130 employers attend inclusive hiring conference

Nearly 130 area employers attended Grand Valley's first Inclusive Recruitment and Retention Conference, sponsored by the Career Center, Community Service Learning Center and the Division of Inclusion and Equity.

Held July 27 at the Kirkhof Center, goals of the conference were to help employers foster equitable and inclusive work environments. Kristie Scanlon, employer relations coordinator, said employers are increasingly expressing interest in diversifying their candidate pools and learning about inclusive hiring practices and retention strategies.

"Our hope was that employers would come to this conference to learn about equity and inclusion from a systems approach and take a critical look at how their organization is committing to these best practices," Scanlon said. 

Sessions led by Grand Valley staff and community members focused on recruiting and retaining women of color and LGBT employees, employing people with disabilities, and being an ally in the workplace.