Stark County Human Resource Association

📣 Don’t forget to register for this month’s Stark County SHRM meeting!

We’re looking forward to welcoming Devray Kirkland, Vice President of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Cardinal Health, for a conversation you won’t want to miss!

Belonging Drives Engagement: Creating an Inclusive Culture Unlocks Potential

We talk a lot about employee engagement, workplace culture, and retention. But are we creating environments where employees genuinely feel valued, respected, connected, and empowered to contribute?

Join us as we explore the connection between belonging, psychological safety, trust, and engagement—and what organizations can do to create workplaces where people and performance thrive.

📅 Tuesday, October 20, 2026
⏰ 11:15 AM – 1:00 PM
📍 Courtyard by Marriott | North Canton, OH

⏳ Registration closes THIS FRIDAY, October 16, at 5 PM!

A special thank you to our meeting sponsor, Renee West HR Solutions, LLC, and our 2026 Platinum Sponsor, KWGD, for supporting professional development in our HR community!

Whether you’re a longtime member or considering joining us for the first time, we’d love to see you there!

Don’t miss this opportunity to connect, learn, and bring some fresh ideas back to your workplace!

Stark County SHRM’s October Membership Meeting is one you won’t want to miss!

**Belonging Drives Engagement: Creating an Inclusive Culture Unlocks Potential**

What happens when employees feel genuinely valued, connected, and empowered to contribute? **Engagement grows. Trust strengthens. Collaboration improves. And people are more likely to bring their best to the workplace.**

Join us as **Devray Kirkland, Vice President of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Cardinal Health**, explores the connection between **inclusion, belonging, psychological safety, and employee engagement**—and how bringing these efforts together can strengthen both the employee experience and organizational performance.

📅 **Tuesday, October 20, 2026**
⏰ **11:15 AM – 1:00 PM**
📍 **Courtyard by Marriott**
4375 Metro Circle NW, North Canton

A huge **THANK YOU** to our meeting sponsor, **Renee West HR Solutions, LLC**, and our **2026 Platinum Sponsor, Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co., L.P.A. (KWGD)**, for their continued support of Stark County SHRM and our HR community.

Registration closes **Friday, October 16 at 5:00 PM**, so don’t wait!

**Come for lunch. Come for the learning. Leave with ideas for creating a workplace where people don’t just work—they know they belong.**

*This program is pending recertification credit from SHRM and HRCI.*

Stark County SHRM is hosting our October Coffee & Chat with a great panel and topic!

☕ Performance Management
Tuesday, October 6 | Virtual Event

Performance management has evolved far beyond the annual review. Join us for a practical panel conversation about what effective performance management looks like in today’s workplace.

Our panelists will share their experiences and approaches to:
✅ Setting clear goals and expectations
✅ Providing meaningful, ongoing feedback
✅ Supporting employee growth and development
✅ Creating accountability without making performance management feel punitive
✅ Navigating the real-world challenges that come with managing performance

Featuring Panelists:
Rudolph Herter — Stark County Community Action Agency
Jennifer Lawrence — Aultman Health System
Jami Swain — Walsh University
Moderated by:
Brenda S. Basso, ChHC® & Jill Windelspecht

☕ Grab your coffee and join the conversation!
This is a FREE event, but advance registration is required.
www.schra.ohioshrm.org

What a great few days at the 2026 Ohio SHRM Conference! 💜

Stark County SHRM was well represented, and we had such a great time connecting, learning, sharing ideas, and recharging with HR professionals from across Ohio.

And one of the best parts of conference week is always catching up with our friends from other SHRM chapters. There’s something pretty special about bringing together people who understand the challenges of HR, are willing to share what’s working, and genuinely want to help one another succeed.

We’re heading home with new ideas, new connections, and plenty of energy to bring back to our Stark County HR community.

Thank you to Ohio SHRM and everyone who helped make the 2026 conference such a great experience. Until next year! 💜

⚖️ Have you registered for Stark County SHRM’s Annual Legislative Meeting?

Changes in Washington and Columbus can quickly affect the workplace—and the November midterm elections could bring even more developments for Ohio employers.

Join us on Tuesday, September 15, as Kallen Boyer, Esq., Director of Legislative/Government Affairs, breaks down the federal and statewide legal updates HR professionals and organizational leaders need to understand. She will also share insight into the key issues that may be impacted by the upcoming elections.

This luncheon is sponsored by our 2026 Platinum Sponsor, Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co., L.P.A.

Don’t miss this timely and informative conversation!

➡️ Register today at schra.ohioshrm.org

☕ Tuesday morning — grab your coffee and join us!

