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On
April 2, on the steps of the Jefferson School, I unveiled my Action Plan for Growing, Recruiting
and Retaining a More Diverse Charlottesville Workforce. In its heyday, the Jefferson School graduated a large
number of African-American students who went on to serve our community as teachers, doctors, lawyers, bankers, civil
servants, business owners, etc. Today, however, the ranks of professionals of color in Charlottesville
have diminished. A
number of prominent community leaders (civil rights leader Eugene Williams, Dr. Rick Turner of the Albemarle-Charlottesville
NAACP, Rudy Beverly of African American Teaching Fellows of Charlottesville/Albemarle, Anne Oliver of Big Brothers Big Sisters,
and the Rev. Nana Ghartey) joined me in calling for new action to promote a more diverse Charlottesville workforce.
The outline of my plan is as follows:
Grow a diverse pool of candidates for skilled employment within our community. We need to
do a better job of educating, recruiting, hiring and training local residents for career-ladder jobs and supporting those
who wish to start and grow viable businesses.
- Continue budgetary support for the African American Teaching Fellows to enroll,
mentor, and help financially sustain at least 10 new African American teachers in our local schools each year and expand similar
programs such as the Charlottesville Police Department Explorers Post or the Health Sciences Academy at CHS.
- Continue expanding the Summer Youth Employment program, which primarily targets low-income/minority youth and gives
them the hands-on experience and "soft skills" training they need to increase their chances of success in the workplace.
With Council support, the program has doubled in size each year since 2006. This year the program expansion will include younger
teens and school-year apprenticeships.
- Increase workforce development and small business development
assistance for local residents, especially those in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
Recruit from a diverse selection of universities, organizations and communities and
establish Charlottesville as a "Community of Choice" for professionals of color, whether they're newly-graduated
or mid-career. - Provide support for City and School Human Resources staff to increase outreach to Historically Black Colleges and
Universities and diversity career fairs at other area colleges and universities.
- Increase outreach
to minority students at UVa, which has the highest African-American graduation rate of any public university in the country,
yet most do not stay in Charlottesville beyond graduation.
- Work with regional partners such
as UVa, Albemarle County, and Chamber of Commerce to develop targeted recruitment and marketing materials (website, brochure,
etc.).
Retain a diverse workforce and ensure equal access
to professional development and promotion opportunities so they can "climb the ranks" once they're employed.
- Expand social networking opportunities to encourage
a stronger sense of community and mutual support among professionals of color, including one-on-one mentoring for newly-arrived
employees (building upon Albemarle's successful mentoring program for minority employees).
- Adopt
and enforce anti-discrimination policies and practices that promote inclusiveness in the workplace.
- Increase
access to affordable homeownership assistance to help families put down roots in our community.
Media Coverage:
"Norris hopes to increase workforce diversity" Cavalier Daily April 6, 2009
"Charlottesville Mayor Unveils Plan for Workplace Diversity" CBS19 April 2, 2009
"Dave Norris presents plan to increase workplace diversity" The
C-ville Weekly April 2, 2009
"Plan Offered For Increased Diversity In Local Workforce" WINA April 2, 2009
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