Healing Racism Institute of Pioneer Valley to launch hybrid programming as a result of COVID Today 5:43 AM 12/22/2020 - Vanessa Otero is the interim director of Healing Racism Institute of Pioneer Valley. (Hoang 'Leon' Nguyen / The Republican) Facebook Share SPRINGFIELD — One of the most impactful aspects of the Healing Racism Institute of Pioneer Valley’s programming is the opportunity for people from different socioeconomic levels to come together to address their racial biases. While the program is traditionally done in person, the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the way the two-day immersive program will be taught in the future. “Assuming that restrictions are lifted we are going to be debuting a hybrid model in July,” said Vanessa Otero, a co-founder and interim director of the institute.