A Place for Everyone: JLW Expands DEIB Resources

Robyn Rudish-Laning

Advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) is critical to the Junior League of Washington’s (JLW) Mission “is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.” To ensure that the League creates an environment that is inclusive and welcoming to all women, the Strategic Sustainability Council’s Innovation and Incubation (I&I) Committee advanced JLW’s DEIB work this year through a coordinated series of training events and the development of educational resources for members.

With the help of an Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI) Innovation Accelerator Grant, the I&I Committee organized three one-hour virtual trainings geared toward members at various stages of their JLW journey (i.e., new members, actives, sustainers, and JLW leaders) to equip them with the tools to promote DEIB both within the League and in the communities served by JLW. Three sessions took place in spring 2022.

“We hope that these hour-long trainings level set all JLW members on how to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, [how to] facilitate an environment of respect both within JLW and in the communities we serve, and how to recognize our unconscious biases to ensure we don’t take them with us in our JLW journey,” said Whitney Hubbard, Chair of the I&I Committee.

The committee also worked with JLW’s Development and Training Committee to present DEIB Deep Dive: Working with Individuals with Differing Abilities. Members had the opportunity to hear from experts from Access Living on issues around disability, language, ableism, and how they can promote enhanced accessibility both in and out of the League.

Another tool made available to JLW members is a library of resources on a variety of DEIB topics. Interested members can locate this on the JLW website in the Diversity Equity and Inclusion Resources section.

“We know that there is a lot of work to be done within JLW to ensure DEIB is central in all that we do, from our member experiences, to our procedures and policies, to education and training that our members can bring to their community work and professional lives,” said Lauren Niles Whalen, Director of the Strategic Sustainability Council, which oversees the I&I Committee. She continued, “This year, much of our work focused on education and training, but we fully intend to continue this work in the coming years and dedicate resources to strengthening this aspect of our organization. It is so important.” •