Making Diversity a Way of Life

Planned Parenthood affiliates have also demonstrated their commitment to diversity through programs that serve a wide range of communities and constituents. Planned Parenthood Centers of West Michigan (PPCWM) is no exception. At the Planned Parenthood Annual Conference in March 2006, PPFA Affiliate Excellence Awards were bestowed for outstanding achievements by Planned Parenthood affiliates across the country. This year, PPCWM was honored with the Albert Soto Award for excellence in diversity.

PPCWM has been working to make diversity and cultural/linguistic competence a way of life. Not only has this affiliate "talked the talk" by establishing diversity as a major priority in all aspects of its organization, but it has also "walked the walk" by developing and implementing PPCWM's Managing Diversity Plan 2003-6. This strategic document includes a comprehensive statement of belief, which states the organizational diversity goals and delineates a specific organizational and individual commitment that ensures diversity is incorporated into the daily activity of its board, staff, and volunteers.

PPCWM has developed peer education programs that serve several diverse communities, including Native Americans, Spanish-speaking parents and youth, the LGBTQ community, African Americans, and boys and girls at the fifth-grade level. It has also developed special programs and materials for senior citizens, college students, and incarcerated women.

PPCWM has established community coalitions with activities that include charter membership in the Prostitution Roundtable, leadership and training in cultural sensitivity for the communitywide Healthier Communities initiative, collaborative education programs for Spanish-speaking people through Traveling Grannies, and the development of special peer education curricula that embrace Native American traditions and stories.

PPCWM has also developed a Board Diversity Committee to focus specifically on the issue of diversity at the board level and conducted mandatory diversity trainings for staff.

"All of us at Planned Parenthood Centers of West Michigan are extremely honored to have PPFA recognize our commitment to diversity," says President/CEO Kathy Humphrey. "Our program has been an enlightening process for staff and volunteers as we learn to celebrate how our differences enrich and strengthen each of us as individuals, our organization, and the communities we serve."