APTA values diversity. Here is our diversity plan...
Approved October 1, 2003 by the APTA Board
of Directors
(Click
here to download in Adobe PDF format.)
APTA defines diversity as the inclusion of differences
and similarities from all categories of members and covers such areas as disability,
gender, age, ethnicity, and geographic origin, size of transit property or
business member organization, all of which contribute to the fulfillment of
APTA’s mission. When the term diversity is used in this document it includes
but may not be limited to these groups.
PREAMBLE
WHEREAS, it is the goal of the American Public Transportation Association
(APTA) to promote and value diversity as a strength of the industry and the
Association;
WHEREAS, APTA is committed to promoting greater understanding of the importance
of mobility and access in strengthening the overall quality of life in the
diverse communities served by public transportation throughout North America;
WHEREAS, APTA reaffirms its commitment to diversity goals and policies that
result in diversity being encouraged, promoted and celebrated throughout all
levels of the Association during the normal course of the Association’s business
and programs;
WHEREAS, the APTA Board of Directors and Executive Committee shall adopt
policies and programs to reflect, increase, promote, support and sustain the
diversity of the APTA membership in all levels of the organization;
WHEREAS, the responsibility for implementation of these policies and programs
rests with the leadership of the Association and the APTA President;
Now, therefore, be it resolved that the APTA Executive Committee hereby establishes
the Diversity Council and the Diversity Plan.
DIVERSITY COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP
The Diversity Council reports directly to the APTA Chair and APTA Executive
Committee.
Members of the Diversity Council shall include ten (10) Designated positions
and seven (7) Appointee positions, as described below:
Designated
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APTA First Vice Chair
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APTA Vice Chair-Human Resources
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APTA Immediate Past Chair
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Chair, APTA Human Resources Committee
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Chair, APTA Procurement & Materials Management Committee
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Chair, APTA Access Committee
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Chair, APTA Policy and Planning Committee
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Chair, APTA Legislative Committee
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Chair, Business Member Board of Governors (BMBG)
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Chair, Transit Board Members Committee
Appointed
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Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) Representative
(appointed by COMTO)
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Womens Transportation Seminar (WTS) Representative (appointed by WTS)
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Business Member At-Large (appointed by BMBG Chair)
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Leadership APTA Graduate (appointed by Leadership APTA Committee Chair
for 1-year term)
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Disability Community Member (public or private APTA member; appointed
by the Access Committee Chair)
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At Large Position (2-year term)
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At Large Position (3-year term)
The APTA First Vice Chair shall serve as Chair of the Diversity Council.
Designated members shall be limited in term by the very nature of the position
in which they are serving.
Appointed members, unless otherwise noted, shall be appointed by the APTA
Chair. Appointed members shall be limited to one term of three (3) years,
with the exception of one of the At Large positions, which shall be a two
(2) year term, and the Leadership APTA Graduate who shall be chosen annually
from the most recent graduating class.
ROLE OF THE DIVERSITY COUNCIL
The role of the Diversity Council shall be to:
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monitor and evaluate APTA programs and activities to ensure that diversity
policies are supported and implemented throughout the Association;
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monitor the implementation of and progress on the Diversity Plan; evaluate
and recommend changes to the Diversity Plan;
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provide recommendations to the Executive Committee on diversity concerns
or issues raised within APTA or in the transit industry;
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provide support and guidance to the respective committees represented
by the members of the Diversity Council; and
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provide an annual status report on the Diversity Plan to the APTA Board
of Directors at its Annual Meeting.
DIVERSITY PLAN GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Goal #1: To promote diversity as a strength of the industry
and implement diversity policies and programs at all levels of the organization.
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Incorporate diversity issues into conference sessions, training workshops,
webinars, and eLearning resources for members and staff.
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Annually conduct an orientation for new Executive Committee members and
APTA committee chairs on APTA’s Diversity Plan.
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Through APTA’s Workforce Development (WFD) Clearinghouse on the APTA
Website, provide member access to best practices, expert industry contacts,
lessons learned and other resources.
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Through the American Public Transportation Foundation (APTF) Scholarship
Program, encourage young professionals of diverse backgrounds and capabilities
to choose careers in public transportation.
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Continue to include Minority and Women Advancement as a qualitative measure
for scoring nominees for the Public Transportation System Outstanding
Achievement Awards.
