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Standards and Credentialing ~ A Roadmap

Becoming a racism-free community requires more than dreams and hope. People and organizations need guidance, support, resources and recognition to move forward and take action. Engaging in the Partners for a Racism-Free Community (PRFC) standards and credentialing process enables you to be part of the solution.

You might be asking yourself, "What is meant by 'racism-free'?" The PRFC has defined it as:

The individual and systemic condition achieved when all persons, regardless of skin color, feel welcomed and wanted in all places and treat others the same way.

Rationale

Consequently, PFRC has established a set of standards that:

Supports its vision of 50% of all organizations in the greater Grand Rapids, Michigan area being designated as racism-free in ten years

Provides a methodology that organizations can use to assess their progress toward creating and sustaining a racism-free culture

Facilitates evaluation of activities designed to achieve specific results and/or outcomes

Provides recognition as a "community model" for organizations that achieve positive results and/or outcomes

Helps organizations and the greater community recognize progress and partner with one another to achieve a greater good

Identifies, supports, and leverages individuals and organizations that strive to achieve a racism-free environment

Helps organizations proactively understand and support the diversity within their constituencies

Provides a framework and guidance for partnering to eliminate racism

Goals

Ultimately, our goal is to support continued organizational and individual behavior change by:

Creating a community of compassion and justice

Promoting racial harmony

Mobilizing people to respond to racial-justice issues

Encouraging activity to eliminate racism

Ensuring that all are valued for who they are and how they contribute

Enabling all of us to achieve our full potential to lift all of us up

Sharing the excitement and energy that accompanies engagement with a diverse group of people

Benefits

Organizations that have begun this process are experiencing the benefits. Their reasons for undertaking the effort are many, including:

Building a more diverse workforce, congregation, customer base, community

Attracting talent to the organization and community

Maximizing the potential of all stakeholders / constituents

Supporting retention of stakeholders / constituents

Challenging pre-existing ideas and practices that limit stakeholders

Allowing organizations to invest in "doing the right thing"

Expanding market opportunities and increasing consumer and employee satisfaction

For those of you thinking about becoming a Partner for a Racism-Free Community, the process may seem challenging. You will be rewarded by your continuous efforts! And, help will be available. Capable PRFC staff and/or volunteers can assist you along the way.

Focus Areas

The standards specifically drive change through a focus on six target areas. Organizations are asked to provide documented evidence that:

the organization is committed to establishing and continuously

enhancing a racism-free culture declared racism-free statements, practices and principles match their environmental reality

The target areas are:

Leadership engagement - What racism-free behaviors are your leaders exhibiting?

Internal practices, policies and processes - How is your organization creating and sustaining a racism-free environment?

External collaborations and relationships - How is your organization funding, sponsoring, and / or collaborating with others to fight racism?

Contractor, supplier and/or vendor practices - How is your organization doing business with suppliers that reflect your standards and values?

Client, congregation, customer and/or marketplace practices - How is your organization reaching out to and sustaining a diverse constituent base?

Measurement and results - How is your organization holding itself accountable and continuously improving to ensure a racism-free environment?

Partner Designations

Provisional Partner:

The completed on-line Organizational Assessment Part I document has been submitted to the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee.

Documentation reviewed by the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee supports at least five out of the six categories of the submitted Organizational Assessment Part I.

Receipt of a signed Partnership Pathways Designation and Rationale document from the Credentialing Review Committee detailing the feedback identified during the assessment process.

Submission of an improvement plan to support movement towards full partnership within one year.

Full Partner:

The completed on-line Organizational Assessment Part I document has been submitted to the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee.

Documentation reviewed by the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee supports all six of the six categories of the submitted Organizational Assessment Part I.

Receipt of a signed Partnership Pathways Designation and Rationale document from the Credentialing Review Committee detailing the feedback identified during the assessment process.

Submission of an improvement plan to support movement towards credentialed partnership within three years.

Credentialed Partner:

The completed on-line Organizational Assessments - Part I and Part II documents have been submitted to the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee.

Documentation reviewed by the PRFC Credentialing Review Committee supports all six of the six categories of the submitted Organizational Assessments.

Receipt of a signed Partnership Pathways Designation and Rationale document from the Credentialing Review Committee detailing the feedback identified during the assessment process.

Submission of an improvement plan to support maintaining the credentialed partnership.

Standards

The standards below were created by a team representing a cross-section of the Grand Rapids community. The team was racially, socio-economically, and organizationally diverse. In addition, having a team that was multi-generational was critical to the balance brought to the standards creation process. The team worked together using a screen for each indicator that included the following questions:

Is the statement complete and understandable as written?

Is the statement relevant?

Is the statement inclusive in intent and application?

For any size organization?

For any industry type of organization?

Is the language used within the statement appropriate to a range of audiences?

Is the statement written in terms that are measurable? Is the statement actionable and achievable?

