Martinez, Odums to speak at upcoming Diversity Focus events

CEDAR RAPIDS -- Kathleen Martinez, assistant U.S. Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy, will discuss how employers can profit by investing in workers with disabilities at a Diversity Focus luncheon on Monday in Cedar Rapids.

Martinez, who has been blind since birth, will share her personal story and policies that help create an inclusive workplace environment for disabled persons. The luncheon will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at The Hotel at Kirkwood Center, 7725 Kirkwood Blvd. SW.

Nominated to her current position by President Barack Obama on April 20, 2009, Martinez previously served as executive director of the World Institute on Disability in Oakland, Calif. She also directed Proyecto Visión, a center designed to increase employment opportunities for Latinos with disabilities in the United States, and Access to Assets, an asset-building project designed to help reduce poverty among individuals with disabilities.

The cost is $20 per person or free with a registration for the Nov. 3 Diversity Focus luncheon that will feature Grace Odums, an independent strategic diversity consultant.

Odums will speak about how diversity is not just a program or initiative, but a needed business strategy. She will share tips on creating a diversity strategic plan to help move your business or organization to its' most successful state.

Odums is a Philadelphia-based consultant with a client list that includes Fortune 500 and Fortune Global 500 companies.  She is a much sought after international conference speaker with invitations from the Commission for Unity and Racial Equality – Bermuda, National Association of Black MBAs, Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, Mortgage Bankers Association of America, Air Conditioning Contractors of America and the Society Human Resources Management.

The Nov. 3 Diversity Focus luncheon will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Coralville Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, 300 E. Ninth St., Coralville. The cost is $50 per person.