around Cultural Appreciation. The staff were SO engaged, and the conversation was extremely rich. We even had staff and youth who acknowledged their personal areas for improvement. Tiffani displayed the type of dedication that I want to see from our leadership. Tiffani created the space to highlight the importance of relationship building and understanding of each other. The input from the staff proved that they felt safe enough to be open and vulnerable to share their experiences and perspectives. A huge thank you to Tiffani for using her platform to push our diversity work forward.

Congratulations Tiffani, and Thank You!

 

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Core Value Award Winner – Safety – July 2021

Safety as a Mindset

We value life, spirit, and health above all else and take action to maintain the safety of our workplaces, programs, and services through a trauma-responsive lens. We are personally accountable for our own safety and collectively responsible for the mental, emotional, and physical safety of our community.

Ms. Norma is by far one of the most outstanding workers in our program. She tackles issues with the youth right away.  Ms. Norma is an amazing communicator and has been able to mediate and resolve conflict flawlessly, creating a lasting impact on our youth’ behaviors and relationships in the cottage. She is appreciated by co-workers and youth alike. The atmosphere in C4 is always welcoming and inclusive because of her.

Congratulations Norma and thank you!

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BCC celebrates Juneteenth

The Board of Child Care celebrates Juneteenth. Juneteenth (June 19) marks the Nation’s 2nd Independence Day and is a significant milestone in United State’s history.

President Joe Biden signed a bill yesterday commemorating Juneteenth, the end of slavery in the United States. June 19 is now an official federal holiday!

“By making Juneteenth a federal holiday we are, recognizing the sins of the past, grappling with them, teaching them and learning from them as we work towards a perfect union,” Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, said in a press conference after the Senate passage of the bill. “It will be the only federal holiday that recognizes the terrible legacy of slavery as well as the noble truth that none of us are free until we are all free,” the majority leader continued.

See history happen by clicking this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OpS18G-2hw

On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared the end of slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation. Two and half years later, and two months after the end of the Civil War, Union troops arrived in Galveston on June 19, 1865, to find that news of the Proclamation had not yet reached Galveston and that people were still slaves in Texas.

The annual commemoration of this date, known as Juneteenth, was seen as a stabilizing and motivating presence in the lives of African-Americans in Texas. They, despite their newly acquired freedom, still faced many uncertainties and challenges.

Celebrations of Juneteenth include parades, storytelling, barbecues, and baseball. Strawberry soda pop is the drink of choice, and the building from which General Granger read the Proclamation is now a historic landmark.

BCC celebrates Juneteenth in various ways with special meals consisting of foods reflective of the African Diaspora and providing a professional development workshop. Please join BCC Juneteenth celebration at the following celebrations:

  •  Juneteenth Professional Development: Solidarity as a Verb Monday, June 21, 1:30 pm-3:30 pm via zoom. Registration instructions will roll out on Monday, June 14. This is a MANDATORY training for all BCC staff.
  • Juneteenth Cookout and Information session for BCC West Virginia. Wednesday, June 16.
  • Enjoy a special Juneteenth Dinner Menu at our Baltimore Campus Saturday, June 19.

BCC acknowledges Juneteenth as a special holiday with festivities around our communities. Additionally, we are declaring this upcoming Saturday, June 19th a holiday. Everyone working this day will receive holiday pay (which is double their regular hourly rate) to celebrate this day. BCC is also relaxing the “Black Out” requirement for this day. In 2022, BCC will continue the practice of holiday pay for this day and add the Federally recognized Juneteenth day off to add to our celebration!

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BCC Celebrates Pride Month

The Board of Child Care (BCC) and the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Committee would like to wish our community a Happy PRIDE Month! PRIDE takes place every June and is a time for the world’s LGBTQ+ Communities to come together and celebrate the freedom to be themselves. PRIDE celebrations are rooted in a long history of minority groups who have struggled for decades to overcome prejudice and be accepted for who they are. The Board of Child Care respects, accepts, and values the voices, lives, and experiences of all our staff, youth, and community partners who are members of this community. We could not do this mission-focused work without your contributions to society and the examples that you set for us all. Thank you and Happy PRIDE, not only in the month of June but every single day!

The original organizers of PRIDE chose the month of June to honor the Stonewall uprising that took place in June of 1969 in New York City, where police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar, and began harassing and pulling customers outside. Patrons resisted arrest, and crowds gathered in protest of the officers’ cruel and unnecessary treatment. This event displayed the built-up frustration towards authorities and social systems that discriminated against marginalized groups and were the catalyst for an emerging gay rights movement. Civic organizations formed and held protests, met with political leaders and worked to educate the world on the purpose of the movement. Today, the LGBTQ+ community continues to fight for rights and equality. Nationwide marriage equality is a more recent victory. However, various forms of discrimination still run rampant for the LGBTQ+ community. PRIDE is an opportunity to focus our energy on the history, progress, and future of the LGBTQ+ community.

