Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Statement

Though PrimeLife Arts Learning (PAL) is geared toward adults 55+, all are welcome to participate in PAL classes. We aim to create welcoming spaces and cultivate a sense of belonging and community with equitable treatment for all.

We are committed to ensuring that PAL employees, class participants, board members, and partners feel valued and respected. We aim to consistently foster an environment where everyone can bring their full selves and feel welcomed. We seek to engage people from a broad spectrum of backgrounds and identities. We are sensitive to lived experiences and perspectives. We honor everyone’s  age, ethnicity, national origin, education, color, disability, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, and all additional characteristics that make them unique.

We also acknowledge that because of their intersectional nature, identity, systemic racism, and other forms of oppression continue to have pervasive effects that result in unearned opportunities and barriers. We respect and value diverse life experiences and heritages and will work to welcome, listen to, and value everyone with whom we work and create. We’re committed to modeling equity^*, diversity^{^}, and inclusion⁺ for the arts and Creative Aging. 

This statement is only a starting point. PAL is committed to incorporating EDI into all aspects of the work we do, and reporting our progress with transparency. To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, PAL strives to: 

• See equity, diversity, and inclusion as connected to our mission and critical to ensure the well-being of our staff, teaching artists, and the communities we serve. 
• Acknowledge and dismantle any inequities within our policies, systems, and classes, and continually update and report organization progress. 
• Take time at all levels of the organization to think about how systemic inequities impact our organization’s work, and how best to address that in a way that is consistent with our mission.
• Improve accessibility for our community to ensure we provide equitable access to all. 
• Practice and encourage transparent communication in all interactions.
• Commit time and resources to expand diversity within our organization and participants.
• Interact with respect and humility. We expect all employees, board members, partners, and participants to embrace this notion and to embody it in all interactions.

PAL abides by the following action items to help promote equity, diversity, and inclusion in our workplace: 

• Pursue cultural competency throughout our organization by creating substantive learning opportunities and formal, transparent policies.
• Generate and aggregate quantitative and qualitative research related to equity to make incremental, measurable progress toward the visibility of our diversity, inclusion, and equity efforts. Once the content is curated it will be added to our website so others can access it.
• When developing partnerships, seek out organizations focused on learning, health and well-being of older adults, and Teaching Artistry with a demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion.
• Provide EDI information and resources internally, and to class participants.
• Develop systems for being conscious of bias during the hiring, promoting, and evaluating process. 
• Be more intentional about incorporating equitable practices with staff, such as including salary ranges with all public job descriptions. 
• Advocate for public and private-sector policy that promotes equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Challenge systems and policies that create inequity, oppression, and disparity.

PAL’s EDI initiatives are applicable to—but not limited to—our practices and policies on recruitment and selection; compensation and benefits; professional development and training; promotions; transfers; social and recreational programs; layoffs; terminations; and the ongoing development of a work environment built on the premise of gender and diversity equity that encourages and enforces contributions to the communities we serve to promote a greater understanding and respect for the diversity.

All PAL employees have a responsibility to treat others with dignity and respect at all times. All employees are expected to exhibit conduct that reflects inclusion during work, at work functions on or off the work site, and at all other company-sponsored and participative events. Any employee found to have exhibited any inappropriate conduct or behavior against others may be subject to disciplinary action.

Definitions

*Equity

• because of systemic racism and other forms of oppression, everyone doesn’t start from the same place – unearned privileges have traditionally given members of dominant groups advantages, while marginalized groups are faced with barriers
• acknowledging advantages and barriers, and then working to bring balance and opportunity for everyone
• how we ensure everyone has access to the same opportunities 

^Diversity

• the presence of difference within a given setting and may refer to any type of difference including age, race, gender identity, cultural heritage, sexual orientation, ability, etc.
• one person is not diverse; one person can bring diversity to a group of people

⁺Inclusion

• all individuals feel welcomed, heard, and valued in any setting, no matter how they identify in regards to age, race, gender identity, cultural heritage, sexual orientation, ability, etc.
• inclusion isn’t a consequence of diversity – a group can be diverse and still not be inclusive