Business Volunteers Maryland

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Ideas & Actions

Below you will find a variety of helpful resources related to the series: speaker contact information and recommended readings; examples from attendees to inspire action; and key takeaways from our session.

It is our hope and ask that you use the information below to continue the discussion and take action in your own company.

Session 1: Workforce & Employment

Dr. Seema Iyer,  Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, University of Baltimore;  [email protected]

Joe Jones, Center for Urban Families; [email protected]

Lisa Rusyniak, Goodwill Industries, Inc.;   [email protected]

Erika Bailey, CVS; [email protected]

Dana Ledyard, Catalyte. Catalyte offers immediate access to U.S. based junior tech talent. They can also help you develop your own long term talent pipeline. 

 Key Themes and Takeaways

  •  In the data we saw positive trends in employment pre-pandemic. However much of that growth was seen outside of Baltimore. 
  • Pandemic hit poor, black communities hard. Lack of internet, transportation, exacerbated crisis. 
  • Unemployment numbers during pandemic had not been seen since Great Depression.  Massive closures and trauma to business owners. 
  • Biggest hit felt in entry level lower wage positions. 
  • Government aid helped families pay bills, but ultimately kept labor at home, made it hard to rehire. Issues with lack of childcare, internet, transportation remained.
  • Lessons learned: be ready to be nimble, embrace remote work and technology.  
  • How can businesses support employing and developing skills in the local workforce?

—  Embrace partnerships: Lots of third parties exist to help: Center for Urban Families, Goodwill Industries, Mayors Office of Employment Development, Catalyte.  They are there to help you. Collaborate. Learn from others. 

–-Build pipelines. Think about youth. Think about overaged workers. Think about pipelines to higher paid positions and leadership. 

–Be creative: How can you build nontraditional programs and pipelines to support your effort and help fill gaps.  Consider technology, childcare, and transportation gaps. 

Session 2: Education & Youth

Dr. Seema Iyer,  Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, University of Baltimore;  [email protected]

Karen Webber, Director, Education and Youth Development Program
Open Society Institute – Baltimore;  [email protected]

Peter Kannam, Principal
Henderson-Hopkins School; [email protected]

Tina Hike-Hubbard  Chief of Communications, Engagement, and Enrollment, Baltimore City Public Schools;                                           [email protected]

John McAuliffe, Chief Executive Officer
Sylvan Learning; [email protected]

Damion Cooper, Executive Director, Project Pneuma;   [email protected]

 Key Themes and Takeaways

  •  In the data we saw a notable correlation between education,  lack of transportation,  lack of internet, poverty, and race. 
  • Baltimore and Baltimore schools have steadily lost people and students since 2015.  Areas losing population the fastest have the most number of young students. “Like growing a plant with no fertilizer”.
  • Students transferring schools during the school year is one of most disruptive factors for child success and strongest indicator of school outcomes.
  • While population overall is decreasing, Hispanic populations are growing significantly in certain neighborhoods.
  • ALL HANDS ON DECK. There is no magic solution to improving educational outcomes in City Schools. The problems are vast, the solutions are varied, and there are an infinite number of ways businesses help. Get involved. 
  •  Digital inequity and food insecurity were elevated as critical issues the school system had to tackle when the pandemic hit.  
  • Community Schools are in a great position to support external engagement as they have full time staff members dedicated to community partnerships. 
  • Consider impact: Long term, multi-touch point engagement is much more powerful than a one day volunteer event. Understand school needs and build a long term strategy to support.
  • Support schools that have less resources and less existing partnerships. Spread the love.  
  • If you don’t know where to start, reach out to Tina (email above) and Business Volunteers ([email protected]) who can help you. 

Session 3: Violence Prevention & Safety

Dr. Seema Iyer,  Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, University of Baltimore;  [email protected]

Tara Andrews,  [email protected]

Shantay Jackson, Director, Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, [email protected]

 

Erricka Bridgeford, Executive Director, Baltimore Community Mediation Center, [email protected]

Pickett Harrington, Community Engagement Lead, Seawall Development, [email protected]m

 

Session 4: Transportation & Accessibility

Jamar Brown,  Partner, Rosenberg Martin Greenberg   [email protected]

Dr. Seema Iyer,  Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, University of Baltimore;  [email protected]

Delegate Robbyn Lewis, District 46, Maryland House of Delegates, [email protected] 

Elisabeth Sachs, Director of Government and Strategic Initiatives, Office of the Baltimore County Executive,  [email protected]

Ryan Johnson, Account Executive, Commute with Enterprise,   [email protected]

Martin Schwartz, President, Vehicles for Change,  [email protected] 

RESOURCES 

Session 5: Health & Care

Scott Nolen,  Blue Meridian,   ‘[email protected]’

Dr. Letitia Dzirasa, Commissioner of Health, Baltimore City, [email protected]

Kerri Graves, Executive Director, National Alliance on Mental Illness, Metropolitan Baltimore, [email protected]

Richard Silberstein, Managing Partner, SIG, [email protected]