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Promote and support programs and activities of industry partners including
Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) and Conference of Minority Transportation
Officials (COMTO) and encourage reciprocal support of APTA’s programs
and activities. (APTA/COMTO/WTS staff hold coordinating meetings on a
periodic basis.)
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Provide to the APTA Board of Directors an annual status report on APTA’s
Diversity Plan including any recommendations on how to improve diversity
policies and programs throughout the organization.
Goal #2. To communicate diversity as a transit industry value in APTA
publications and communications.
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Publish APTA’s Diversity Policy in APTA’s publications to reinforce its
commitment.
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Publish the annual report of the Diversity Plan in Passenger Transport.
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Publish achievements of minority and women leaders in Passenger Transport
and President’s Letter.
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Publish three or more articles per year by the Human Resources Committee
in Passenger Transport. (Member profiles, workforce development
products, best practices.)
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Publish in Passenger Transport two or more articles per year on
procurement and minority and/or women-owned business contracting issues
consistent with APTA’s mainstreaming initiative.
Goal #3. To enhance opportunities for substantive contributions to the
transit industry and participation in APTA leadership roles and activities
by members with diverse backgrounds and capabilities.
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Hold new member orientation sessions at all major conferences in order
to familiarize new members with APTA’s programs, committee structure,
networking and other participation opportunities.
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Achieve APTA’s diversity goal established by the Executive Committee
in 1999 of a minimum of 30% participation of women and minority speakers
at all major conferences; including a minimum of 10% women and 10% minority
participation within the 30% goal.
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The annual Leadership APTA class should include members with diverse
backgrounds and capabilities.
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Achieve APTA’s diversity goal established by the Executive Committee
in 1999 of a minimum of 30% participation in APTA committees by women
and minorities; including a minimum of 10% women and 10% minority participation
within the 30% goal.
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Identify opportunities through APTA’s partnerships with WTS and COMTO
to enhance the development of minority, women and small business owners
for future leadership opportunities within APTA and the industry.
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Identify opportunities through APTA’s partnership with Easter Seal’s
Project ACTION and other organizations representative of the disability
community for increasing involvement of persons with disabilities in APTA's
programs and activities.
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Maintain a resource directory of minority and women general managers,
presidents/CEOs, assistant general managers and vice presidents for use
in identifying potential candidates for career opportunities within the
industry and for leadership opportunities within APTA.
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Identify opportunities for minorities and women among the Transit Board
Members and Business Members to increase their participation within APTA
including leadership opportunities.
Goal #4: To promote the development of transit leaders with a commitment
to diversity.
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To ensure that the APTA leadership displays a commitment to diversity,
require all nominees for office on the Executive Committee and Board of
Directors to articulate and demonstrate his/her commitment to diversity
in the nomination form.
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The APTA Chair should ensure that his/her appointees to the APTA Nominating
Committee reflect the diverse backgrounds of the APTA membership.
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Diversity training should be included in the Leadership APTA curriculum
and other future training programs that may be offered by APTA for the
development of industry leaders.
Goal #5: To promote and recommend diversity policies for APTA staff and
programs.
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APTA’s workforce should reflect an equal or greater percentage of minorities
and women than the workforce data reported in the Washington, D.C. region’s
latest census data.
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Ensure that APTA annually meets a DBE contracting and procurement goal
of 20%.
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Implementation of APTA’s Diversity Plan is considered by the Executive
Committee in its review of the APTA President’s annual performance review.
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APTA satisfies diversity requirements associated with Federal grants.
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APTA staff conducts an annual review of internal procurement processes
relative to DBE and revises internal procedures as needed.
Goal #6: To increase business opportunities in the transit industry for
minority/ women owned businesses including DBE firms.
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Achieve a 10 % increase in the number of minority/women owned businesses including DBE firms exhibiting over the previous Expo . APTA's Expo consultant meets or exceeds its contractual DBE goal of 15% to subcontract with minority/women owned businesses including DBE firms.
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APTA’s Expo consultant meets or exceeds its contractual DBE goal of 15%
to subcontract with minority/women owned businesses including DBE firms.
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Achieve a 10 % net growth of minority and/or women owned businesses including
DBE firms within APTA’s annual net growth in membership.
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Identify DBE firms in APTA’s Catalogue of Member Products and Services.
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Provide networking opportunities for minority/women owned businesses
including DBE firms through activities such as the tri-annual DBE USA!
event, DBE receptions at Annual Meetings and other potential activities
in collaboration with COMTO and WTS.
.
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