March is Women’s History Month. Since 1987, the United States has honored women’s ongoing contributions to history, society, and culture. The 2024 Women’s History Month celebrates women who promote equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts.
This March, join us in honoring the women who make your organization and community a better place!
What is Women’s History Month?
During March 1 – March 31, the United States chooses to remember the accomplishments of women, reflecting on their often-overlooked contributions. Women’s History Month was first celebrated by the Sonoma, California school district in 1978. Since then, Women’s History Month has been established as a national celebration, where organizations and individuals take time to honor the strong women in their communities.
The theme of the 2024 Women’s History Month is “Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.” The 2024 Women’s History Month will recognize women who act to eliminate bias and discrimination from their organizations and communities. These women embrace everyone while seeking freedom and opportunity for all.
How your organization can celebrate 2024 Women’s History Month
During the 2024 Women’s History Month, take time to honor the spectacular women at your association! Here are five ways your organization can improve your equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts:
1. Clarify your stance on equity, diversity, and inclusion
Celebrate Women’s History Month by reflecting on your association’s stance on equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). As you clarify your organization’s EDI efforts, take time to make your position clear to members, stakeholders, and industry peers.
Be sure to share your EDI initiatives on your website, within your online community, and across social media channels. Highlight how your association promotes EDI by sharing videos, member testimonials, photos, and more.
Shout out to AAMC, a medical education association and Nimble AMS customer that highlights EDI initiatives and information on its website. By promoting its EDI efforts, AAMC demonstrates its commitment to social change and advancement.
2. Make your member portal inclusive
Honor the 2024 Women’s History Month theme by ensuring your membership portal is inclusive and accessible for all members. Making your member portal accessible for all individuals is a must today.
To ensure your member portal is inclusive and accessible for all, follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). The WCAG are part of a series of guidelines published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an international standards organization for the internet.
3. Honor equity, diversity, and inclusion at events
Are you hosting any events during Women’s History Month? Be sure to prioritize EDI efforts at your next in-person event! Here’s how:
- Host your event in an inclusive city. Look for a state that embraces anti-discrimination and LGBTQ+-inclusive laws.
- Be sure your event location is easily accessible. Can all your members and attendees navigate the event hall? Ensure the location is ADA accessible.
- Make your event inclusive for attendees. For example, hire an ASL interpreter, use gender neutral bathrooms, and include gender pronouns on nametags.
- Gather attendee feedback. Improve your EDI efforts at your events by gaining valuable insights.
4. Create content that reflects equity, diversity, and inclusion
Advance your own EDI efforts and simultaneously support your members with valuable thought leadership content. As a member-based organization, you best know your member’s needs and are poised to support your member’s EDI initiatives.
As you create content, plan webinars, and organize events, consider what offerings will be most valuable to your members and what also supports your EDI efforts.
Shout out to the Association for Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and Nimble AMS customer for creating EDI content for its members! AFP advances its own EDI initiatives and supports the work of its members with insightful thought leadership content.
5. Ensure your hiring practices match equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts
Promote EDI efforts across your organization by updating your hiring practices. When you extend your EDI initiatives to how you hire, you are more likely to attract like-minded employees, guaranteeing a better fit with your company culture.
Here’s how to match your EDI efforts to your hiring practices:
- Write an inclusive job description. Reconsider the language in your job posts to attract more diverse applicants. For example, the language you use in a job description can discourage applicants with disabilities and other qualified candidates.
- Expand your recruiting reach. If you want to increase your applicant pool, consider posting your position to a diverse job board. You can also enhance your staffing strategy by recruiting employees from historically diverse colleges and universities.
- Reconsider your requirements. Don’t unnecessarily limit your talent pool! Consider hiring applicants with years of relevant experience, rather than a bachelor’s degree.
