Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1519642
wbjournal.com | April 29, 2024 | Worcester Business Journal 37 D I V E R S I T Y , E Q U I T Y & I N C L U S I O N P O W E R 1 0 0 Valerie Zolezzi-Wyndham DEI Strategist Promoting Good, in Worcester Employees: 6 Residence: Worcester Colleges: Boston College, Boston University Zolezzi-Wyndham gives major Central Massachusetts employers the tools, motivation, and accountability they need to meet the promises they made following the 2020 police murder of George Floyd. She founded Promoting Good as she saw this as an unmet need in her community. e DEI leadership and management consulting organization works with prominent institutions and organizations to empower leaders to create equitable environments promoting respect and inclusivity. Zolezzi-Wyndham has developed a research-backed inclusive leadership coaching program for both senior leaders and DEI consultants alike, with clients including UMass Chan Medical School of Worcester, the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services, and the Acton-Boxborough United Way. Zolezzi- Wyndham is designing an online community forum, Equity Pause, for current and former trainees. e forum aims to foster a safe digital space for people to engage in conversations surrounding accountability and is in a pre-launch stage. Another in-the-works project is the PG Collaborative, a synergetic coworking space and incubator centering the work of people of color. Looking to open in space in downtown Worcester, Zolezzi-Wyndham has found it challenging as she seeks to buy a property instead of renting one, saying it's important for the community to see real estate owned by people of color. She's a co-founder and board member of Casita Cultura Latina, a Worcester cultural collective nonprofit working to highlight and discuss societal issues facing those in the Latino/a/e/x community through cultural and creative events. Zolezzi- Wyndham serves as vice chair of the board of directors of the Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center in Worcester, corporator and grants committee member of the Greater Worcester Community Foundation, and board member of the Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee, based in Quincy. - M.K.M. Jessica Pepple Chief diversity & culture officer RFK Community Alliance, in Lancaster Employees: 535 Residence: Worcester Colleges: Florida State University, Keller Graduate School of Management, Boston University RFK's hire of Pepple into a newly created top leadership position is a model for how to infuse diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into an organizational culture. Pepple joined RFK in 2022 to put her passion for equity into action into the hu- man services sector. Previously working at the King Philip Regional School District in Norfolk, Plainville, and Wrentham in diversity, equity & inclusion, Pepple is the first person to lead those efforts as a member of RFK's executive leadership team. A merger completed in 2022 brought together Dr. Franklin Perkins School and Robert F. Kennedy Children's Action Corps to create the larger, rebranded RFK Community Alliance. With revenue of $46.6 million in fiscal 2022, according to its annual report, it is region's 12th largest nonprofit serving at-risk populations. e organization reaches more than 2,000 people and families who are racially diverse but face various life challenges such as learning differences, neurodiversity, trauma, and behavioral health needs. Pepple's task is to bring a common under- standing of equity to the staff and people served by RFK programs, which include day and residential schools, behavioral health care, adoption services, adult voca- tional and residential services, and community youth programs. Pepple's hire two years ago was highlighted in the 2022 Annual Report as a key milestone for RFK. She has since implemented an organization-wide DEI newslet- ter; led celebrations of important DEI events such as Pride Month, Black History Month, and Juneteenth; established a process for people experiencing marginaliza- tion at work; and advised several school districts on developing policies and proce- dures to minimize dehumanization in school settings. For her work, Pepple was a recipient of the 2023 Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Award from the Massachusetts Association of Developmental Disabilities Providers. - E.M. Marlina Duncan Chief diversity officer and vice chancellor for diversity & inclusion UMass Chan Medical School, in Worcester Employees: 6,729 at UMass Chan; 11 in Duncan's office Residence: Whitinsville Colleges: Westfield State University, University of Massachusetts Amherst Since joining UMass Chan in 2020, Duncan has offered strategic guidance for the university's programs and initiatives, working to support the hiring of faculty and recruitment and retention of graduate students from demographics oen underrepresented in the medical field, in addition to providing training to optimize the equity of the department's climate. With Duncan's influence, UMass Chan added a diversity, equity, and inclusion pillar to the university's IMPACT 2025 strategic plan in 2022, picking 10 of the university's departments to front new action plans. Just one year later in 2023, UMass Chan was named among e Boston Globe's 23 Top Places to Work winners that excel at championing DEI. During Duncan's tenure, the Diversity and Inclusion Office at the only public medical school in Massachusetts has expanded, with a rise in DEI training and professional development and the creation of multiple affinity groups for students and faculty to foster a greater sense of belonging among its most marginalized community members. In September, data from UMass Chan's 2023 Diversity Engagement Survey reported marked improvements in both survey participation and the university community's outlook. e survey received 2,700 responses which accounted for about 50% of those surveyed, as opposed to a 36% response rate from 2020. e results showed 76% expressed confidence they could bring their best and full self to work, and 90% felt their work contributes to the mission of the UMass Chan. Overall, the areas surveyed reflected improvements since 2020 except for the common purpose and vision category, which dropped 1.8 percentage points to 83% favorable, and the sense of belonging category, which dropped by 0.3 percentage points to 76% favorable. - M.K.M. PHOTO | COURTESY OF UMASS CHAN MEDICAL SCHOOL