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Race Equity Culture™ Partner Training with The Adaway Group

Managing During Shifting Tides

A virtual training for managers and leaders to navigate the ever-changing currents of DEI/racial equity work in organizations.

Whatever your institution might call it–DEI, JEDI, DEIB, IDEA–the landscape of social equity work in organizations has shifted greatly. We knew in 2020 that if the organizations clamoring for DEI and racial equity work didn’t treat it as a deep commitment, complete with long-term strategy, funding and accountability plans, that resolve would waver when things “got tough.” Like all progress on civil rights in this country, particularly racial justice, advancement will be met with a mixture of apathy and attack. Today, DEI is being cast as a “polarizing” or “partisan” issue by those who want to preserve the existing social hierarchies. Folks are being told to focus on inclusion and belonging instead. But we know this is not the way.

This training, led by Desiree Adaway and Jessica Fish of The Adaway Group, offers a deep dive into navigating these shifting tides of DEI/racial equity work, providing valuable tools and insights for anchoring into our core values as we navigate these currents. Key topics include:

  • Strategies for continuing to shepherd DEI initiatives
  • How to maximize the resources you have available
  • Ways to take care of yourself amidst the challenges

We’ve heard from many leaders, especially managers, committed to this work that they’re exhausted, frustrated, and disillusioned. We know a lot of you are feeling similarly. This session acknowledges these sentiments while emphasizing the importance of staying true to the cause without diluting its impact.

Active engagement in this 2-hour session will provide you with tools and insight on how to lean deeper into your organizational values, prioritize relationships, and build coalitions for change.

Accessibility

Our trainings are hosted on the Zoom video conferencing platform. You will need a computer or mobile device with a camera and microphone, and a quiet place to participate. A desktop computer (rather than cell phone or tablet) is ideal for accessing the training, as it allows the best ease of access to all the features in Zoom.

Trainings are interactive and most include breakout discussions. Please come ready to participate! If this is not possible for you, accommodations can be made by direct messaging the EIC Zoom host at the start of the training. We offer auto-generated closed captions through Zoom. Captions can sometimes be a little glitchy or inaccurate. Please reach out to workshops@equityinthecenter.org if you have accessibility needs or concerns.

Upcoming Workshops and Cost

In April 2022, we adopted a tiered pricing model to align with best practices in equity-focused organizations. We ask that organizations purchasing tickets on behalf of their staff purchase tickets in the tier that aligns with your organizational budget and sector. For individuals purchasing tickets for themselves, we ask that those with greater privilege purchase tickets at the higher end, which allows individuals with historically less access to wealth, disproportionately BIPOC folks, to pay the lower fees.

Training PoliciesApply for a Race Equity Culture™ Scholarship

Q3 2024 Session

Thursday, September 26, 2024

2:00 PM – 4:00 PM ET

(1pm-3pm CT / 12pm-2pm MT / 11am-1pm PT)

Subsidized Rate Actual Cost Rate Supporter Rate Investment Rate
Non-profits with budgets <$1M Non-profits with budgets between $1M and $3,999,999; government Foundations with assets less than $10M; non-profits with budgets between $4M and $9,999,999 All for-profit companies; foundations with assets over $10M; and non-profits with budgets $10M and above
$75 $100 $125 $150

*Budget categories based on Rockwood Leadership Institute’s tiered pricing model

Your Facilitators

Desiree Adaway (she/her)

Desiree Adaway, founder and principal of the Adaway Group, is one of the nation’s preeminent racial equity and DEI consultant-facilitators with over 30 years of experience creating, leading, and managing international multicultural teams in 40 countries through major organizational change. In 2020, when racial unrest mandated broader and deeper understanding of equity and the pandemic introduced strict travel and meeting constraints, Desiree’s adaptability and expertise enabled her and her team to educate tens of thousands on the most crucial issues of our time.

As Senior Director of Mobilization for Habitat for Humanity, she was responsible for the overall strategy and DEI plan for 1600 U.S. affiliates and over one million volunteers worldwide. Known as an engaging facilitator, Desiree educates with straightforward, thought-provoking content that allows participants to confront their own biases and seek new paths forward.

Desiree Adaway headshot

Jessica Fish (she/her)

Jessica Fish is a facilitator, educator, consultant, and researcher with fifteen years of experience helping organizations center racial equity. As a facilitator she works with teams to help them develop the skills to have difficult conversations around identity and power. She is dedicated to helping white people do the deep introspection, unlearning and skill-building required to become actively anti-racist. As a consultant Jessica believes deeply in the power and importance policy and practices rooted liberatory frameworks that center racial equity. “Policy is our values made tangible.”

Jessica is committed to making online education a transformative experience. Her racial equity training program developed with Desiree Adaway, Whiteness at Work, has reached over 60,000 people. She was the founding Director of the Center for Global, Race and Diversity Studies at the University of New Hampshire where she also taught. She holds degrees in gender and race studies and a master’s in comparative religion from Harvard University.

Jessica Fish