P.E.E.R.S. Advisory Council Provides Concrete Steps Toward Achieving Hoyleton’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Objectives

The P.E.E.R.S. Advisory Council at Hoyleton Youth and Family Services recently was awarded a grant for $5,500 for the IDHS Healing Illinois Initiative. Funding for this initiative was made possible through the Southern Illinois Community Foundation, in partnership with the Illinois Department of Human Services and the Field Foundation of Illinois. 

P.E.E.R.S. (Promote, Educate, Empower, Redefine and Support) is a council made up of a diverse group of leaders, representing all departments at Hoyleton Youth and Family Services. This advisory council is focused on advocacy and intentional diversity, equity and inclusion objectives in order to create an environment where everyone at Hoyleton can learn from each other by embracing differences.

The Healing Illinois Initiative was designed to support organizations across the state focused on building a foundation for long-term racial healing and anti-racism. The P.E.E.R.S. council members believe building capacity for racial equity takes training and infrastructure, so five council members used a portion of the grant funding to take part in racial equity training through an organization called Race Forward. The training equipped staff members with strategies to address racism as well as techniques to shift the focus about racism from blame, shame, prejudice and guilt to causes, effects, systems and solutions. 

As part of the Race Forward training, P.E.E.R.S. Council members were coached on how to lead and facilitate conversations about racism that could result in productive dialogue and achieve positive outcomes. Upon completion of this training, P.E.E.R.S. members invited Hoyleton staff and community stakeholders to a Town Hall meeting to discuss racial equity and the role everyone plays in advocating for changes that can lead to racial healing.

Attendees of the town hall included professors from local universities, staff from the Regional Office of Education, therapists from Hoyleton and other private agencies, DCFS staff from the Office of Racial Equity, and staff from a local legislator’s office. Everyone in attendance was engaged and passionate about understanding one another’s lived experiences, while also challenging the concept of race in order to take a step towards racial healing sustainability. The town hall discussion centered on shifting thinking from inherent racial differences to identifying and understanding the systems that created the differences for particular groups of people.

“Hoyleton’s town hall allowed for vital conversations about both personal and professional experiences impacting individuals directly or with the clients they serve,” said Dagené Brown, director of the Office of Racial Equity Practice. “Special thanks to Hoyleton for this space as more town hall events addressing race equity at the community level are needed.”

Topics discussed during the 90-minute Town Hall included overrepresentation of black children in the child welfare system, the reporting practices of ethnicity and origin at universities and corporations, and the lack of representation in the mental health field.

One topic that was identified through discussion around the foster care system was the scenario of white foster parents caring for a black child without proper understanding and information about caring for their hair.  Through healthy conversation that acknowledged cultural differences, it was decided that grant dollars would be used to purchase educational resources and products to assist parents who are in this role.

Five Healthy Roots dolls, designed specifically for natural hair styling and care, were purchased, along with a children’s book called If My Hair Could Talk by Dana Marie Miroballi, and hair care products specific to African-American hair needs. Grant funding also allowed the group to retain a stylist — who works with African-American clients — to provide a demonstration video that Hoyleton can share with families who need this assistance.  

The Town Hall event and these educational resources speak to the importance of recognizing cultural differences and the willingness to understand and learn from others in order to achieve racial readiness and healing. The P.E.E.R.S. Advisory Council will host additional collaborative events in the future.