The Arc Community Advocates of Kalamazoo County (The Arc) has been a leader in advocating for and supporting the needs of children, teens, and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), including individuals and their families. Serving individuals and families throughout Kalamazoo and surrounding counties, the agency offers innovative programs and services to foster independence, personal enrichment, and integration into community life.
Inquiries and resumes with cover letter, in PDF format, may be directed in confidence to Board Chair, Dr. AhNee White, at chair@communityadvocates.org. Please put the words, “Arc ED” and your name in the subject line.
At The Arc Community Advocates, we believe that every person deserves the right to a good and equitable life and to live in a community where everyone belongs. Equity, Inclusion and Diversity are at the core of the work that Community Advocates practices every day.
As advocates for those who experience intellectual and developmental disabilities, we stand together with our fellow marginalized communities that face bias and discrimination, including the LGBTQ+ community as well as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, and those for whom these experiences intersect. Although the basis for the bias and discrimination against each of our communities is different, we share in its outcomes – seemingly inescapable cycles of poverty, a lack of access to adequate education and health care, the increased risk of police violence, and a lack of inclusion and equity in society.
While the values of equity, inclusion, and diversity have always been shared among our board and staff, we recognize that there are additional, proactive steps we can take to better stand with other marginalized communities. We will more actively recruit vendors, volunteers, staff, and board members from these communities, with the goal of amplifying the voices of those who experience the intersectionality of disability and other marginalization and supporting one another. We will also take steps to better engage and listen to the experiences of these community members in a genuine way so that we can serve their needs as they express them.
Our work toward improving our diversity and inclusion of BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and other
communities at The Arc Community Advocates will not be accomplished rapidly. We will not be perfect and will likely make missteps along the way, but these are steps that we must take if we are to stand together for a just and equitable world for all.
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