Equity bicycle graphic.
Graphic created by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
September 25, 2020
“Equity must be at the heart of providing responsive evaluation,” Komani Lundquist, CEO and co-owner.
On September 23, the entire VIA team participated in a Racial Equity Impact Analysis training through Race Matters Institute. Via evaluation is committed to continuously seeking the latest and greatest knowledge to analyze the impact we make as an organization collectively. This training covered many important topics that will improve the racial equity lens we look through to guide our work.
A few of the training topics included prevalent systematic barriers including,
- equality vs. equity.
- examples of implicit bias in educational institutions.
- diversity & inclusion.
- race vs. racism.
- Fair Housing Equity.
President and co-owner, Jessica Weitzel said, “At VIA, we know that diverse and equity-focused perspectives make us all stronger and more informed. But, as we often say to clients, ‘good intentions are not enough’. The REIA training provided us with tools we can use to ensure our work truly fosters diversity and equity. We are excited to put this training into action!”
Since completing this training, the VIA staff has begun collaborative internal reflections on the areas the company can improve. This spans from the language we use in our job postings, encouraging a broader range of applicants, to reviewing our existing client practices.
