by Maja Holmes, Nicole Elias, and Maria D’Agostino:
Image of forthcoming in Making Sense of Identity and Equity in Public Sector Workplaces (Routledge) edited by Nicole M. Elias, Maja Husar Holmes, and Maria J. D’Agostino
This blog series highlights the work forthcoming in Making Sense of Identity and Equity in Public Sector Workplaces (Routledge) edited by Nicole M. Elias, Maja Husar Holmes, and Maria J. D’Agostino. This volume emphasizes a liberatory approach to understanding identity and equity and the systems that help and hinder the full engagement of all in the public sector workplace. Seven chapters will appear in this blog series.
Identity and equity are important to all work environments. Today, in 2024, there are varying and often competing approaches to creating an equitable workplace for all identities. In the public sector, there is a general agreement that social equity is centered around fair treatment, justice, and the equal distribution of benefits to society (Cepiku & Mastrodascio, 2021; Norman-Major 2011). The current social context requires public sector organizations to bring awareness to obscured identities and assess their role in dismantling inequities. Recent scholarship, empirical analyses, and methodological approaches in public administration have increasingly focused on identity topics. These range from “diversity equity and inclusion (DEI)” to “intersectionality” to “belonging” in the context of identity categories such as ability status, ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity and expression (SOGIE), and intersections of multiple identities. Yet, the emergence and evolution of new identity categories and approaches in public sector workplaces requires continuous reflection and adaptation of theory and practice.
The liberatory approach in the public sector workplace entails creating an environment that allows all employees to thrive while honoring all identities (i.e., race, gender, sexual orientation, religion) (Dainkeh, 2023). The liberatory approach is fundamental in public sector workplaces because the public sector is responsible for leading by example in the inclusion and amplification of unrecognized narratives (Rinfret, 2024). The critical awareness, analysis, and action that is the focus of this approach can inform future administrative and workplace policy that aims to unmask oppression and create opportunities for equity and inclusion (Chordiya et al., 2023; McCandless et al., 2021). The liberatory approach can create equity for marginalized identities, while also benefiting other employees. Acknowledging intersecting identities creates inclusive workplaces that can serve all employees and make for a more effective workforce (Dainkeh, 2023).
Our first blog post is written by Elsa-Sofia Morote, “A Roadmap for Hispanic Employee’s Advancement in the Public Sector.”
About the authors:
Maja Husar Holmes is Professor and Director of the School of Public Affairs and Administration at the University of Kansas, USA. Her research and teaching examine diversity, inclusion, and leadership practices in the public sector and higher education. Her work has been published in leading journals, including State and Local Government Review, Administration & Society, Journal of Public Administration Research & Theory, and Innovative Higher Education. Holmes has also made significant contributions to advancing social justice and inclusivity in higher education through National Science Foundation-funded applied research.
Nicole M. Elias is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY and Founding Co-Director of the Initiative for Gender Equity in the Public Sector. Dr. Elias earned her MPA and Ph.D. in Public Administration and Affairs from the Center for Public Administration and Policy at Virginia Tech. While at Virginia Tech, she also received the Women’s and Gender Studies Graduate Certificate and served as managing editor of Administration & Society for three years. Her research focuses on equity in public administration and policy, with an emphasis on the ethics of administration, management of human resources in public organizations, and public policy impacts on different populations. She regularly collaborates with practitioners in government agencies and nonprofit organizations. Dr. Elias was a Research Partner with the New York City Commission on Gender Equity and held a Research Fellowship at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Office and U.S. Department of Defense’s Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI). She served as the Lead Faculty Advisor to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management on the 2016 Government-wide Inclusive Diversity Strategic Plan. She is the winner of the 2019 Audre Lorde Award for Social Justice and co-recipient of the 2018-19 Inaugural Presidential Student-Faculty Research Collaboration Award for her work examining gender equity in municipalities. Dr. Elias is the author of numerous journal articles, book chapters, government reports, and practitioner training modules on means of fostering greater representation and inclusion in public service. Her recent work appears in Public Administration Review, Administrative Theory & Praxis, and Public Integrity. Dr. Elias is the co-editor of a special issue symposium on the future of women in public administration appearing in Administration & Society. Her recent book projects include two co-edited volumes: Ethics for Contemporary Bureaucrats: Navigating Constitutional Crossroads (2020) and Handbook of Gender and Public Administration (forthcoming 2021).
Maria J. D’Agostino is a Professor of public administration in the Department of Public Management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY and co-director of the Initiative for Gender Equity in the Public Sector. Dr. D’Agostino’s recent research has focused on women in public administration including two co-edited books, Governing in A Global World (2018) and Women and Public Administration: Theory and Practice (2011). Her work appears in The Review of Public Personnel Administration and American Review of Public Administration. She received 2019 American Society of Public Administration LGBT Advocacy Action Section Award for her co-authored publication, Inclusive Work Practices: Turnover Intensions Among LGBT Employees of the U.S Federal Government. She has collaborated as a guest editor for the Women and Public Administration symposium published in Administration and Society and is the co-editor of a forthcoming symposium, #MeToo in Academia: Understanding and Addressing Pervasive Problems, Public Administration Review. Most recently she initiated a partnership with the New York City Gender Equity Commission. Maria J. D’Agostino is the co-recipient of the 2018-19 Inaugural Presidential Student-Faculty Research Collaboration Award examining gender equity in municipalities. She is also the recipient of the Section for Women in Public Administration Rita Mae Kelly Distinguished Research Award, the Faculty Mid-Career Research Award. She serves as the American Society of Public Administration District II National Representative and the John Jay College Campus Delegate for the Italian American Faculty and Staff Advisory Council.