Diversity, Inclusion and Women of the YMCA of San Francisco
In honor of Women’s Equality Day our Women’s Leadership Network highlights some G.O.A.Ts in our Y family. We asked them a few questions about workforce inclusion, the programs they’ve inspired, as well as what women breaking barriers means to them.
Nicole Yarbrough
On Diversity and Inclusion
The most recent venture of establishing a learning hub for the kids is something I am very proud of. This time has been very challenging for many reasons for BIPOC and our AAPI communities, but especially for the children. It felt great to be able to create a space for the kids to be with other kids, do art, get their bodies moving and be supported in their school work and have some fun too. It was mind-boggling to be seeing kindergartners begin their schooling experience via the internet. Kindergarten is supposed to be so fun and exciting and we tried to create an environment the kids wanted to come to every day and we were successful in doing that without a doubt. The Bayview is a naturally culturally diverse area of the city but also very isolated and that plays a huge part in equity. Without the same resources to be successful in school as other parts of SF, it is quite a challenge to ensure the children will be engaged in their classes and we saw that over 50% of the children in D10 were not logging on to their school site. In establishing the hub and enrolling students, it was important to be engaged with their teachers as well to create a support system for their success in school. The children of Bayview need the most support due to the various challenges that face low-income BIPOC and AAPI in SF and creating a safe and nurturing but also peaceful environment played a big part in the individual success of the kids.
On Opening Doors
I try to express and model that self-care is very important. During the Be Well at Work program before COVID and I like to think it was helpful for people to get tips and tools for self-care. Along with my colleagues, we offered 20-minute massages and a few yoga classes for staff only, along with monthly emails with videos to help facilitate some time to take away from work, at work, for a few minutes of quiet and stillness. There is a lot of work to be done and when you are passionate about something, you can get lost in it and get burnt out. Incorporating a few minutes of mindfulness in our days can rejuvenate us to continue with our missions. I work alongside tireless people that continue to better the Bayview community with their personal commitments to bettering themselves in the process. I recognize and appreciate that I bring something unique because my energy is warm, calm and inviting and I try to allow that energy to lead me in my work and interactions, which I recognize as a gift in an environment that has some real challenges for its residents.
My previous role in the African American Holistic Wellness Department gave me the knowledge to create a YMCA newsletter and that has become an important part of my work. Our newsletter in Huntersview is called The Hunters Viewpoint and it goes out in hard and soft copy to residents, partners and colleagues each month highlighting events and offerings in HV but also within Bayview and SF. So much has happened in the last 18 months and it was a place to communicate latest health orders, resources, offerings from partners and much more. Our RAC in the Alice Griffith community has created The Alice Griffith Insider, which has been cool to see come to life through Yolanda Gutierrez’s good work there.
On Women’s Equality
I am especially inspired that Black women are the largest group of entrepreneurs.
In the United States, an astounding 17% of Black women are in the process of starting or running new businesses. That’s compared to just 10% of white women, and 15% of white men. I also think it says a lot about the hiring practices and availability of jobs paying a living wage in this nation. Black women are the 2nd lowest paid demographic and our Latina population is the lowest and I feel that it is important to provide opportunities to develop skills to expand our capacity of self-sufficiency. The role of women in this society has been drastically underestimated and undervalued and because of that conditioning, we have recently begun to break free from, the world is changing and it’s inspiring. In relation to this year’s theme of our voting rights, I continue to be hopeful watching all the women being elected into very important positions around the country and the world. There is an evolutionary transformation happening in the hearts and minds of everyone. It was powerful to see Kamala Harris be elected, it’s been amazing watching Jacinda Ardern handle this pandemic in New Zealand and it’s been life changing watching people of all different shapes and sizes and genders begin to grace us with their presence in fashion, music, media etc. Specifically WOC give me so much hope daily with our unlimited resilience and strength, our innovation and compassion, our love and care for all people is genuine and is changing the world. We have always had to be rebels to big and small degrees and it’s our time to turn the tables on this white supremacist patriarchy and I am happy to know many women unlearning, transforming and relearning and then inviting others to do the same.
On Inspiration
I am inspired by the community and my colleagues every day. Everyone who works for the Y wants to work for the Y and it shows. Keeping people informed, helping them put food on the table, expanding their knowledge and skills, helping them with various resources and contributing to their success in small and big ways, while trying to build community through fun and learning experiences, is truly meaningful work. I came to the Bayview from Pacifica and I lived quite sheltered from culture and people that looked like me and coming to Bayview has been one of the most welcoming experiences I think I have had in a workplace and it changed my life and opened my eyes to what social justice and equity really means and how unfair this American system has always been to everyone who is not white. I think the Y has such an important role in demonstrating what it looks like to be an antiracist organization due to the very nature of its inherent diversity and its connection to so many different types of communities.
