Episode 370: Tapping Into the Existing Potential of Young People for Social Justice With Dr Marvin Carr and Tiesa Leggett

With a diverse range of perspectives and backgrounds necessary to thrive, we are creating collaborative partnerships and relationships with community-based organizations as well to ensure that young person’s success. And that’s what the difference is with Unlock Potential. Episode 370: Tapping Into the Existing Potential of Young People for Social Justice With Dr Marvin Carr (@DrMarvinCarr) and Tiesa Leggett (@Tiesa4U)   Welcome to the Workology Podcast, a podcast for the disruptive workplace leader. Join host Jessica Miller-Merrell, founder of Workology.com as she sits down and gets to the bottom of trends, tools, and case studies for the business leader, HR, and recruiting professional who is tired of the status quo. Now, here’s Jessica with this episode of Workology. Jessica Miller-Merrell: [00:00:43.20] Welcome to the Workology Podcast sponsored by HR Benchmark Survey. Share your HR insights by taking part in our survey. Go to www.HRBenchmarkSurvey.com. Making meaningful changes in the workplace is something that I want more than nothing else. That’s why I do what I do. And it is not enough for us to simply focus on what we’re doing at our company. It’s important for us to think about the communities that we’re serving, the communities where your employees and you and your leaders live. We want to make these better. For me, I want to provide support, resources, and create opportunities for everyone, and that includes under-representative communities and individuals. Today’s podcast is about the responsibilities of employers when it comes to the topic of social justice. I’d love to get your insights on this and hear your questions and comments. You can do that by sending me a text to “PODCAST”. The number is 512-548-3005. Text “PODCAST” to 512-548-3005. Today, I’m joined by Dr. Marvin Carr. He’s the Director of the Walmart.org Center for Racial Equity and Tiesa Leggett, Director of Partnership and Special Projects at Responsible Business Initiative for Justice or RBIJ. From 2014 to 2016, Dr. Carr was Senior Advisor in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and led the STEM and innovation efforts of President Barack Obama’s My Brother’s Keeper Initiative and the White House Council on Women and Girls. Tiesa started her career as a news reporter before moving to the public relations and public affairs arena. Prior to joining RBIJ, she worked in community outreach and education, researching and identifying potential community partnerships, representing her employers at community events, working with area school districts, neighborhoods, and employers and elected officials. Marvin and Tiesa, welcome to the Workology Podcast. Tiesa Leggett: [00:02:51.39] Thank you so much for having us, Jessica. Jessica Miller-Merrell: [00:02:54.39] Let’s jump right in. The Responsible Business Initiative for Justice has just announced a groundbreaking program made possible by Walmart through the Walmart.org Center for Racial Equity called Unlock Potential. Can you tell us more about this program? Dr. Marvin Carr: [00:03:11.22] Absolutely. So last year in 2021, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation awarded the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice. I’m a grant to help businesses better understand the needs and the wraparound services for young people who are at the highest risk of incarceration. One of our beliefs is that if we provide opportunities and on-ramps to workforce and mentorship for this group of young people, that it will decrease the possibility and probability that they too will continue in the cycle of incarceration.