Worklife Ministry, Inc., d/b/a Worklife Institute
CEO and President’s Report – Highlights of 2022
Diana C. Dale, D.Min, Ph.D.
Drew Bivona, J.D. (23-27) Bivona Law, PLLC
1235 N. Loop W., Suite 810 Attorney at Law
Houston, TX 77008 Navy Veteran
(713) 321-0132 (cell)
(713-360-7596 (office)
drew@bivonaLaw.com
ELIZABETH F. BURLEIGH, J.D. (19 - 23) CFO, Worklife Institute
(713) 266-2456 (w) Attorney at Law
(713) 471-2013 (cell) Mediation Instructor
efb@worklifeinstitute.org
Bill BUTZNER, MBA, CPA, CIA, CIISA, CFE (23-27) Consultant
5001 Woodway Drive, #805
Houston, TX 77056
(281) 605-8306
billbutzner@outlook.com
DIANA C. DALE, D.Min., Ph.D. LMFT (19 - 23) President & CEO, Worklife Institute
(713) 266-2456 (w) Corporate Chaplain
(713) 281-685-3576 (cell) LMFT, Mediator, Program Director
diana.dale@worklifeinstitute.org
DENA FISK (21 - 25) Board Secretary
20802 Park Pine Realtor
Katy, TX 77450 VA-Guaranteed Home Loan Advisor
832-343-0758
denagail@aol.com
JEFFREY R. NEWPORT, J.D. (19-23) Board Chair
(713) 468-8850 (w) Law Office of Jeffrey Newport
(713) 468-0506 (fax) Attorney, Mediator
jeffrey@jrnewportlaw.com
DAVID L. SMITH, BBM (22-26) Branch Production Manager
16803 N. Swirling Cloud Court LoanDepot Mortgage
Cypress, TX 77433
281-703-5819
dlsmith@loandepot.com
Emeritus Board Members / Advisors:
RICK L. GABEHART, BBA Insurance Broker
314 East Mulberry
Huntington, TX 75949
(903) 235-6538
rickgabehart@gmail.com
ELIZABETH SMITH, Ph.D. Summit Resources, VP (Oil & Gas)
1015 Ashford Parkway
Houston, TX 77077-2403
(281) 684-0522
smithce@flash.net
Founded in 1988
The Worklife Institute was founded in 1988 to serve the Texas and Gulf Coast Region. Its mission is to promote and facilitate the highest quality of work life, providing program resources that address with best practices and integrity the challenges of today’s business environment.
Highest Quality of Worklife
All Institute programs aim to promote the highest quality of worklife by encouraging in-depth reflection upon core values and providing practical tools to enhance employee and company well-being. The Institute maintains a Resource Center with consulting and training facilities and a large collection of reference materials.
www.worklifeinstitute.org
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We collect information from you when you register or enter information on our site, and/or subscribe to our newsletters.
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• To improve our website in order to better serve you.
• To allow us to better serve you in responding to your client service requests.
• To send periodic emails regarding our program services.
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WORKLIFE INSTITUTE HIGHLIGHTS OF 2022
Worklife Institute was founded in 1988 by Dr. Diana Dale as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) educational and workplace services resource center for the Texas and Gulf Coast region and to collaborate nationally for best practices. The concept for Worklife Institute came out of the 1980s’ economic upheaval with corporate restructurings and massive employee layoffs. Internal employee counseling programs were outsourced, former employees had to take their career trajectories into new directions, and managers sought consultation to deal with the ongoing corporate changes.
Dr. Dale, an engineering geologist, technical corporate manager and industrial chaplain, created the Institute as a provider center to assist transitioning employees and changing corporations. In 1988 she received a three-year start-up grant from Trinity Wall Street Foundation. Initial client requests were for career transition and employee assistance program (EAP) help, then for corporate ethics training and compliance programs, conflict resolution, manager and team development and organizational change management, followed by training programs in Mediation and Entrepreneurship.
