Can you hear my voice?

Dr. Kenneth Clarke, Sr.

Director, Tompkins County Office of Human Rights

"Human Rights and Social Justice"

Dr. Clarke will focus his talk on human rights struggles and social justice. He will work to frame certain issues in the context of human rights; issues such as employment, housing, voting and other rights for people from any walk of life, socioeconomic reality, political persuasion, ethnicity, or any other characteristic. Information on county-wide programs that are in place to increase awareness of human rights, social justice matters and civic engagement and responsibility will be shared. Ultimately, the goal is for people to be able to “tell their stories and be heard.”

Biography

His expertise is in the areas of diversity, inclusion, equity, social justice, advocacy and human rights. Ken is charged with developing and facilitating relevant educational programming for Tompkins County residents and is involved in community affairs, building partnerships with key stakeholders. He consults with individuals on matters of injustice and provides support regarding human rights complaints.

An ordained minister, Ken also is experienced in addressing religious diversity, religious freedom, interfaith and ecumenical engagement. He is a skilled preacher, public speaker, and educator. From 2001 to 2017, Ken was Director of Cornell United Religious Work at Cornell University. He also served as Assistant Director and Director of the Center for Ethics and Religious Affairs at Penn State University from 1990-2001.

While at Penn State, Ken was also an Instructor in African/African American Studies and co-pastor of the Albright Bethune United Methodist Church in State College. Earlier, Ken was employed at Third Baptist Church of San Francisco from 1987-1990, working initially with the church’s Ethiopian Refugee Resettlement Project and later as Assistant Pastor/Administrator.

A native of Baltimore, MD, Ken earned a B.A. in English from Morgan State University, a Master of Divinity degree from Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School, and the Doctor of Ministry from United Theological Seminary (Dayton, OH). Ken is married with two adult children and one grandchild.

Timothy McNutt, Esq.

Director, Criminal Justice and Employment Initiative

"Integrating Justice-Impacted Individuals Into Our Workforce"

The U.S. faces a labor shortage, and employers are looking to expand DE&I efforts. However, current hiring methods exclude nearly 70 million Americans with a conviction history. Ninety percent of private employers use criminal background checks, but less than half engage in individualized assessment to determine whether a criminal record should disqualify a candidate. People with criminal records are often denied employment because of discrimination, and face added disadvantages related to employment history, education, skills, and career capital gaps. Employers and jobseekers need new tools to replace decades-old hiring heuristics that are inefficient and inequitable. Timothy will discuss policies to help integrate job seekers with criminal records into the workforce and present the Yang-Tan Workability Incubator’s Restorative Record, a new tool to help employers and job seekers look beyond traditional résumés, cover letters, and background reports that narrow talent pools.

Biography

As director of Cornell ILR’s Criminal Justice and Employment Initiative (CJEI) at the Center for Applied Research on Work, Timothy McNutt uses his extensive background in criminal law, litigation, and policy to assist people with criminal records in reducing barriers to re-entry and improving employment outcomes. CJEI provides criminal records and employment law training to job seekers who have been involved in the criminal legal system, assists employers in rethinking their approach to hiring, engages in research to study reentry practices, and influences policy makers and legislators on criminal justice reform.

His work focuses on the use of background checks as a screening device for employment, the impact of employment on reducing recidivism, employer attitudes toward hiring justice-impacted individuals, and the collateral consequences of incarceration. Timothy is a former prosecutor with over eight years of experience, most recently with the New York State Attorney General’s Office.

Erin Sember-Chase, MA

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Learning Consultant

"Creating a Welcoming Workspace for Individuals with Disabilities"

Erin will focus on sharing best practices to overcoming biases related to individuals who identify as having disabilities, chronic health conditions, or are neurodivergent. These individuals continue to battle inaccessible and unaccommodating schools, workplaces, public places, systems, policies, businesses, services, and worse of all, people and attitudes. Creating a welcoming workspace that embraces individuals with disabilities as viable, contributing members of our community is her goal.

Biography

Erin Sember-Chase, MA, is a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Learning Consultant at Cornell University’s Department of Inclusion and Belonging.

With over 25 years professional, and a lifetime of personal, disability experiences to draw from, she examines disability access and inclusion in all areas of life with a social justice lens. Her professional roles have included working in University student disability services, assisting on federally funded disability and employment grant projects, serving in a variety of DEI leadership and collaborative roles on and off campus including co-chairing the Cornell University Disability Employee Resource Group for over 12 years, and co-designing and teaching the Introduction to Disability Studies course at Cornell.

She has designed and facilitated numerous workshops, presentations, and lectures at the campus, local, and national levels, for a variety of audiences including educators, local government entities, college students, service providers, businesses, nonprofits, and employers, and has actively engaged and consulted on many diversity, inclusion, and disability efforts at Cornell and within the Ithaca community.

Debra Howell, MILR

Director of IT Operations, Cornell Library

"The Value of Veterans In the Workplace"

Military veterans are a rich talent pool for employers. However, there is a lot of misinformation about the value that veterans bring to the workplace. This session will focus on the stigmas that veterans face when it comes to employment, but also the many benefits of engaging them in the workplace. Debra will also present some best practices for supporting veterans in the workplace, including assisting us in evaluating how Veteran-friendly our organizations are.

Biography

Debra Howell, MILR is the Chair of the Cornell Veterans Colleague Network Group. She served in the U.S. Army Reserve as a medic from 1993—2001 and is a proud mom of a retiredU.S. Army Ranger. She is an Office of the Secretary of Defense certified Master Trainer and an Army Reserve Master Resiliency Trainer. Debra is committed to representing and advocating for our veteran’s community. She is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and serves as the Vice President of the Ithaca Branch for the Rochester Project Management Institute Chapter.

At Cornell, she is the Director of Information Technology Operations for the University Library and has an extensive background in facilitation, organizational change, teambuilding, and leadership. With over 20 years of experience providing strategic direction to all areas of information technology, she is a creative, dynamic information technology professional who thrives leading and facilitating complex workplace and technology processes, developing talent from within, and collaborating with others to build the most effective computing environment. Debra received her Master of Industrial and Labor Relations degree from Cornell University.