Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 4 hours ago
Hiring from Within the Community - Panel Discussion hosted by Christina Lee, Founder of StellaFirma Strategies
Panelists:
Elsa Ramos, Friends of Oakland Animal Services
Melissa Gomez, San Francisco SPCA
Nadia Oseguera-Ramon, UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program
Animal well-being organizations are here to serve our community. And who else knows the community better than those who live in it? During this panel discussion, we will hear from animal well-being professionals who work and live within their community and come from non-animal related backgrounds. Listen in to learn about inclusive and culturally responsive hiring practices that will strengthen your own organization by pulling in employees who reflect your community.
To access the full agenda and resources from this call or to ask questions of our speakers, visit https://maddies.fund/communityconversations51925
About Community Conversations, hosted by Maddie’s Fund:
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, animal sheltering transformed overnight. Foster-based sheltering, home-based employees and volunteers, along with collaboration galvanized our communities. The pandemic, along with social injustice, has motivated our industry to look at how we partner with our communities and confront our own biases. Shelter and rescue staff across the country began talking on a weekly basis, offering support and innovative ideas to do things differently.
To learn more about these calls, visit forum.maddiesfund.org/communityconversations
Chapters
00:00 Welcome
04:43 Panel Discussion
Hiring from Within the Community - Panel Discussion hosted by Christina Lee, Founder of StellaFirma Strategies
Panelists:
Elsa Ramos, Friends of Oakland Animal Services
Melissa Gomez, San Francisco SPCA
Nadia Oseguera-Ramon, UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program
Animal well-being organizations are here to serve our community. And who else knows the community better than those who live in it? During this panel discussion, we will hear from animal well-being professionals who work and live within their community and come from non-animal related backgrounds. Listen in to learn about inclusive and culturally responsive hiring practices that will strengthen your own organization by pulling in employees who reflect your community.
To access the full agenda and resources from this call or to ask questions of our speakers, visit https://maddies.fund/communityconversations51925
About Community Conversations, hosted by Maddie’s Fund:
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, animal sheltering transformed overnight. Foster-based sheltering, home-based employees and volunteers, along with collaboration galvanized our communities. The pandemic, along with social injustice, has motivated our industry to look at how we partner with our communities and confront our own biases. Shelter and rescue staff across the country began talking on a weekly basis, offering support and innovative ideas to do things differently.
To learn more about these calls, visit forum.maddiesfund.org/communityconversations
Chapters
00:00 Welcome
04:43 Panel Discussion
