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Diversity

March 13, 2025
1:00 pm EST
Register Here

Greenspace Health, in partnership with Project HEAL, a nonprofit organization in the U.S. focused on equitable treatment access for eating disorders, are co-presenting an educational webinar. This unique session, moderated by Carsen Rhys Beckwith, Program Director at Project HEAL, will bring together a panel of experts in both Measurement-Based Care (MBC) and eating disorder treatment.

Greenspace’s Chief Growth Officer, Jesse Hayman, and Dr. Wendy Oliver Pyatt, Co-founder, CEO and Chief Medical Officer at Within Health and CEO and Co-founder at Galen Hope, will share how MBC fosters meaningful collaboration in eating disorder treatment, supports personalized interventions, and ultimately improves outcomes for people in care.

Don’t miss this opportunity to uncover the impact of MBC in eating disorder treatment, with a focus on driving equity and practical strategies for implementation.

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Photo by Glodi Miessi on Unsplash

The RCPA Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee invites you to join us in a celebration of Black History Month! Black History Month at work is a great opportunity to foster inclusivity, celebrate diversity, and recognize the contributions of Black individuals to history, culture, and society.

This year’s Black History Month Theme is African Americans and Labor.

Here are some ideas as you create a thoughtful and engaging program that educates, inspires, and honors the achievements of the Black community!

  • Sponsor Learning: Offer funded scholarships for team members interested in learning more about Black History. Have applicants submit an event, budget, and rationale for requested events (examples: attend a play, concert, poetry reading, or documentary).
  • Volunteer: Volunteer with Black-led charities or non-profit organizations as a team. Provide paid time off or complete during scheduled work hours if possible.
  • Support Black-owned businesses: Buy lunch from a Black-owned restaurant or purchase items for the office from a Black-owned business. Promote economic empowerment.
  • Donate to anti-racism charities: Choose an anti-racism charity to donate to as a team. Clearly communicate the choice and why.
  • Host a speaker series: Invite a speaker to discuss Black history and culture, or a social justice activist to discuss racial justice. Feature a speaker who can share stories/experiences that center around Black identity and/or how to promote diversity.
  • Host a Black author book club: Create a book club focused on Black authors and their works.
  • Host a film screening: Screen documentaries or movies to learn about Black History.
  • Black History Trivia: Host a Black History trivia event. Help your team learn more about Black history in a fun, exciting way.

The RCPA DE&I Committee would love to know how your organization is celebrating this month! Send you organization’s event summary and photos to Cindi Hobbes.

Photo by René DeAnda on Unsplash

RCPA provided some late updates yesterday on the Federal funding freeze, and late last evening, the National Council for Mental Wellbeing provided members a legal interpretation on the rescinding of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) M-25-13 and the issuance of the new memorandum M-25-14.

The following is from the National Council:

On Wednesday afternoon, the White House Office of Management and Budget issued a new memorandum—M-25-14 — that rescinded the pause to federal funding contemplated in a previous memorandum first issued on Monday night.

The new memorandum, which was directed to “heads of executive departments and agencies,” features a two-sentence statement reading: “OMB Memorandum M-25-13 is rescinded. If you have questions about implementing the President’s Executives Order, please contact your agency General Counsel.”

In the short term, M-25-14 certainly relieves some of the confusion and anxiety that swept across the federal grants world since Monday night. Our previous client alerts have chronicled the chaos that emerged late Monday and throughout the day on Tuesday.

However, in our review, there are still five key Executive Orders issued by the Trump Administration not affected by the rescission of M-25-13. Those EOs include:

While the upheaval following the issuance of M-25-13 may have prompted the Trump Administration to change course and move away from pausing all federal funding, we certainly anticipate that federal grants in the above-listed areas will remain subject to a comprehensive review and new standards. Federal grantees with programs in these specific areas should undertake a detailed review and be prepared for future agency actions.

Federal grantees should continue to keep apprised of the Administration’s actions, orders, and statements relating to federal funding — as the rescinded memorandum likely foretells future clashes as the Administration attempts to exert control over federal spending.

Chuck Ingoglia
President & CEO
Strategic Leadership
National Council for Mental Wellbeing


In addition, ANCOR sent the following information last night:

In what’s turning from a whirlwind couple of days into a whirlwind week, there were notable updates today on the OMB memo on the freeze of certain federal funding issued earlier in the week. 

Today OMB withdrew the memo with a simple rescission statement after a federal judge temporarily blocked the funding freeze for open awards and current spending. The order remains in effect until February 3 when a hearing is scheduled to determine next steps.  

As you may have seen, later in the day, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted to X, “[t]his is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze. It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction. The President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented.” Without further specificity regarding the implicated executive orders, the situation remains fluid with the potential for later memos or other interpretive guidance which the White House maintains is authority held within the executive branch.

In other litigation, U.S. District Judge Jack McConnell made statements in court today indicating that another restraining order may be coming. With the memo rescinded, the Department of Justice Special Counsel argued the case is no longer relevant. However, the judge did not appear persuaded and asked for a draft protective order for response and consideration. 

We’ll continue to keep you posted as we know more and hope to see you Friday (1/31) for our extended Members-Only Weekly Briefing at 12:30 pm ET to provide updates and review all available information together. See login information below:
Join Zoom Meeting: ancor-org.zoom.us/j/… 
Meeting ID: 870 2745 7284 
Passcode: 977618 


In recent communications from the OMB, these actions will not impact programs that provide direct benefits to individuals and are explicitly excluded from the pause and exempted from this review process. In addition to Social Security and Medicare, already explicitly excluded in the guidance, mandatory programs like Medicaid and SNAP will continue without pause.

