Advocacy Update, 2024 Annual Conference, Member Spotlight, and More!
DIVESITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, AND JUSTICE
Hello Vocal Virginia! The Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice DEIJ Committee has some exciting announcements and updates.
First, we are changing the committee acronym from DEIJ to JEDI. With our new, powerful acronym, JEDI will begin pioneering change throughout Vocal Virginia and beyond, just as the guardians of order and justice do. Stay tuned as a few fun changes will be released with this name change soon. Now onto updates. For many months, Vocal Virginia’s Executive Director, Heather Orrock and I have been working closely with a consultant to revamp the JEDI committee, our mission statement, and our values. We surveyed Vocal Virginia’s Board of Directors and staff to find the ways in which JEDI can improve, and now we need the opinions of members like you. Keep a look out for a survey in the coming weeks and start thinking of ways you would like JEDI to serve you. The survey will be short and anonymous, and those who participate will have a chance to enter a raffle.
To read more please click here.
VOCAL VIRGINIA ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Vocal Virginia is excited to announce that our annual conference will be held on Tuesday, May 21, 2024 from 9am-3pm. This year’s conference theme is “The Power of Sharing Your Story” and will feature New York Times (NYT) best-selling author, Jenny Lawson. Jenny Lawson, also known as “The Bloggess” is recognized for her humor and candor in sharing her struggles with depression, anxiety, and chronic pain.
2024 GENERAL ASSEMBLY SESSION ADVOCACY
Thank you for your advocacy throughout the 2024 General Assembly session. Because of your commitment to improving the quality of mental health services in Virginia, we made tremendous progress toward system-wide advances for those with lived experience of mental health challenges. Although the regular session of the General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, you can still reach out to Governor Youngkin with your positions on important topics by clicking here.
To read the full Newsletter please click here.