The Women’s Leadership Network DUO
Marcela Hunter
On Diversity and Equality
I have worked and participated in multiple ERG’s, I currently serve as the Women’s ERG Committee Chair. Our work is supporting employees who identify with any of the ERG groups in their professional and personal advancement. Also as a Youth Development Director inclusion is always a priority in my programs. I have worked to ensure that youth from marginalized communities have access to YMCA offerings. We work to market in different languages and support financial needs. Youth and our communities rode their first rollercoaster and had their first overnight from home with a commitment to fundraising and intentional allocation of funds. (External programs)
On Opening Doors
Often we have hiring bias when recruiting and especially when promoting. I have always been transparent with our hiring process and developed staff into their next promotion. I have shifted the way in which we interview, the questions we ask and how we “see” experience. Helping both hiring managers as well as candidates understand the actual needs of a role and be able to apply equitable practices when recruiting and selecting candidates.
On Women’s Equality
The national YMCA hired their first Women CEO, Scotland being the first country to allow access and free menstrual products, first woman and of color vice president. There was a lot to celebrate and I am often with my biological sisters and other women of color celebrating while also acknowledging there is so much work and change to come. I am always proud and feel inspired by the fight and perseverance of women.
On Inspiration
There can’t be change without change….I have to change and grow if I want to see real change for those who look like me and women everywhere. There has to be a level of accountability and amplifying of voices to ensure diversity, inclusivity and diversity. The Y has a history of exclusivity and white supremacy culture. There won’t be change, if we are not all committed to making a difference and disrupting the status quo
Maybelle Miranda
On Diversity and Equity
How to Facilitate Racially Just Spaces:
I’m answering this as a non-Y program, since this indicated an “external program”. I recently participated in a 4 month long program with other facilitators across the country in “How to Facilitate Racially Just Spaces”. We learned the theory behind how all of us become racialized in our development, practiced how to identify & respond to our somatic responses when discussing DEI topics, and learned how to navigate intense and difficult conversations. A portion of our class cohort have remained a community of support for one another in our disparate worlds spread across the country. This has allowed for me to have a community outside of the Y, which allows me to feel connected to a larger body of people all working toward dismantling White Supremacy Culture.
I bring all things I learn in spaces I’m in – whether that’s my role in the Child & Youth Development team, the Youth Development POD, a DIG member, or as a Committee Chair of Women’s Leadership Network.
On Opening Doors
STEAM Scholars: For the past 3 years, I’ve been working on a STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts and Math) Pilot that has followed the central adage that our young people “Can’t be what they can’t see”. I remember when I was teaching middle school students in Oakland, and I had a bright & engaged student who literally said to me, “I’m not interested in this. look at all those people (when showing them a picture of NASA astronauts) they don’t look like me”. Hearing that is something I’ve been motivated by for the past 8-ish years.
I knew that a lot of our young people in our youth programs probably felt like that middle schooler — which is disheartening, because i believe the skills needed in STEM are NATURALLY seen in all kids. ie, curiosity and creativity.
The STEAM Scholars program was unique in that the staff development was central to the programming. It’s a program that identifies & elevates Program Leader staff into STEAM Specialists. They participate in a Professional Learning Community, where the cohort of staff all slowly learn to realize that STEM skills is about cultivating a curiosity and creativity through modeling a growth mindset. I believe that if our staff have confidence in their abilities to facilitate STEAM activities, which many program leaders are intimidated from, then that confidence & ability to see themselves as a “STEAM Person” will transfer on to our young people. Prior to COVID, our results from this pilot were very promising. Not only were we seeing a retention of staff year over year & an increase in their confidence to teach STEAM, we also saw academic and core youth development outcomes increased when we compared students who were in the STEAM Scholars program to those who were in the same after school program but not in STEAM Scholars.
Internally, we’re trying to now mimic this staff development model into many of our staffing for internal enrichment offerings.
Personally, I’m proud because I know there’s a cohort of 30+ adults who know to stop saying “I’m bad at math”. I think that’s one of the worst phrases we can say in front of one another, especially young people. LOL.
