Building a Village at LeadingAge: Reflections on My DEI Journey
LeadingAge
We represent more than 5,400 aging services providers that support older adults wherever they call home.
By: Adrienne Ruffin
Adrienne Ruffin, a leader at the LeadingAge LTSS Center, reflects on her personal—and professional—journey to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of aging services.
When I arrived at LeadingAge in May 2001 to build a grants and contracts infrastructure for the organization’s new research center, I knew very little about aging services. What I did know was that LeadingAge and its members had a great love for and commitment to older people.
As an African American, that commitment resonated with me.
My family circle always included older people, including older relatives, older neighbors, older church members, and older people living in the broader community. This didn’t seem out of the ordinary to me. In the African American community, the saying, “It takes a village” means that everyone in a community has a role to play—not only to help raise a child but also to provide others in the community with support and encouragement.
Coming from this age-inclusive background, it’s not surprising that I looked forward to interacting with LeadingAge members during my first Annual Meeting in San Diego. But when I arrived at the convention center that year, I was surprised to find few people who looked like me.
The lack of diversity I witnessed in San Diego was new to me, after working for the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), where I ran a $42 million grant program to build critical institutional capacity at 42 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU). It was also awkward and shocking.
I was not prepared for the isolation I felt in that large Annual Meeting crowd. I wondered how I would be able to find a home for myself in a professional community that did not seem to notice that it consisted almost solely of white men and white women. I also wondered how the community from which I came—the community of people who looked like me—had been excluded from this group of people who loved and cared for older people.
Almost 20 years later, I am still at LeadingAge, still happy to be working with researchers at the LeadingAge LTSS Center, and pleased to report that the field of long-term services and supports (LTSS) is slowly becoming more diverse. I am grateful to be playing a part in bringing about that change by leading an initiative to build partnerships and implement strategies to help LeadingAge members create more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplaces.
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It has been, and continues to be, a rewarding task. I’ve had an opportunity to meet “like-minded” members of all races who are concerned about their workplace cultures and their organizations’ lack of diversity. I’ve also had an opportunity to meet other leaders of color who are ready to be part of the movement to help guide and influence LeadingAge’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) journey.
It takes a village!
During 2021, researchers at the LTSS Center conducted a study designed to support LeadingAge’s strategic goal to advance DEI in the LTSS workplace. That research led to the launch of three activities to support and encourage the recruitment and retention of diverse leaders in our field:
On April 8, the LoC Network will host a virtual Spring Event to explore the professional journeys of four senior leaders and to collect feedback from leaders of color about how this networking group can best serve their needs. Register for the event if you would like to join us.
We understand it will take time to see the results of our efforts, but we are excited about the opportunity to continue working with our members and partners to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive LTSS workplace.
It will take a village!