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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuman Rights and Diversity - 09/19/2013 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2013 7:00 P.M., 125 EDEN PRAIRIE CENTER Office of Housing and Human Services COMMISSION MEMBERS: Laura Kaczmarek (Chair), PG Narayanan (Vice Chair), Zina Nourkadi, Jenny Buckland, Sana Elassar, Sandra Filardo, Connie Iacovelli STAFF: Molly Koivumaki, Staff Patricia Fenrick, Staff Heidi Wojahn, Recorder STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES: Kristina Busch, Karena Lin, Chase Carlson, Emily Higgins I. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Chair Kaczmarek called the meeting to order at 7:27 p.m. following introductions and a mixer game. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: Iacovelli moved, seconded by Filardo, to approve the agenda. Motion carried 7-0. III. MINUTES MOTION: Buckland moved, seconded by Elassar, to approve the June 13, 2013 minutes. Motion carried 6-0-1 with Kaczmarek abstaining. IV. OLD BUSINESS A. ONE VOICE PROJECT SUMMARY - Buckland This project was done in conjunction with The Advocates for Human Rights. The purpose was to discover what the blueprint for welcome is in Minnesota and nationally. Two conversations took place: a train-the-trainer session in July and the official conversation on August 20. Forty-two of the attendees provided demographic information. Of those, 67 percent were female, the majority was over 40 years of age, and 12 percent were youth. Thirteen different cultural groups were represented, and there was a healthy mix of long-term and newer residents. Buckland reviewed the conversation summary document distributed by Fenrick. The four main themes were: enhancing communication, showcasing and celebrating diversity, developing and deepening a cross cultural sensitivity toolkit, and increasing representation. These HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 2 themes encompassed three levels of accountability: institutional, community, and individual. Smiles, invitations, and building relationships over time were common responses in terms of what made the most impact to newcomers. Some ideas stemming from the session included an Eden Prairie loves its diversity campaign, having welcome and resource centers at the city level, and connecting at neighborhood parties. Buckland commended Iacovelli on putting together this information which was also shared with City Council this past Tuesday. Several HRDC commissioners played different roles in the presentation. The city manager was extremely supportive. They left with the feeling we should present to Council on a more frequent basis. Fenrick said the commissioners were invited to report to Council and represented HRDC well. Other commissioners are encouraged to present in the future. Filardo asked if councilmembers were invited to the August event. Fenrick said yes,but there were a lot of other things scheduled that evening including a Council meeting. Fenrick stated there is cause for celebration. She is thrilled with the outcome of the event and would like to do some form of it on an annual basis. She thanked everyone for their time and effort and solicited feedback. Iacovelli inquired about the status of One Voice in regards to this project. Fenrick explained after the report, One Voice's role is done meaning we can decide how to design it moving forward. Filardo said she was proud to be a part of the event and commended everyone for their hard work. She liked the story-telling aspect of it and would like more story-telling opportunities in the future. Narayanan echoed it was a great event. Nourkadi thanked everyone for their work as well as the attendees and expressed regret over being unable to be there. These are positive steps and she would like to be part of implementing them. Higgins said she was pleased there were kids in attendance and would like to have discussion in the future geared just towards youth. Narayanan suggested sending thank-you notes to the participants for coming. Fenrick said she plans to do so in a follow-up email as well as touch base with attendees about the session and invite them to other cultural events occurring this fall. Kaczmarek volunteered to help Fenrick draft the correspondence. Fenrick said the commission will spend the next few months discussing project outcomes further, so by December we have an idea of how to move forward as part of the 2014 work plan. B. ONE VOICE FOLLOW-UP DISCUSSION Fenrick asked commissioners to brainstorming about good ideas they have or heard at the session. Buckland acknowledged Higgins' idea of youth-focused discussion saying it fits well in the category of ongoing conversations and dialogue. Filardo said a lot of cultures center on coffee and suggested having people share their experiences quarterly in a cafe-type setting. It provides a more casual, relaxed environment for those having a difficult time transitioning to life in a new area. She stressed no