Goodbye: Q&A with Sherrie Jackson
Salma Preppernau
It is with a mix of gratitude and sadness that Confluence Environmental Center announces the departure of Sherrie Jackson as our Operations Coordinator. Sherrie played a pivotal role in founding Confluence Environmental Center and developing the AmeriCorps Program and she will be greatly missed by our staff, our board, our members and our partners. We want to thank her for her 8 years of service with Confluence and for her 25 years of service and dedication to the AmeriCorps Program (holy moly!) Some of her accomplishments with Confluence include:
Transitioning NW Service Academy into Confluence Environmental Center
Recruiting and supporting over 175 Confluence AmeriCorps Members
Provided training for over 25 project supervisors annually on recruitment practices focused on equity, diversity and inclusion, implicit bias, structural racism in the workplace, and sustaining a diverse workforce
Researched, designed and conducted outreach strategies on racial equity that included community events, tabling, workshops, relationship building and networking.
Developed and managed a $600K annual federally funded budget that supported 3 staff and 22 AmeriCorps Members
Kept an incredible sense of humor
We appreciate the thought that Sherrie has put into the timing of her departure and her commitment to ensuring that this transition is as smooth as possible. In the interim Sherrie’s responsibilities will be split between Elizabeth Cabral, Confluence Program Director and Samantha Vernon, Confluence Program and Outreach Coordinator while we search for a new Operations Coordinator to fill Sherrie’s role.
While Sherrie dedicated much of herself to this program, we believe that it’s healthy for organizations to undergo regular leadership changes to shake things up and bring in fresh new ideas. On that note it’s important to us that we’re transparent about the changes happening with Confluence. We’ll be including members of the Board of Directors, current AmeriCorps members, and current Partners in our search to fill Sherrie’s role.
If you have any questions about the transition or the organization, do not hesitate to reach out to the Board of Directors or to our Program Director Elizabeth Cabral.
Q&A with Sherrie
Q: What are you most proud of having worked on during your time with Confluence Environmental Center (CEC)?
A: Changing my perspective and attitude around traditional HR practices and helping to educate others on how we can infuse Diversity, Equity and Inclusion into hiring practices and create a healthier workplace culture.
Q: What’s something you’ve learned in your last 25 years with AmeriCorps that you’ll carry with you?
A: That serving your community has more power towards your health and well-being than you expect. I don’t think of serving as a selfless act that benefits the community, but rather a selfish act that feeds the sole and creates better humans.
Q: What’s something that you contributed to CEC that you hope will continue after you’ve left?
A: Staff dressing up in costumes and taking pictures to send to Members on their birthday.
Q: What will you miss most about CEC?
A: All of it! We built an amazing program and I am so proud of what it has become. I am excited to see where it goes in the future.
Q: What advice do you have for the new Operations Coordinator?
A: Have fun and participate in all the Members events you can – they are always such an amazing group of people.
Q: What’s next?
A: I am going to be the new Director of Human Resources and Recruitment at the Mt. Adams Institute in Trout Lake, Washington.
