With the recent and tragic death of George Floyd and the subsequent protests for racial justice, MTC President Scott Marquardt sat down to talk about MTC’s stance on discrimination and injustice. Scott also invites us to look inward to identify any implicit biases and to become more accepting of all people, regardless of their race, sex, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.

Scott Marquardt

It’s been sad to see in recent weeks the flair up of racial inequality yet again. One would think after all these years, and all the progress that has been made, we would be part of a society that is accepting of all individuals regardless of race, sex, national origin, or sexual orientation. But then we see acts of violence, intolerance, discrimination, and racism that show we still have a long way to go.

Management & Training Corporation is committed to accepting everyone no matter the circumstances from which they come. This is true for our staff and for the clients we serve: students, trainees, inmates, probationers, and detainees. Unfortunately, even at MTC, and in almost all organizations, we observe behavior for which we are not proud.

Fortunately, we seldom see acts of violence, but actions resulting from implicit bias that get passed down from one generation to the next are all too common. Sometimes these biases are blatant and direct, but more often it’s the private comments and off-color remarks that are embarrassing and don’t represent our values.

We can do better, and we will do better. The company’s very capable and talented professionals and I will lead the way.

It is MTC’s mission to create opportunity for high-risk populations to become more employable, more successful in family relationships, and fully accepted in our communities. We need to set the example for others and reject intolerance when we hear or see it.

Let’s start a conversation by articulating what intolerance and discrimination look like and their impact on co-workers, clients, and customers. Let’s have a frank discussion about what we can each do at our respective worksites to make everyone feels accepted. Let’s listen to each other regarding the injustices you have experienced and observed. Then let’s determine how we can prevent them from reoccurring.

MTC is a proud company. We perform our work everyday through our motto BIONIC — believe it or not I care. We will not be passive about doing the right thing. Please join me in checking our biases at the door while promoting the high ideals of tolerance and inclusion.