Employee Resource Groups

An affinity group is an institutionally-supported, employee-led voluntary association of employees drawn together by a common identity, common interests, shared characteristics, or life experiences. Affinity groups provide opportunities for people to connect with other people who share aspects of their identity, especially in situations in which aspects of their identity are in the minority or are marginalized. Affinity Groups may also be referred to as “Employee Resource Groups” or “Constituency Groups.”

Employee Resource Groups connect employees and foster inclusive work environments across UC ANR.

UC ANR is home to multiple Affinity Groups and Employee Resource Groups. We highly encourage participation and collaboration with each of these engaging teams.

Ways to Be Involved

Attend events
Promote initiatives/events within your group, division and/or area
Assist with initiative or event planning
Serve on a subcommittee or group initiative
Take a leadership role, e.g., lead a committee, be a Steering Committee member or Co-Chair

Current Affinity Groups & Employee Resource Groups

Latinx & Friends Affinity Group

UC ANR Black and Allied Employees

LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group at UC ANR

People of Color Employee Resource Group at UC ANR

Policies and Procedures

UC ANR Policy and Procedure Manual Section 492, Affinity Groups

Appendix I: Affinity Group Charter Template

Latinx & Friends Affinity Group (LAG)

Purpose statement

Contacts:

Ricardo Vela (rvela@ucanr.edu)

UC ANR Black and Allied Employees

Purpose statement

Esther N Mosase (enmosase@ucanr.edu)

Stephanie Parreira-Zweier (sparreira@ucanr.edu)

LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group at UC ANR

Purpose statement

Contacts:

Katherine E. Soule (kesoule@ucanr.edu)

Rebecca Ozeran, (rkozeran@ucanr.edu)

People of Color Employee Resource Group at UC ANR

Purpose statement

Contacts:

Chair: Hung Kim Doan, UCCE Riverside, hkdoan@ucanr.edu

Co-Chair : Amrita Mukherjee, UCCE San Bernardino, amukherjee@ucanr.edu

Co-Chair: Siavash Taravati, UCCE Riverside, staravati@ucanr.edu

Latinx & Friends Affinity Group

Mission Statement:

The mission of the Latinx and Friends affinity group is to create a safe space for all the Latinx professionals who work at UC ANR. A space where we can showcase our own diversity, break implicit biases, and end stereotypes. A place where we can celebrate Juntos (together) unique places of our country of origin, memories of our ancestors, their legacy, and heritage. This is our stage to showcase and educate our peers about who we are and what makes us unique. Strengthen old friendships and forge new ones.

Purpose:

To foster communication and create space for connection among UC ANR staff and academics.
To provide educational and professional development opportunities for Latinx and their Friends and Allies academic and staff professionals in pursuit of growth in their current role and advancement within UC ANR
To support and promote organizational Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion goals.
i.e. lead and/or be consulted for Hispanic/Latinx History Month acknowledgment and events within UC ANR, contribute to blogs/publications highlighting ANR work with Latinx communities, partner with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Council and other affinity groups to support organizational goals.

Our goals should be aligned with UC ANR Principles of Community

The following principles of community should guide the behavior and interactions of all members of the UC ANR community:

Ensure open communication.
Work together to achieve common goals and mutual understanding.
Value the contribution and worth of all members
Appreciate and celebrate differences and diversity.
Foster a sense of belonging and emotional safety.
Practice mutual respect
Demonstrate ethics and integrity.
Invest in all members.
Recognize that all members are important.

Role

Function

Name & E-mail

Chair

Facilitates meetings, write agendas and leads the group in strategic planning and discussions.

Ricardo Vela

rvela@ucanr.edu

Vice-Chair

Supports the Chair's functions and assumes additional duties in the absence of the Chair.

Miguel Sanchez

migsanchez@ucanr.edu

Membership Lead

Lead functions with an emphasis on Membership, outreach, etc.

Maria Ridoutt-Orozco mridoutt@ucanr.edu

Communication Lead

Communicates with leadership, sends email communication on behalf of the group, and may write or contribute to articles/blogs, newsletters, and social media.

Doralicia Garay

dgaray@ucanr.edu

Lisa Rawleigh

lrawleigh@ucanr.edu

Secretary

Take meeting notes, timekeeper, and maintain records of decisions and action items.

Angela Johnson

anejohnson@ucanr.edu

Treasurer

Research funding opportunities, oversee financial administration, planning of funding spending, etc.

Adela Contreras

acontreras@ucanr.edu

Event Planning Lead

Leads efforts to plan events within UC ANR, solicits outside speakers and professional development opportunities for group members

Arianna Nava

acnava@ucanr.edu

Term

1-year term (up to three terms in a specific role)

Role designation

Self or peer-nomination. Active members will have one vote for each role.

Meetings

The UC ANR Latinx & Friends Affinity Group will meet once per month during work hours for a period of 60 minutes. Additional meetings may occur within subcommittees and with group members who are officers.

