Unconscious Bias Series

2022 NACo Achievement Award Winner

Chesterfield County, Va., VA

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About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2022

Chesterfield County’s Diversity Advisory Committee (DAC) consists of approximately 13 county employees appointed by county leadership to represent the diverse, talented workforce. Annually, the DAC sponsors regular programming centered around a variety of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) related topics. In 2019, DAC created a series of training events that would revolve around the theme of “Unconscious Bias” in an effort to help identify ways employees may better understand the county’s immensely diverse population. While the original plan was for the series to conclude at the end of 2019, the response to each of the training events and the program in general led the DAC to continue the series on an on-going basis. Topics and programs generated, not only introduced DE&I to the entire workforce, but provided an opportunity to build on previous training events, share more perspectives and serve as a resource for the wide variety of roles employees and departments hold. Previous programming included: • Creating an LGBTQIA+ Inclusive Workplace • Inclusion Starts with Us • Women in Leadership: Balancing the Chaos • Women in the Workplace • Managing Mental Health • Creating a Culture of Allyship in Chesterfield County