The Texas Veterans Worklife Transition program began in the Fall of 2007, with the TRIAD (Texas Resources for Iraq/Afghanistan Deployment) grant through the San Antonio Area Foundation. The program took the best-practices services of our existing programs and integrated them to serve veterans and their families. All the Institute team members have military backgrounds, so were familiar with the needs of our veteran family population. Since 2008, the program has been funded by TRIAD, Texas Veterans Commission Fund for Veterans Assistance, and other veteran grants and continues to grow.
The Transition program addresses veterans’ #1 identified concern – to gain productive, fulfilling employment with an upwardly sustainable career path while achieving work/life balance and community involvement. The program serves all eras of veterans and their family members.
The Career transition track begins with assessing occupational interests, qualifications, desired work setting and whether to seek employment directly or to first complete academic work, apprenticeships and required certifications. WI offers two preparatory training programs, Professional Mediation and Entrepreneurship, as well as weekly transition and benefits workshops.
Our team guides educational program selection, collaborates with best-practice programs and campus veterans’ success centers, the VA, Texas Veterans Commission and Texas WorkSource employment programs. Many TVC Career Advisors in our area refer to us regularly. We encourage our clients to complete their current training programs then transition into the employment process, which includes civilian and federal resume building, career fairs, employer selection, the job application process, interviewing and onboarding.
Worklife Institute has a dense provider collaboration and referral network, works with the Reserve and National Guard units in the region, participates in veteran benefits events and is part of national collaborations such as America’s Warrior Partnership. During the height of the COVID pandemic most linkage was through remote conferencing, and this year in-person events are being restored.
Program events are broadcast to the community through our interactive website with calendar, Facebook, LinkedIn, and ongoing event updates using Constant Contact, which is distributed to our current client participants, prospects and other provider organizations. Our Headquarters is located in a Galleria area office park, with easy access to the freeways and bus routes. We maintain a specious Resource Center designed for hospitality and empowerment, which has consultation and training rooms, resource libraries, computer workstations, lounge area, open kitchen, children’s resources and is handicap-accessible with free parking.
Each year Worklife Institute serves an average of 400 veterans and their families.Over 75% enter the program specifically for career evaluation and transition, with an additional 25% coming for our supportive services of personal and family counseling, legal and financial advisement and military caregiver assistance.Most of the career clients also use these additional services. 70% find high-quality employment by the end of the year, with over 75% of the positions being in the “white collar” professions, entrepreneurship and skilled trades.
Since 2008, over 6,000 clients have been through our program, with thousands more making initial contact with us through benefits and career fairs and military unit events. Our more than 70 referral partners also receive our program information and are invited to send their clients to our workshops.We retain all our alumni client folders, because a large number return to reengage in program services.
We expanded our training and consultation services to respond to the increased stressors experienced by our clients during COVID. More clients requested financial assistance and rehousing assistance, so we worked with our partner organizations to provide them relief and added financial literacy and sustainability workshops to our program.We also had increased requests from our veteran clients for guidance to upgrade their service-connected disability ratings and other VA-provided services.
Our veteran families increasingly are requesting assistance in exploring entrepreneurship, so we have continued our partnership with the Small Business Administration’s regional Veterans Business Outreach Center. Their team traveled to Houston during March and October to present their four-part Entrepreneur Training Program, which also introduced our participants to an expert group of resource persons from the greater Houston area. We continued to expand our program to include a year-round series of workshops that go in-depth on different aspects of forming and growing small businesses.
During 2022 we continued as a partner in the Texas Veterans and Family Connection collaborative services program coordinated by Easter Seals and funded by the Texas Department of Health and Human Services. We exceeded our grant client services quota and were awarded surplus funds to accommodate our extra share of clients. We were also awarded a grant by the AARP Foundation to provide workshops in Digital Skills for online career and business networking and safe media navigation.We added this programming to our weekly workshops calendar. We participated in several national nonprofit fundraising mentoring programs and conducted an end-of-year giving campaign.
