Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Dress for Success Austin values women+. We serve and support women from diverse backgrounds, including women from many racial, ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds; women of all ages, religions, education levels, political affiliations, and physical and mental abilities; women that are experiencing homelessness, were formerly incarcerated, are non-English speakers and are members of the LGBTQIA+ community. We meet women where they are, and we want our clients to see themselves represented in every aspect of who we are - staffing, volunteers, board members and partner organizations.
We will continue to work to implement policies that show our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Here’s how:
Our Goals:
Recruit diverse team members for decision-making, leadership and client-facing roles.
Educate staff, volunteers, board members, and community partners on DEI practices.
Support and collaborate with like-minded community organizations and continue speaking up about our commitment to all marginalized communities we serve.
Seek out and provide resources for our marginalized clients.
Create a safe and inclusive environment within our office for all women+.
Recent Steps We’ve Taken:
Hosted DEI trainings for volunteers, staff and board members
2020: In-office training with Allgo
2021: Virtual training with Dr. Alejandra Mielke
Director of Volunteer Engagement earned her DEIP certification
Increased team members of color by 23% since 2020 (includes board members)
Increased new volunteers of color by 10% since 2020
Created easily-accessible community resource sheets for marginalized communities
Allocated $20K in grant funding and partnered with local consignment stores to acquire more size- and gender-inclusive clothing
Added preferred pronouns to all staff email signatures, all volunteer name tags, and all client information forms
Updated volunteer training materials to include a DEI agreement and a section on addressing sensitive topics with clients
Partnered with The Links and Huston-Tillotson University to host a Path to Employment mentoring cohort for students and Links members
Allocated over $5K in grant funding to increasing boutique resources for Women of Color
Participated in “Untangled: A Discovery into Black Hair” training with former client and Black hair expert Lyric Wardlow
Partnering with UT Project Connect to audit client forms and surveys for inclusive language