Word is spreading through the region of the exceptional work NC students are doing in the area of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policymaking.
As part of their capstone project, a group of graduating students in the three-year Business Administration-Human Resources program spent the first half of 2023 helping the Town of Fort Erie create its new EDI policy and develop a work plan to implement it by the end of the year.
It’s the second time in two years that a municipality has reached out to the college to recruit help for drafting such a policy.
“The previous year, a group of students conducted research and drafted a potential policy for the City of Welland,” said School of Business and Management Studies professor Maria Brigantino, who leads the capstone project course. “The HR manager is a previous NC grad and sits on our program advisory board. The Town of Fort Erie was aware of this work and wanted to build on the previous student group’s contributions.”
Brigantino said the City of Thorold has already reached out to the college to have a group work with that municipality next term, too.
The project required the students to provide best practices research for the Town’s EDI advisory committee and help formulate a multi-year work plan that focuses on four key areas: training and learning; a review of current processes; an assessment of physical environments to ensure openness, inclusivity and safety; and community engagement, promotion and awareness.
But before the group could even engage with the Town of Fort Erie, the team had to get familiar with the complexities of EDI, said group member Tiffany Lalonde. Then the group met with Chief Administrative Officer Chris McQueen to get a better understanding of the Town’s vision for the implementation of EDI.
Through this meeting, the group explored several aspects, including innovation, training, awareness and leadership.
“These discussions furnished us with invaluable insights into the Town of Fort Erie’s current developmental stage, processes, structural framework and their envisioned outcomes following the implementation of the EDI plan,” Lalonde said.
Armed with the data and information they had gathered, Lalonde said the group–which also included Anne-Marie Clarke, Brittany Volchert, Yen Nguyen, Jessica Hagar and Hanna Smith–began constructing a comprehensive implementation plan tailored specifically to the Town of Fort Erie.
“Given the novelty of the concept, our research extended beyond conventional boundaries, including interactions with Niagara College and investigations into progressive approaches in locales such as London and Italy,” Lalonde said.
The result was a robust implementation plan that encompassed the formation of a coalition to secure leadership commitment, the definition of SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound) goals, policy revisions to eliminate biases, establishment of clear guidelines for workforce management, and implementation of training programs and workshops.
EDI trailblazing
Though the group ultimately achieved its goal of developing a well-structured and well-informed EDI implementation plan, the project wasn’t without its challenges.
Clarke said one of the most difficult things about putting a plan together was finding best practices to do it.
“As EDI is a more recent topic, many companies have not implemented plans at all, and the ones that have are hesitant to provide the public with feedback on the process and how it went,” Clarke said. “The lack of information available made it challenging.”
“Attempting to create an EDI implementation plan that had little to no public evidence relating to the success of an EDI plan was undoubtedly difficult,” added Volchert. “The project pushed each group member to explore innovative ideas regarding EDI in hopes for success; however, due to the lack of research or evidence relating to EDI implementation plans, creating new ideas and recommendations was challenging.”
As a result, Clarke said she learned something valuable: “The resources you need to help you succeed may not be in the places you suspect them to be.
“As we were creating (the) implementation plan, at first our focus was on researching local municipalities and universities,” she said. “After a lot of frustration from the lack of findings from Canadian organizations, we found a plan from Norfolk County in England, which we were able to use for reference.”
Clarke said the hands-on experience she gained while working on the project prepared her for a career in human resources–especially since she could be called on to do something similar for a future employer.
Nguyen agreed, saying: (It gave us) a chance to realize the gap between what we learned in class and what the reality would call for. For example, we have never learned how to form, write, rewrite and check a policy before. We have never seen an implementation plan, short-term strategic plan nor long-term strategic plan before.”
The experience also gave her a chance to network with real employers and have an achievement to put on a resume, Nguyen said.
Volchert said the project helped improve her technical skills, too.
“(I became) more knowledgeable in the platform that is to be presented to potential clients,” she said. “Understanding any technical issues that could arise in the system that you are presenting will show confidence in the presentation and content.”
And while the group members celebrated the project for the invaluable lessons and insights it provided, McQueen said he was impressed by the team members and the entire Business Administration-Human Resources program.
“On behalf of the Town of Fort Erie, I would like to thank the college’s capstone project group and professor Brigantino for assisting the Town with its top-quality research, best practices review and recommendations for the implementation of our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion policy and workplan,” McQueen said. The quality of this program and the students’ project work was exceptional and such a valuable resource in our community.”
