Black Portfolio Overview
The purpose of the Black Employment Portfolio at NIH is to identify and eliminate barriers that exist in the outreach, recruitment, and employment of Black/African American employees, and to build an inclusive workplace where employees can actively utilize their talents and contribute to the success of the NIH.
EDI strives to advance diversity and inclusion at the NIH and ensure that the civil rights of all employees are protected. The Black Employment Portfolio at NIH is directed at ensuring that this constituency remains a successful part of a broader diversity and inclusion strategy for the NIH. This Portfolio is federally mandated, its authority grounded in Presidential Executive Orders dating back to 1969.
The goal of this portfolio is to enhance the outreach, recruitment, retention, and advancement for members of the Black community at the NIH. This program exists to inform and make recommendations at all levels of Agency leadership so that inclusive behavior and a diversified environment are a reality and not merely a philosophy for our constituency. We are fully committed to equal employment opportunity, a workplace free of discrimination and harassment, and a leadership that supports inclusivity so that the ideas and perspectives of our constituency are valued and leveraged for the benefit of the NIH.
EDI works in partnership with the Office of Human Resources (OHR), the Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity (COSWD), and NIH leadership to support the Black Employment Portfolio. Together, we develop collaborations to advance the representation of our Black employees in all occupations of the NIH workforce and to support this constituency in achieving their fullest potential. EDI also works to create partnerships with NIH Institutes and Centers, resource groups, and other programs within the NIH community that foster an inclusive environment and ensures career progression of our employees. We are advocates of strategies that result in better outreach and recruitment efforts to increase the representation of Black employees in NIH occupations. In addition, we stress to our NIH leaders the importance of owning the establishment of inclusive workplaces that support, encourage, and help Black employees achieve their career goals.
At NIH, we understand that our responsibility to diverse groups extends well beyond federal mandates. We define diversity broadly to include all elements of our human identities and encompass every aspect of difference. Within EDI, we are interested in leveraging the ideas of each NIH employee to fuel innovation and drive health discovery. The Black/African American constituency is a critical piece of our overall diversity strategy.