Stark County SHRM is back from summer break, and we’re kicking things off with a great Coffee & Chat session:

Psychological Safety: More Than Just Being Nice

After a brief introduction to this topic at DisruptHR Columbus, Valarie Nash, SHRM-SCP will dig into what psychological safety really means—and what it doesn’t.

We’ll talk about trust, candor, accountability, speaking up, and the leadership behaviors that can either strengthen psychological safety or quietly shut it down.

And remember—this is Coffee & Chat, so come ready to be part of the conversation! ☕💬

📅 Tuesday, September 1
⏰ 7:30 AM
💻 Virtual
💙 FREE to attend

Special thanks to our co-hosts Brenda S. Basso, ChHC® & Jill Windelspecht!

➡️ Register at SCHRA.ohioshrm.org

Start your Tuesday with some coffee, connection, and a great conversation. Hope to see you there!

Don’t forget to register for our upcoming virtual Lunch & Learn!

Join Ann McGill and Brian Brown from the Stark County Child Support Enforcement Agency as they help employers better understand how to navigate child support orders involving their employees—and how we can help employees understand the process, too.

📅 Wednesday, August 26
⏰ 11:30 a.m.
💻 Virtual
💚 FREE for Stark County SHRM members
🎟️ $10 for non-members

What a meaningful way to recognize Child Support Awareness Month—by learning more, supporting our employees and doing our part to help ensure children have what they need to thrive and succeed!

Register at schra.ohioshrm.org.

What’s happening in Washington and Columbus—and what could the November midterm elections mean for Ohio employers?

Join Stark County SHRM on Tuesday, September 15, for our Annual Legislative Meeting featuring Kallen Boyer, Esq., Director of Legislative/Government Affairs with Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co., L.P.A.

Kallen will break down the federal and statewide legal developments HR professionals need to be watching and share insight into the issues that could be impacted by this year’s midterm elections.

We are also pleased to recognize Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths & Dougherty Co., L.P.A., our 2026 Platinum Sponsor, for sponsoring this luncheon and supporting Stark County SHRM throughout the year.

Don’t miss one of our most important membership meetings of the year!

Register at schra.ohioshrm.org.

☕ WE’RE BACK!

Stark County SHRM is back from summer break, and we’re kicking off our fall programming with our September Coffee & Chat!

Last week at DisruptHR Columbus, Valarie Nash, SHRM-SCP gave us a five-minute introduction to a topic that deserves a MUCH bigger conversation:

PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY: More Than Just Being Nice

So on Tuesday, September 1 at 7:30 AM, we’re continuing the conversation!

We hear psychological safety everywhere—but somewhere along the way, we started confusing safety with comfort.
Psychological safety doesn’t mean everyone agrees. It doesn’t mean avoiding difficult conversations. And it certainly doesn’t mean eliminating accountability.

In fact, sometimes speaking up doesn’t feel safe at all.

Join Valarie, President of 821 Consulting LLC, for an interactive 45-minute conversation about what psychological safety really looks like at work, including:

☕ Why comfort and psychological safety aren’t the same thing
☕ What happens after someone takes the risk to speak up
☕ How leaders unintentionally teach employees to stay quiet
☕ Why accountability and psychological safety belong together
☕ What we can do differently to build cultures of trust, candor and courage

And this is Coffee & Chat—not Coffee & Listen! We want your experiences, questions, ideas and perspectives in the conversation.

A special thank-you to our Coffee & Chat co-hosts Brenda S. Basso, ChHC® and Jill Windelspecht for kicking off fall with a bang!

📅 Tuesday, September 1, 2026
⏰ 7:30 AM
💻 Virtual
💙 FREE to attend!
➡️ Register at SCHRA.ohioshrm.org

If five minutes at DisruptHR got the conversation started, imagine what we can do with 45. ☕💬

💚 August is Child Support Awareness Month—and Stark County SHRM is proud to support the Stark County Child Support Enforcement Agency and the important work it does for local families, employees and employers.

Join us for:
Empowering Employers: Navigating Child Support with Confidence

📅 August 26
⏰ 11:30 a.m.
💻 Virtual session

Presenter Ann Durkin McGill, MBA, Deputy Director of Child Support, will help employers better understand:

• Income withholding requirements
• Ohio new-hire reporting and employee terminations
• Lump-sum reporting
• Electronic child support payments
• Medical support notices
• Frequently asked HR questions
• Strategies for sensitive employee conversations
• Resources and contacts for additional assistance

Gain practical guidance to help your organization meet its responsibilities and navigate child support matters confidently.

Register at schra.ohioshrm.org