Good News and Thanks from 2022 Clients:
Each month we publish a success story about a recently graduated client. We also receive positive feedback through our quarterly surveys and many emails expressing gratitude for our services. Below is a sampling of recent testimonials from our clients:
. I have gained employment and am in training. I appreciate all the work you have done with me.
. You have a great organization, and I enjoy spending time there.
. I want to thank you for your interest, advice and time in assisting my efforts to rejoin employment.
. Thank you for providing me with advice, especially your first-hand experience with federal contracts.
. Thank you for providing all the training and counseling, which were very helpful, and I learned a lot.
. Thank you so much for your help and words of encouragement. Outside of the VA, I can’t think of an organization which has done more for Houston’s veterans.
. Thank you for your years of service to veterans and the business community.
. Congratulations on 35 years of Worklife Institute, for your positive impact on my life, work and family.
. I thank God for the HUGE impact you made on my life.
. Thank you for facilitating these amazing workshops. I look forward to referring my veteran clients.
. The progress I’ve made recently wouldn’t have happened if not for Worklife Institute.
. I got a great position in the Medical Center. Thank you for all the advice and help.
. Thanks so much for getting me back in the loop. Your organization is the best I have seen helping vets.
Institute CEO and President
Dr. Diana C. Dale is a clinically-trained corporate chaplain and the president and founder of Worklife Institute, a non-profit organization serving Texas and Gulf Coast families and companies since 1988. Services include life and career transition, employee assistance counseling, conflict resolution, business ethics and organizational change consultation.
Dr. Dale was a senior technical manager and chaplain in the engineering and energy industries before founding the Worklife Institute. She earned a Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts from Stanford University, a Master of Divinity and Doctorate of Ministry in Corporate Chaplaincy, did post-doctoral research at the UT Health Science Center in Occupational Health and Safety/Management Policy Science and a Ph.D. in Organizational Change from Graduate Theological Foundation. Dr. Dale has licenses as an Engineering Geologist, Marriage and Family Therapist, Professional Chaplain and Mediator.
In 2007 the Institute created the Texas Veterans Transition Program to assist military veterans and their families to reintegrate into civilian workplaces and communities. The program provides career and educational evaluation, connection to employers and retention coaching, using our Integrated Quality-of-Life approach, with supportive services including individual, family, legal and financial counseling. The Institute collaborates broadly with other veteran service providers and community organizations.
Tax Status and Funding
Worklife Institute is an independent 501 (c)(3) organization, governed by its Board of Directors. It is financially supported by corporations, non-profit organizations, foundations, and individuals. It welcomes inquiries about its work and contribution from those who share its objectives. All contributions are tax deductible.
Worklife Institute does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, or handicap in any of its policies, practices or procedures.
Institute Executive Team
An experienced professional team conducts the programs of the Institute:
Dr. Diana C. Dale, PhD, LMFT, AAC
CEO / Program Director
diana.dale@worklifeinstitute.org
Elizabeth F. Burleigh, J.D.
Legal and Financial Advisor
efb@worklifeinstitute.org
Worklife Ministry, Inc., d/b/a Worklife Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, tax-exempt, organization governed by its Board of Directors.
Worklife Institute does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, handicap or sexual orientation in any of its policies, practices or procedures.
Our IRS form 990, audit, and other charitable organization certifying information is available on the following websites.
Worklife Institute
Transforming Houston's Work Life Since 1988
WORKLIFE MINISTRY, INC., d/b/a Worklife Institute
MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
2023
Quality Work
The Institute’s services include corporate and individual consultation in organizational and team development, candidate assessment and onboarding, conflict resolution, and professional ethics; employee assistance programs; career transition and outplacement; entrepreneurship and mediation training; and services to transitioning military personnel and their families.
ABOUT US
and
CORPORATE INFORMATION
CONTACT US 713-266-2456 / 713-963-945
worklife@worklifeinstitute.org
TRANSFORMING HOUSTON'S WORK LIFE SINCE 1988
Contact us: 713-963-9456
worklife@worklifeinstitute.org
1900 Saint James Place, Suite 880
Houston, Texas 77056
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