Target Area Definitions and Indicators

1. Leadership Engagement

Description: Active, intentional and ongoing involvement by those designated as "in-charge" at their respective organizational levels. This includes, but is not limited to titles like Board Chair, CEO, CFO, CIO, COO, Department Head/Chair, Director, Executive Director, General/Managing Partner, Manager, Minister, Pastor, President, Priest, Rabbi, School Superintendent and Principal, Supervisor, Team/Group Leader, Vice-President, etc. Goal: Evidence of leaders exhibiting racism-free behavior and promoting a racism-free environment

Evidence that the most senior leader has personally communicated his or her expectation and/or vision to the organization that the environment will be racism - free

Evidence that the most senior leader is actively collaborating with a designated champion and other internal leaders to identify and eliminate organizational barriers

Evidence that the most senior leader is actively monitoring organizational progress toward a racism-free environment

Evidence that all leaders reporting to the most senior leader have a documented plan stating the behaviors they will be or are exhibiting and how they will be or are promoting and measuring a racism-free environment.

Evidence that a champion has been designated to create and implement an organizational plan to achieve a racism-free environment

Evidence that a champion has the support of the most senior organizational leader to implement the organizational plan

Evidence that a champion has developed the written organizational plan, reviewed regularly with appropriate leaders and includes regular monitoring of measures

Evidence that a champion engages in ongoing collaboration with all leaders reporting to the most senior leader in their planning and implementation efforts to achieve a racism-free environment

Evidence that a champion is receiving ongoing training and development to support organizational efforts to become racism-free

Evidence that all leaders reporting to the most senior leader and the designated champion have successfully completed a professionally facilitated program which includes the creation of an action plan (e.g. Institute for Healing Racism) designed to increase racism-free awareness and foster racism-free behavior

Evidence that all leaders reporting to the most senior leader recognize and reward racism-free behaviors

Evidence that all leaders reporting to the most senior leader are actively involved with external organizations creating racism-free organizations

Evidence that all leaders reporting to the most senior leader are implementing their documented plan and measuring progress towards achieving a racism-free environment?

2. Internal Policies, Practices and Processes

Description: Internal actions, activities, practices and behaviors, consistently held in place over time Goal: Evidence that the organization demonstrates internal practices and policies that create and sustain a deliberate and intentional racism-free environment

Evidence of recruitment, selection and retention strategies, within all constituencies and at all levels, designed to ensure a racism-free environment.

Evidence of the implementation of reward and recognition programs to support racism-free behaviors throughout all organizational levels

Evidence of visual communication of an organizational commitment to be racism-free including a “zero-tolerance” policy

Evidence of sponsorship and encouragement of participation in learning and development activities (e.g. speaker series, book clubs, lunch and learn events, discussion groups, internal community networks, etc.) that promote racism-free behaviors

Evidence of engagement in regular monitoring, measuring and continuous improvement activities

Evidence of support systems (e.g. coaching, mentoring, networks), designed to ensure the success of all constituents at all levels within a racism-free environment

Evidence of equitable access to learning and development opportunities for all internal constituencies

Evidence of survey data and feedback from internal, as well as external, constituents and/or stakeholders regarding progress toward a racism free environment

Evidence that frontline employees are being or have been developed to successfully engage in racism-free behaviors with all constituencies

Evidence that internal racism-free practices align with public statements and behaviors

3. External Collaborations and Relationships

Description: Being visible and influential in business, community, social and legislative networks Goal: Evidence that the organization is supporting and/or doing business with organizations that are committed to becoming racism-free

Evidence of sponsorship, promotion, and/or participation in racism-free business and community activities

Evidence of financial investments that promote racism-free environments and practices

Partnerships within the community to develop racism-free business and employment opportunities and programs

Evidence that the organization is recognized within the community as promoting racism-free behavior

4. Contractor, Supplier, and/or Vendor Practices

Description: Organizational behaviors with contractors, suppliers, and vendors providing products, services and/or other inputs Goal: Evidence that racism-free expectations have been established for suppliers

Evidence that solicitation and retention strategies communicate expectations for racism-free contractor, supplier, and/or vendor policies and practices

Evidence that bid and request for proposal documents include language consistent with achieving a racism-free supply chain

Evidence of monitoring suppliers’ racism-free policies and procedures

Evidence of supplier development programs, if any, designed to build a qualified racism-free supply chain

5. Client, Congregation, Customer, and/or Marketplace Practices

Description: Clients, congregants, consumers, members, patrons, students; people that your products and/ or services are intended to satisfy Goal: Evidence that the organization’s products and services target the needs of a multi-racial client/congregation/ customer base (e.g. research /feedback, product development, marketing/promotion, and distribution)

Evidence that public statements and constituent practices align with internal racism-free behaviors and expectations

Evidence that your organization’s knowledge of its constituent base influences marketing plans and the service delivery processes to ensure racism-free behaviors and practices

Evidence that the constituent base is encouraged and actively developed to be racism-free e.g. racism-free seminars offered to clients, congregants, consumers, members, patrons, students)

6. Measurement and Results

Description: Methods of evaluating racism-free behavior determined by the organization for monitoring its progress and identifying areas of continuous improvement Goal: Evidence that the organization has established a measurement process to support a racism-free environment

Evidence that at least one appropriate measure or success indicator has been established for each category of the standards

Evidence of ongoing, active processes for gathering and implementing both qualitative and quantitative data (e.g. focus groups, surveys, testing) are in place and utilized

Evidence that results are regularly documented, analyzed, and reported / published to ensure continuous improvement

Evidence that incremental progress is occurring for established measures within each of the standards categories

Evidence that corrective action plans are in place for those measures where progress is not demonstrated

Evidence that the organization’s leaders are using measurement data to inform their annual planning processes

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