This survey was designed by the SO Health-E Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Workgroup to hear from local partners what types of equity tools are most needed/wanted in Jackson + Josephine Counties. This information will guide our work in the coming year. The survey was open May 13 - August 11.
Who did we hear from?
We received 42 responses from organizations based in Jackson and Josephine Counties. The largest number of responses came from community based organizations with 20 or more employees serving Jackson County. Respondents' roles included one quarter each of directors (25%) and supervisors (26.6%), and about one third (35%) front line staff. The remaining responses were from board members or volunteers.
Respondents included organizations at every level of equity learning, planning, and implementation. Tools will be needed from the 101 level to resources for evaluation and support for those already deep in equity work. 2 respondents have tools to share, and 7 asked for follow up conversations.
Self reported identity of respondents, and why this matters
In equity work we recognize that each of our individual perspectives are shaped by the identities we hold, and the identities others assign to us based on how we may appear. These differences can include insights we have from lived experience, biases we may hold, and of course the ways our perception of the world around us is shaped by the ways we are treated as a result of systems of oppression such as racism, classism, colorism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, xenophobia, etc. With this in mind, it is important to understand who we are receiving feedback from, and to ask ourselves if there are important perspectives missing in the feedback we are receiving based on who we intend to serve with the equity tools we hope to offer.
Sexuality + Gender Identity:
Gender Identity: The majority of respondents self identified as women/girls (65.1%), with about 1 in 5 identifying as man/boy, just under 5% of respondents are nonbinary people and nearly 1 in 10 declined to answer the question (9.3%). Nearly all (95.2%) of respondents were cisgender, meaning that the gender they were assigned at birth matched their current gender identity, although 4.8% of respondents declined to answer this question.
Sexuality: About 1 in 3 respondents were LGBTQIA2S+, with lots of rich diversity in the ways they descibed their sexual identities, including bisexual (11.1%), queer (4.4%), pansexual (4.4%), gay (4.4%), same gender loving (2.6%), and asexual (2.6%). The remaining 66.7% were straight. (Note: respondents had the option to select more than one response in this category.)
Race, Ethnicity, and Disability
Of those who chose to answer the question, 3 out of 40 people, or 7.5% of respondents said they live with a disability. 2 people declined to answer this question.
About 1 in every 4 respondents (26.18%) self identified as a person of color. Respondents were free to choose more than one race/ethnicity identity.
For reference, the 2021 US Census showed that at least 20.9% of the Jackson County population, and at least 14.4% of the Josephine County population, were people of color.
Emerging Priorities
The topics that received the most interest include how to create targeted strategies to improve outcomes for marginalized communities/individuals, the role of data in equity work, and listening to and acting with community.
Top modes of delivery include in-person workshops and trainings (28 votes) and activity toolkits (24 votes), followed by remote trainings/workshops (21 votes).
Connect with SO Health-E
You can share your feedback on this survey, or inquire about joining the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion work group by emailing us at connect (at) sohealthe.org.