If you do not know much about the LGBTQ+ community or PRIDE month, don’t worry! There are so many ways to get educated and involved! Check out the list below:

  • Hit the Books – Research is the best way to not only understand PRIDE but also become a better ally. Read up on the history of the movement, educate yourself on proper pronouns, watch documentaries on LGBTQ+ issues.
  • Walk the Walk- If you are well versed in the LGBTQ+ community, use that knowledge for good. Provide opportunities for members of this community to be heard on various platforms. Create safe environments for colleagues and youth to feel supported. Set the example of what it truly means to be an ally.
  • Participate in your local pride events – Attending local events will allow you to network and learn directly from members of this community. Pay attention to social media, local universities, and nonprofits for information about celebrations.
  • Door Decorating Contest: The picture above is a great example of the results you can get when you have a team and youth-based PRIDE contest. Thanks, Team West Virginia, for being an ALLY.No matter how you choose to celebrate, the Board of Child Care encourages you to remember those who fought for equal rights and those who still do. As an organization, we are continuing to create safe spaces, bring forth important conversations, and build allyship for all members of our community. We encourage you to join us in this work so we all can engage with joy and purpose and bring our most authentic selves to our community.
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BCC Congratulates Dr. Coleman

The Board of Child Care would like to take a moment to honor our esteemed and dear Dr. Peter Coleman. After over 50 years of practicing medicine and celebrating his seven-year anniversary at BCC, he is retiring.

Congratulations on your retirement, Dr. Coleman! You have earned this and are deserving of leisure for your life’s work.

Dr. Coleman joined BCC in 2014 as a member of the senior leadership team. We appreciate his contributions and camaraderie. He has been instrumental, invaluable, and renowned to the governance of BCC. Most notably, he championed BCC’s advancement to a trauma-informed care model, a momentous decision. His impact will be remembered, cherished, and will affect BCC for years to come.

During his tenure, he has made a significant impact on both patients and staff. Always welcoming and generous with his time and effort. We will forever be eternally grateful, and we will miss his presence.

Dr. Coleman is also an Air Force veteran and has been working since 15 when he started in a local bakery. He leaves behind his accomplished and enduring career but earned the opportunity to fill his time with everything enjoyable. May this next chapter of life bring you many wonderful years to do the things you love and adventure to fulfill your wildest dreams.

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The BCC Compass – July 2021

BCC Commits to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

At the beginning of our EDI journey, we wanted the Board of Child Care to be an organization that not only enriched the lives of the families we served but also uplifted those who are doing this mission-focused work at every level of the organization. With an employee population of 800+, BCC’s stance on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion needed to be prioritized and clearly communicated.

We started with a simple question: As an organization, what does EDI mean to us? This guiding question led us down a path to understanding our staff’s individual visions about the legacy for the agency. Through individual interviews, formal data collection, and commitment from executive leadership, the Board of Child Care released an official EDI statement and updated Core Values in May 2021 to display to our entire community our commitment to ensuring inclusive and equitable experiences for all our stakeholders. This is what we believe…

Our Commitment

The Board of Child Care is committed to honoring differences, acknowledging uniqueness, and amplifying all voices. A culture of inclusivity empowers individuals at every level to enrich communities, one family at a time.

Diversity statements are not to be created by one single person or group. It is important to be as collaborative as possible and use the words, vision, and experiences of others to guide how the statement should sound and come together. Once we created this statement, we literally toured this statement around to various groups (EDI Committee, Executive Leadership, Senior Leadership) to ensure that the statement felt realistic, relevant, and represented all stakeholders in our community.

An Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion statement demonstrates an agency’s commitment to building an inclusive, varied workplace welcoming people of all backgrounds. Much like a mission and values statement, the diversity and inclusion statement are, ideally, more than just a marketing exercise. It should guide your hiring, employee benefits, customer service, and workplace culture. Keep in mind that a good statement is:

  • Direct and Concise
  • Around 20-75 words,
  • Is on an 8th-grade reading level
  • Uses positive and inclusive language
  • Relates to the agency mission and purpose statement

Creating and publishing an EDI statement was a significant first step in the EDI journey, here at BCC. It provides us with direction and refocuses our vision to incorporating EDI principles, initiatives, and standards into our functionality and strategic planning. With an established commitment to all things Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion the real work begins to bring this statement to life in a real and palpable way.

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Core Value Winner – Impact – May 2021

Impact Drives Lasting Change

We seek to make lasting change in the lives of those we work with by providing services that are inclusive, measurable, and durable. We maximize our impact by investing in staff and board development. Feedback presents opportunity for action, which enhances and strengthens our programs and their outcomes. 

WINNER: Zachariah Mahullo

Zach is the Unit Supervisor for our Caminos West Falling Waters quarantine unit. Although there is a lot of stress that comes with being in a constant quarantine unit, Zach goes above and beyond to check on others during this difficult and stressful time. He is exceptional at ensuring staff are scheduled for transports to take youth to their doctors’ appointments. He truly makes an impact on this entire Caminos West program and the Falling Waters campus.

Congratulations and thank you, Zach!

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Core-Value-Winner-Empathy-May-2021

Listen and Respond with Empathy

Empathy will guide our programming and culture at all levels.  A supportive work and program environment means valuing the voices of all people, ensuring equitable representation, and growing a desire to know and understand others.  We recognize that with empathy we will better understand what type of care and encouragement to provide. 

WINNER: Korinne Troshak

Korinne is the Permanency Technician at UMHC-BCC in PA.  As such she meets with UMHC residents and other kids in the community to provide Statewide Adoption Network services. Korinne has proven to be a tremendous asset to that program and to the kids and families in the program.  She quickly builds a positive rapport with her clients and her ‘kids’ report that she is very easy to talk to because she is so caring and empathetic.  A worker from another provider agency remarked about Korinne, “Korinne is compassionate, enthusiastic, engaging, intelligent, and resourceful!

Congratulations Korinne and thank you!

 

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