On Women’s Equality
Olympics – specifically, Hidilyn Diaz winning the Philippines’ first gold being won by a woman:
Growing up in the Philippines, I know that the current culture is unfortunately deeply entrenched in a colonized and patriarchal mentality. The current president makes misogynistic remarks regularly (similar to a recent past US president). I love that the Olympians representing the Philippines this past year all excelled in a-typical events for their genders. ie, Hidilyn winning gold in weightlifting, Nesthy Petecio winning silver in boxing, Margielyn Didal on the international stage for Skateboarding, and Carlos Yulo qualifying for Olympic finals in Men’s gymnastics. It made me feel hopeful that gendered identities and the conversations surrounding them have not only begun, but will continue to be spoken about. I hope that these stories become less and less a-typical and more and more about stories on equality and equity. It’s a LONG ROAD, but watching the Philippines this past Olympics makes me feel like a giant step was taken.
On Inspiration
DIG/ERG Space & one-on-one connections with staff at all levels: A colleague, Cecille Basila, chatted with me about the idea of “critical mass”; and I think that has allowed me to continue to be inspired, even through frustrations. I remind myself that culture shifts are slow.
When I engage with our DIG/ERG spaces and connect with staff one-on-one, it seems as if the majority of us are seeking the same growth and vision for the Y – even if we’re all at different levels of this journey. The idea is there, and the more we practice and model it with one another, then the more that idea will influence our culture. Since my past work in Bioethics, I’ve been motivated by the idea that “We are what we repeatedly do – excellence, then, is a habit and not an act.” (a short summary of an idea by Aristotle).
The more I see in the day-to-day interactions with one another that we are living up to our vision/ideals, then the more inspired I am that we’re moving toward making anti-racism/DEI work into a habit and not just an act.
Kari Lee
On Diversity and Inclusion
My last 20 years at the Chinatown Y has been full of proud moments, it took us ten years to build our community programs from the ground up. We started by inviting families to monthly meals and over time began to design and build family and senior programs that directly addressed the needs of mono-lingual immigrant community. We listen and learn from the community and then we search an advocate for funding to serve their needs. I’m the most proud of this process, we stuck to our beliefs and today we provide translation support, ESL, family support, case management, tutoring and youth enrichment and a community living room and kitchen for our community to connect and build their own agency towards health and well-being.
On Opening Doors
Within Y-SF I strive to model a leader who is always in service to the staff and especially to staff who are under-represented or do not have a voice. I don’t have a program or process that I feel like I created, I just try to play my part, be a mentor, be a member of DIG, be a advocate, be a facilitator for conversations around youth development, diversity, equity, and be person… a woman, a person of color, a lesbian, a parent, a grandchild of immigrants, a servant leader.
On Women’s Equality
The recent election of Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States, gave me a glimmer of hope and pride. As a women and as part AAPI, she is inspirational. I was with my partner that night, we ordered Indian food to celebrate, and we considered if she will be our next President.
On Inspiration
I take all of my inspiration from the people I work with at my branch and in the Y community broadly as well as from my community friends and partners. I try to learn something from them every day, and this keeps me working for a better Y and and better community.
Erin Clark
On Diversity and Inclusion
I came up in the after school world and have seen that work grow into a multi-disciplinary field rife with opportunities to serve youth and families in rich and diverse way. I am really proud to have contributed to the movement to merge fee-based and grant based after school programs because it allowed us to stop segregating students based on socio-economic status, maximize resources and serve more students.
On Opening Doors
We developed a program called, Mentoring for Executive Preparedness that we designed to prepare those staff who have executive ambitions to get on that path. It’s a powerful program because it reduces the chasm that can sometimes exist between the diverse fields we operate in– the goal of the program is to prepare individuals for any executive job, regardless of background so that folks aren’t pigeon-holed into a certain type of work just because it’s what they’ve done in the past. It also makes real the belief that all the work we do is “Y-work” and that leadership in one area is applicable to leadership in another.
On Women’s Equality
I felt heartened by two recent leadership changes at the Y. Patricia Pelton became the first female President of the World YMCA in 2018 and then just this month that we learned that the YMCA of the USA will be lead by a woman CEO for the first time. I choose the word heartened to describe my feelings carefully. I will never forget attending the 2016 YMCA General Assembly where celebrated the latest inductees to the YMCA hall of fame. Not a single woman was inducted among the dozens of men. I was reminded by my wise colleague, Kathy Cheng that women hadn’t been allowed to work for the YMCA long enough to meet the criteria. Looking around at the sea of attendees, at least 60% of which were women, was both heartbreaking and uplifting. It’s at once disappointing that it’s taken this long and yet still affirming that we are headed in the right direction.
On Inspiration
First and foremost, the work we do. The most significant passion of my life has been leveling the playing field to create more justice in our society. I believe that our work is justice work at it’s core with a great many other important benefits. A close second though is all the people who work here. I believe that the people make the place and I am awestruck daily by the passion, brilliance, and dedication of our staff.
