Employee Handbook Update

Founded in 1907, the Jewish Community Center of Greater Rochester (JCC) is a vibrant, inclusive community center offering a vast array of cultural, fitness, and wellness events. The JCC’s mission is to welcome the Rochester, New York community to join in events and activities that establish lifelong connections and enhance communal and individual well-being. The JCC is open to all people, regardless of background or faith. The JCC employs 250 people in full- and part-time roles, in a range of departments including Administration, Fitness and Recreation, Arts and Culture, Early Childhood, Camp programming, and more. Our talented staff are passionate about the Rochester community and the organization’s mandate to be a neighborhood community center that lifts up people and families.

Our Human Resources team is looking for the help of a skilled volunteer to assist us with updating our Employee Handbook and ensuring we stay compliant with changing laws. We currently rely on HRWorks (a provider of human resources' outsourcing services) to help us update our Handbook, yet the Handbook has grown extremely long (nearly 180 pages). We would greatly appreciate support around streamlining and shortening our Handbook while keeping critical information and compliance elements intact.

Tasks for the volunteer will or may include:
• Reviewing our existing Handbook and asking clarifying questions
• Identifying areas of redundancy and streamlining the Handbook to more succinctly present integral information
• Identifying any policies that we should modify and the addition of any new policies or areas that should be addressed and included
• Presenting a detailed outline of a new Handbook
• Finalizing the Handbook after receiving feedback from Taproot

The JCC of Greater Rochester is in a period of growth and transformation. After facing challenges during the pandemic, which affected our many fee-for-service programs like our preschool, the JCC has been rebuilding staff and programming. In summer 2024, the JCC hired a new Chief Executive Officer, Jason Vasquez. Jason has nearly 20 years of experience in nonprofit leadership, as well as a strong track record of driving transformational change and fostering innovation to enhance community well-being. Before coming to the Rochester JCC, Jason served as the Chief Program Officer at Kings Bay YM-YWHA, where he led a broad range of impactful programs aimed at improving educational, cultural, and social services. His leadership played a key role in strategic initiatives that promoted educational outreach, membership growth, and cross-departmental collaboration. Jason is passionate about building high-performing teams, navigating organizational change, and using data-driven decisions to improve programmatic impact. Under Jason’s skilled leadership, the JCC is undergoing a rebranding of our programming as well as an expansion of and improvement upon organizational infrastructure.

A pro bono volunteer will come in at an exciting time for the JCC, assisting us with a targeted project that will help strengthen the organization as we prepare to grow while also honoring our legacy and rich history in the Rochester community.

Our HR team is a four-person-strong team led by Jodi Warren, Chief Human Resources Manager. Jodi has more than 25 years of comprehensive experience in talent acquisition, benefits administration, compliance, employee relations, strategy and performance management. She has a demonstrated track record in enhancing organizational effectiveness and cultivating a positive workplace culture. She has been at the JCC since August 2023.

New employees receive a copy of the Employee Handbook upon onboarding, and all employees receive a copy when revisions or addendums are added. The Handbook serves as an ongoing resource for our employees. Through this project, we envision a more streamlined, user-friendly, and shorter Handbook to consist of important information for our employees and to be a useful, easy-to-navigate guide. Jodi is committed to working with the Taproot volunteer and getting them the current handbook and any other pertinent information. We also would welcome introducing the volunteer to our Senior Leadership Team, at a virtual meeting, and giving the volunteer an opportunity to hear about the organization’s mission and role in the community. We also would appreciate feedback from the volunteer on how many hours and weeks the project is predicted to last so that both the JCC and Taproot can plan accordingly.

Our team would value having open and honest conversations with our volunteer. Once recommendations are received from our volunteer, Jodi would discuss any suggestions and recommendations with the JCC’s Senior Leadership Team, which meets biweekly, to see what can be implemented right away, what may need to be postponed or further discussed, etc. The JCC is committed to the project and being responsive to the recommendations of the Taproot skilled volunteer.