As the landscape of career development evolves, the Career Services & Employer Alliance (CSEA) has made Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) a cornerstone of its mission—especially evident through impactful initiatives in 2024.
1. Virtual DEI Summit — February 27, 2024
CSEA kicked off the year with a half‑day virtual summit uniting employers and career services professionals. The agenda emphasized:
- Inclusive interviewing: Tools for minimizing bias in both planning and facilitation
- Feedback equality: Ensuring unbiased communications in internship programs and onboarding
- Transparent job postings and pay: Best practices for equitable job descriptions
- Collaborative recruitment: Promoting employer–school partnerships to support underrepresented students
Participants gained actionable strategies for immediate implementation—a signal that DEI at CSEA is more than talk.
2. Ongoing DEI Resources and Community Forums
Beyond single events, CSEA is incorporating DEI into its organizational fabric through:
- DEI Resource Group: A dedicated platform for sharing internal DEI strategies
- Expert speaker series: Regular sessions with industry and inclusion leaders
- Peer-to-peer discussion forums: Ongoing virtual spaces to exchange best practices
DEI is treated as a mindset, not a checkbox—one that permeates training, mentoring, and organizational culture.
3. Empowering Career Pros with Equity-Focused Training
CSEA works to integrate DEI into career development frameworks:
- e-Learning offerings (through Skillsoft and CSEA-partnered courses) include unconscious bias, inclusive communication, and allyship modules
- Featured sessions cover core themes such as bridging diversity gaps, inclusion at work, and cross-cultural leadership
These tools empower career professionals to embed equity into everyday advising.
4. DEI in Action: Union Voices and Leadership Efforts
Grassroots impact is equally compelling:
- Audrey Hadden—Nassau County Clerk Unit President—has actively tackled implicit bias in the workplace. She initiated anti-racism journeys and cultural healing circles, leading peer education and solidarity across identities
- Through leadership committees, CSEA amplifies such stories, showing DEI isn’t just policy—it’s personal, actionable, and representative
What’s Working in Career Development
- Systems approach: DEI woven into processes from job postings to onboarding
- Practical tools: Resources focus on tangible applications—like bias-free interviewing
- Peer collaboration: Experts, recruiters, career staff, and DEI champions meet regularly
- Ongoing learning: Not just events, but continuous access to equity-focused training
- Leadership commitment: DEI ownership from top-down and bottom-up champion voices
Takeaways for Career Services Professionals
- Host DEI-focused convenings: Small virtual events can drive big change
- Create internal DEI affinity groups: Foster peer support and shared learning
- Invest in targeted training: Topics like bias interruption and inclusive language are vital
- Spotlight changemakers: Share stories like Audrey Hadden’s to inspire and normalize action
- Embed DEI in systems: Integrate it into every touchpoint—recruiting, onboarding, mentoring
What’s Ahead
As 2025 approaches, CSEA is doubling down. Plans are underway for more virtual summit series, evolving to explore emerging challenges in DEI. Continued integration of DEI lenses into conference programming, data gathering, and certification credits is expected. There’s also an expansion of member engagement tools, like the DEI Resource Group, to spur collective implementation.
Final Thoughts
CSEA’s 2024 DEI efforts represent a strategic shift from episodic awareness to sustained systemic adoption. Through summits, resources, training, and uplifting stories from members, career development is becoming more inclusive—not someday, but today. CSEA’s model provides a compelling roadmap: combine convenings with communities, training with tools, and leadership with representation. That’s how DEI gets woven into career services—and that’s what’s working.