The Oregon Well-Being Trust Grow Guide is a model to help districts, ESDs, community colleges, and tribal schools build inclusive, holistic, and sustainable well-being programs.
Using the 7 Essential Elements outlined in the Grow Guide, your organization can develop a comprehensive well-being program or strengthen the foundations you’ve already put in place.
Click on one of the Essential Elements below to learn more about it.
Leadership and organizational support are key to getting well-being efforts off the ground and maintaining success. Supportive leaders can help create the spaces and systems needed for employee well-being to flourish, providing space and time for organizing activities and encouraging staff to take care of their well-being needs during the workday. All types of leaders play a crucial role in shifting workplace culture by modeling well-being and aligning efforts with organizational priorities and initiatives.
To develop a well-being program that staff want to participate and engage in, it’s important that staff have a lead role in deciding what is offered and when. When gathering inclusive staff feedback, ensure you are hearing from all staff groups, job classifications, and identities. Using a variety of methods to collect feedback, such as surveys, empathy interviews, and focus groups, will help ensure you are reaching all audiences.
The well-being efforts at your organization will be more sustainable if you can identify and connect with key partners who can help support the work. Developing partnerships with organizations such as local businesses, county health organizations, and community groups can help your efforts flourish year after year.
Creating a workplace that allows every staff member to be well requires more than just adding activities and events. It also includes removing barriers that keep people from participating and having hard conversations about whether every staff member feels like they belong. Taking the time to shift your culture towards accessibility, inclusion, and belonging can improve the well-being of your staff and your organization.
Workplace well-being is complex, and having a coordinator can help keep the work organized and integrated. A coordinator serves as a central point of contact, coordination, and direction for an organization’s well-being program. Coordinating with a diverse wellness team helps bring multiple perspectives into the decision-making and implementation process.
When planning educator well-being efforts, use staff feedback that includes input from and consideration of diverse employee groups so your program is accessible and staff-informed. Writing out your Action Plans and Budget for employee well-being can help you decide what resources are needed, who oversees what, and the next steps for implementation.
Many strategies can help you maintain employee well-being efforts at your organization, and not all of them include funding. Creating opportunities to learn about staff needs from year to year, collaborating with leaders, and analyzing program data can all guide your work to keep it relevant to staff and aligned with organizational goals. Celebrating successes along the way can keep everyone focused on the greater purpose – creating a culture of respect, belonging, and well-being.