Community Outreach Luncheon promotes ethnic diversity Published May 1, 2007 By Sheila Rupp Nucleus Journalist KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, New Mexico -- Team Kirtland is determined to promote diversity in the federal employee workforce, and the Community Outreach Luncheon brought base and community leaders together to continue fulfilling that objective. The luncheon is held semiannually for the base commander to brief community leaders on current base initiatives to promote federal job opportunities. Felipe Jimenez, the executive director of the 377th Air Base Wing, said that congressional leaders, senators, educators and private industry leaders are invited to the luncheon and briefing. Air base wing and tenant unit personnel brief community leaders on what Team Kirtland is doing in order to ensure a diverse workforce and attendees can ask questions about current initiatives. "The purpose of the semiannual Community Outreach Luncheon is to discuss our efforts, challenges and results with community leaders and congressional staffers on enhancing affirmative employment opportunities at Kirtland Air Force Base," Mr. Jimenez said. "The luncheon provided a means of educating the community about our current workforce and what we are doing to improve diversity in the federal employee workforce of Team Kirtland. We have many worthwhile outreach programs at the primary, secondary and collegiate levels, but we want to partner with community groups to make sure those programs reach minorities that are underrepresented in our workforce," said Col. Robert E. Suminsby Jr., 377th Air Base Wing commander. Team Kirtland works very hard to recruit and educate the surrounding communities on federal employment. Personnel here attended a job fair at New Mexico State University last year, brought together 20 local and federal agencies for a one-day job fair hosted at the Science and Technology Park @ University of New Mexico and hosted Youth Leadership Day, where 50 11th-graders took part in a one-day immersion program learning about the mission here. Mr. Jimenez said the Community Outreach Luncheons have been a wing initiative since 1984 and the overall objective is to promote diversity by recruiting locally and helping to improve education to make students more competitive for federal employment. Equal Employment Opportunity Management Directive 715 of 2003 provides policy guidance and standards for establishing and maintaining effective affirmative programs of equal employment opportunity. Because the directive is fairly new, the Community Outreach Luncheon briefing helps to educate the community on the current laws and ensures that hiring practices are free of discrimination. Under the directive, the Department of Defense also has programs in place to collect and analyze data to determine what areas need improvement in terms of diverse hiring. Team Kirtland has several items scheduled for the near future to continue community outreach for education and recruitment to further the successes in achieving diversity in the federal workforce. Team Kirtland will be hosting brown bag lunches for summer hires, career enhancement days, and hosting parents and students from The University of New Mexico to visit and learn about the base mission.