315 AW hosts diversity & inclusion expert

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Della Creech
  • 315 Airlift Wing Public Affairs

Air Force Reserve Command's Diversity and Inclusion Chief, Grady Floyd, spoke to 315th Airlift Wing Airmen and leadership about the paradigm shift into diversity and inclusion Feb. 7 and 8, 2020, at Joint Base Charleston, S.C.

Ninety percent of every decision made daily is unconscious bias and Floyd targeted how Airmen can combat social norms through diversity and inclusion integration. “Diversity and inclusion goes much deeper than age, race, sex, and religion, but into a cultural level including the background of every Airman,” said Senior Master Sgt. Toby Housey, 315 AW Equal Opportunity superintendent.

As the Air Force evolves from the cultural norms of the past, Airmen look forward to a new perspective to placing good people in the right places.

“I think diversity and inclusion discussions are a fresh new perspective, very informative, and imperative to a stronger Air Force,” said Master Sgt. Gary Lamb, lead command post at the 315th Contingency Response Flight.

In order to address the issues at hand, Floyd dove into how culture has made diversity and inclusion uncomfortable for various generations of Airmen.

“True diversity and inclusion eliminates age old issues that we have had to overcome over the years like war, politics, separation and division,” Floyd said. “This shift places the whole team in the same mindset by giving everyone every opportunity to achieve their best potential."
The 315 AW leadership and Airmen alike addressed the underlying backbone of unconscious bias head-on.

“Just because bias is unconscious, it doesn’t mean that you can’t overcome it,” said Col. Tom Walter, 315th Maintenance Group commander.

This head-on approach is also shared by the highest of leadership, Lt. Gen. Richard Scobee, commander of the Air Force Reserve Command, asks that we prove to all Airmen that they bring value to the team.

These tools from AFRC enhance resilience and readiness at the 315 AW. “Mr. Floyd has brought diversity and inclusion tools to equip the 315 AW mission effectiveness,” Housey said.

Reservists at the 315 AW broke down many barriers, “the key to breaking down these barriers are starting with yourself,” Floyd said.
During the diversity and inclusion discussion, Maj. Kimberly Champagne, 315th Force Support Squadron commander said, “I am here because I love this squadron enough to go to the next level.”

315th AW Facebook   315th AW on  Instagram    315th AW on YouTube   Dvids   Behind the Wing Podcast