RCPA will continue to communicate new developments with members as they emerge. If you have any questions, please contact your RCPA Policy Director.

The 2025 Sarah A. Reed Children’s Center Alessi, Levan, Kebles Forum Diversity Summit is June 11, 2025. The summit provides relevant diversity training that improves mental health service delivery and educational services. This free event is for providers and parents alike.

Workshop presenters will present 75-minute interactive workshops using the Teams webinar platform. Presenters will be supported with optional training in the platform prior to the webinar and will have the support of a Sarah Reed staff person acting as a proctor during the session.

Visit the 2024 Diversity Summit Recap to become familiar with the Summit.

Workshop Proposals are due by March 31, 2025, at 5:00 pm EST.

More information is available here.

The 2025 RCPA Annual Conference Striving to Thrive will be held September 9 – 12 at the Hershey Lodge for a statewide audience. The Conference Committee is seeking workshop proposals in every area for possible inclusion, particularly those that assist providers in developing and maintaining high-quality, stable, and effective treatments, services, and agencies in an industry where change is constant. The committee looks for presentations that:

  • Provide guidance on building a culture of a committed workforce, including recruitment and employee development as well as effective remote workforce strategies;
  • Inspire ideas for organizations to be leaders in their field;
  • Highlight new policy, research, and treatment initiatives, such as the use of artificial intelligence and use of technology in service provision;
  • Provide specific skills and information related to individual and organizational leadership development and enhancement;
  • Discuss advanced ethics practices and suicide prevention;
  • Address system changes that affect business practices, including integrated care strategies, value-based purchasing, performance-based contracting, acquisitions and mergers, and alternative payment models; and
  • Discuss organization strategies to adapt to performance-based contracting.

The committee welcomes any proposal that addresses these and other topics essential to rehabilitation, mental health, substance use disorder, children’s health, aging, physical disabilities, and intellectual/developmental disabilities & autism.

Members are encouraged to consider submitting, and we highly encourage you to forward this opportunity to those who are exceptionally good speakers and have state-of-the-art information to share.

The Call for Proposals (featuring a complete listing of focus tracks) and accompanying Guidelines for Developing Educational Objectives detail requirements for submissions. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 14, 2025, at 5:00 pm. Proposals must be submitted electronically on the form provided; confirmation of receipt will be sent. Proposals submitted after the deadline may not be considered.

If the proposal is accepted, individuals must be prepared to present on any day of the conference. Workshops are 90 or 180 minutes in length. At the time of acceptance, presenters will be required to confirm the ability to submit workshop handouts electronically two weeks prior to the conference. Individuals unable to meet this expectation should not submit proposals for consideration.

Individuals are welcome to submit multiple proposals. Notification of inclusion for the conference will be made via email by Friday, May 9, 2025. Questions may be directed to Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator.

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Image by ekavesh from Pixabay

February is just around the corner, so it’s time to start planning your organization’s Black History Month celebrations! Black History Month at work is a great opportunity to foster inclusivity, celebrate diversity, and recognize the contributions of Black individuals to history, culture, and society.

To create a thoughtful and engaging program that educates, inspires, and honors the achievements of the Black community, involve employees in the planning process to ensure that the event feels meaningful and authentic.

Here are some ideas you may wish to include as you celebrate Black History Month at work:

  • Sponsor Learning: Offer funded scholarships for team members interested in learning more about Black History. Have applicants submit an event, budget, and rationale for requested events (examples: attend a play, concert, poetry reading, or documentary).
  • Volunteer: Volunteer with Black-led charities or non-profit organizations as a team. Provide paid time off or complete during scheduled work hours if possible.
  • Support Black-owned businesses: Buy lunch from a Black-owned restaurant or purchase items for the office from a Black-owned business. Promote economic empowerment.
  • Donate to anti-racism charities: Choose an anti-racism charity to donate to as a team. Clearly communicate the choice and why.
  • Host a speaker series: Invite a speaker to discuss Black history and culture, or a social justice activist to discuss racial justice. Feature a speaker who can share stories/experiences that center around Black identity and/or how to promote diversity.
  • Host a Black author book club: Create a book club focused on Black authors and their works.
  • Host a film screening: Screen documentaries or movies to learn about Black History.
  • Black History Trivia: Host a Black History trivia event. Help your team learn more about Black history in a fun, exciting way.

My Body, My Choice: Recognizing and Respecting the Body Autonomy of People With IDD
Thursday, December 5, 2024
2:00 pm ET
Register Here

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) have the right to lead healthy, fulfilling lives within their chosen communities. This includes expressing their sexuality safely and being able to access sexuality education on topics of choice.

Join Relias December 5 at 2:00 pm ET as they explore the importance of recognizing and respecting the body autonomy of people with IDD.

Learning objectives

  • Explore the concepts of body autonomy, ways to support and respect the body, and the significance of supporting the rights of people with disabilities.
  • Develop the skills to create and sustain safe spaces that empower individuals with IDD to openly discuss their bodies.
  • Discover effective strategies to empower individuals with disabilities to advocate for their rights and establish personal boundaries.

Register Here