Membership

Open to present staff and academics who submit a statement of intent for membership. This statement will include a general expression of why they are interested in joining the UC ANR Latinx & Friends Affinity Group.
Guidelines and community agreements for participation will be developed.

UC ANR Black And Allied Employees (BAE)

Purpose

To foster communication and create space for connection among past and present staff and academics
To provide educational and professional development opportunities for Black staff and academics in pursuit of growth in their current role and advancement within UC ANR
To support and promote organizational Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion goals
- For example, lead and/or be consulted for Black History Month acknowledgement and events within UC ANR, contribute to blogs/publications highlighting ANR work with Black communities, partner with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Council and other affinity groups to support organizational goals.

Officers

To be determined

Positions

Role	Function
Chair	Facilitates meetings, writes agendas, leads group in strategic planning and discussions
Vice-Chair	Supports the functions of the Chair and assumes additional duties in the absence of the Chair.
Vice-chair: Membership Lead	Supports functions of the Chair with an emphasis on Membership
Communication Lead	Communicates with leadership, sends email communication on behalf of the group, may write or contribute to articles/blogs, newsletter, and social media
Secretary	Take meeting notes,timekeeper, maintain records of decisions and action items
Treasurer	Researches funding opportunities, oversees financial administration
Event Planning Lead	Leads efforts to plan events within UC ANR, solicits outside speakers and professional development opportunities for group members

Term

1-year term (up to three terms in a specific role)

Role designation

Self or peer-nomination. Active members will have one vote for each role.

Meetings

The UC ANR Black and Allied Employees will meet once per month during work hours for a period of 60 minutes. Additional meetings may occur within subcommittees and with group members who are officers.

Membership

Open to past and present staff and academics who submit a statement of intent for membership. This statement will include a general expression of why they are interested in joining the UC ANR Black and Allied Employee Affinity Group.
Guidelines and community agreements for participation will be developed.

LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group at UC ANR (LGBTQ+ ERG)

Purpose

To connect and promote relationships among employees with marginalized genders, gender expressions, and sexual orientations.
To provide support, healing, and validation for members who experience discrimination and prejudice due to heteronormativity, cissexism, homophobia, and/or transphobia.
To prioritize perspectives, experiences and voices of LGBTQ+ members.
To foster inclusive work environments within county and state offices, and research and extension centers by mentoring, sharing, learning, and enhancing relationships.
To provide perspective, expertise, and guidance to work collaboratively and share responsibility with ANR Leadership on matters related to equity and inclusion that affect current and future LGBTQ+ employees.

Officers

Contacts (for establishing group):

Katherine E. Soule, UC Cooperative Extension, kesoule@ucanr.edu

Rebecca Ozeran, UC Cooperative Extension, Fresno & Madera Counties, rkozeran@ucanr.edu

Steering Committee (membership to be determined once group is established). Responsibilities will include:

Scheduling meetings
Meeting facilitation
Updating Statement of Purpose
Financial responsibilities (as needed)

Meeting

Meetings will take place during normal work hours. Regular meetings will take place at least quarterly, with possibility of monthly meetings depending on needs determined by the group. Additional ad hoc meetings or social gatherings may also occur during working hours or after working hours.

Membership

Membership is open to any UC ANR employee who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Membership will remain confidential. Allies who do not identify as LGBTQ+ are encouraged to participate in UC ANR division-wide learning opportunities offered by the LGBTQ+ ERG.

People of Color Employee Resource Group at UC ANR (POC ERG)

Purpose

To connect and promote relationships among employees with marginalized racial and ethnic identities including People of Color (POC).
To provide support, healing, and validation for members who experience racism, discrimination and prejudice.
To prioritize perspectives, experiences and voices of POC members.
To foster inclusive work environments within county and state offices, and research and extension centers by sharing, learning, and enhancing relationships.
To provide perspective, expertise, and guidance to work collaboratively and share responsibility with ANR Leadership on matters related to equity and inclusion that affect current and future POC employees.

Officers

Contacts (for establishing group):

Chair: Hung Kim Doan, UCCE Riverside, hkdoan@ucanr.edu

Co-Chair : Amrita Mukherjee, UCCE San Bernardino, amukherjee@ucanr.edu

Co-Chair: Siavash Taravati, UCCE Riverside, staravati@ucanr.edu

Steering Committee/Co-Chairs (to be determined by members once group is established):

Responsibilities to include:

Scheduling meetings
Meeting facilitation
Updating Statement of Purpose/Bylaws
Taking notes (as needed)
Financial responsibilities (as needed)

Meeting

Meetings will take place during normal work hours. Regular meetings will take place at least quarterly, with possibility of monthly meetings depending on needs determined by co-chairs and members. Additional ad hoc meetings or social gatherings may also occur during working hours or after working hours.

Membership

Membership is open to all UC ANR employees. Allies who do not identify as POC are encouraged to respect, listen and prioritize POC voices and experiences, be curious and open minded, learn about issues that are important to the POC community, and help amplify POC concerns.