Healing Illinois
Healing Illinois is a racial healing initiative of the Illinois Department of Human Services and the Field Foundation of Illinois. Organizations across the state will be resourced to engage in racial healing activities, to help build bridges between and among the diverse communities in Illinois.
Healing Illinois is focused on building the foundation for long-term racial healing and anti-racism in Illinois. To that end, we partner with organizations large and small to engage in racial healing activities.
As a result of Healing Illinois, we hope to:
- Build knowledge and understanding of racial healing and equity in communities across the state
- Strengthen trust and relationship building among community residents
- Expand opportunities for communities and individuals to begin to heal from the harms caused by racism
- Increase awareness and media engagement focused on racial healing and equity
What We Accomplished
- Marketing: Reached an online audience of over 3500 people through Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Constant contact and email.
- Zoom Sessions: We held over 17 Zoom sessions that reached over 850 participants throughout seven counties in Illinois, Will, Kankakee, Grundy, Kendall, Cook, Dupage and Iroquois. The platform was virtual for accessibility for busy childcare professionals. These sessions include creating a dedicated space for open dialogue.
- Consultant Speakers: Guest speakers came from a multitude of diverse backgrounds. These renowned community leaders and experts offered their perspectives, gave insight, shared experiences and proved powerful and eye opening dialogue. We also hosted speakers like Calvin Lyons, Mike Applegate, Theresa Collins, and Chicago Growth Mindset enriching the discussions.
- Breakout Rooms: Each session utilized breakout rooms for smaller group discussions from a personal and professional level that gave a sense of vulnerability and transparency, allowing participants to dive deeper into each topic.
- Processing Difficult Emotions: Inevitably, discussions unearthed hard truths and healthy anger. We facilitated group processing, equipping participants with tools to navigate these emotions and move forward constructively.
- Training Materials: We purchased resources to continue to expand diversity. These materials, including diversity posters, pictures for classrooms manuals, were shared with partner childcare centers, ensuring ongoing learning.
- Community Outreach: To keep the message alive, we purchased multicultural dolls, wall art, t-shirts, coffee mugs, and coloring books. These resources were distributed to participating staff and schools, serving as constant reminders of our commitment to racial equity. The message we shared through our agency included over 950 childcare centers and neighboring organizations.
- T-Shirts: We createdT-shirts that exemplified community. “Building the community Together One conversation at a time.” “More than Skin Deep. Building Anti-Bias Champions In Childcare”
Building a Sustainable Foundation in Illinois
- Ongoing Education: The acquired training materials will be transformed into a series of workshops, extending the program’s reach and providing ongoing educational opportunities for childcare centers across our network. This ensures a lasting impact beyond the initial program duration.
- Community Collaboration: We are actively building bridges with community partners, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing. This will allow us to co-facilitate discussions on racial equity and amplify our collective impact.
- Integration into Core Services: Anti-bias practices will be woven into the core of CCRR’s programming and services. This ensures that future generations of childcare professionals are equipped with the necessary tools and knowledge to create equitable environments for all children.
- This project strengthened our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Plan.