nametags. Buckland said it could be called Cafe Connect. HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 3 Iacovelli said the need for a resource center came up in each of the small groups. It would be useful to new residents,but navigating City Center can be intimidating for those who struggle with the language. Fenrick said her office, the Office of Housing and Human Services, is probably where City staff would refer residents. Although resources are already in existence, she learned there is some sort of barrier preventing people from taking advantage of them. She asked for assistance in identifying the gap. Nourkadi said people just don't know about it. Iacovelli said Fenrick's office is buried in the basement of the mall and there is no signage out front. The office likely was not mentioned in her welcome packet from the City. If it was, it was unclear what resources were available. Kaczmarek stated she lives in an apartment and never received a welcome packet. Filardo said it needs to be located in a more obvious place where the community goes, such as the library or community center. Fenrick asked what a welcome center would look like. Buckland said a staffed table and banner is sufficient. Nourkadi said advertising flyers could be sent out periodically. A bulletin board and any materials should be posted outside, not inside the office. Buckland said the current space has potential if we can get permission from the mall to implement something more visual. Filardo said a kindergarten teacher at Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion has been pushing for a multi-lingual welcome resource center. She is going to start a petition around the schools. Filardo expects to receive a copy of a letter this teacher wrote and she will forward it to commissioners when she gets it. The center would fill a huge need for teachers. We should involve teachers to see how parents can be helped because when parents aren't involved, a teacher's job is harder. Fenrick said one thing in this arena already taking place is family educator Stephanie Hendrickson teaming up with two people from Fenrick's office. Together they are providing office hours at the high school to connect with parents and help them navigate the system. Buckland said we need to network with those who know about particular groups to generate a list of community leaders to spread the word. Narayanan asked who owns the information desk upstairs at the mall. Nourkadi said that position was eliminated two years ago and the space is currently occupied by a vendor. Instead there is a red phone mall-users can use for assistance. Nayaranan said we are in an electronic age. Welcome or resource center information should be spread via a website or big screen in the mall upstairs. The cost would be minimal and could be controlled by staff in Fenrick's office. Filardo said a resource center and welcome center may have two different purposes. She likes the idea of controlling and changing information electronically. Elassar said not everyone is technology-savvy nor has the ability to read. She would prefer to have a staffed table for a set period of time. If there is a language barrier between the person seeking information and the staffer, that person could call for assistance. Nourkadi inquired what the relationship is between the City and the mall owner. An information desk or some other form of disseminating information would help the mall and the people as well as provide information about Fenrick's office. Fenrick explained the City is a rent-paying tenant. Filardo said the senior center and high HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 4 school are potential resource pools for volunteer recruitment. Higgins explained the outreach room at the high school is where volunteer opportunities are posted. Students can get credit for volunteer hours. More on this topic was discussed out of order under Item W.F. FUTURE PLANNING. V. REPORTS FROM STAFF - Fenrick A. COUNCIL PRESENTATION SUMMARY FROM 9/17/13 This was discussed out of order under Item IV.A. ONE VOICE PROJECT SUMMARY. B. HUMAN SERVICES REVIEW COMMITTEE (HSRC) Fenrick is in the midst of monitoring agencies that have grants with the City. This consists of a programmatic and financial review. The City awards grants to organizations to support and invest in different services in the community. Fenrick touched on some of the highlights from the review process. Over the next two weeks, HSRC will be hearing proposals for the 2014-15 grant cycle. A number of agencies have applied. C. BIAS CRIME ACTIVITY STATUS None. D. OTHER REPORTS FROM STAFF - Fenrick 1. Best Buy Grant $5.10 remaining. VI. NEW BUSINESS A. EDEN PRAIRIE READS (EPR) —Elassar EPR is a book club HRDC approached to partner. They also have a partnership with the library. Books are selected quarterly as community-wide reads and are followed with group discussions. Elassar said she read some of the recommended books and came prepared to discuss them at two meetings she attended. The meetings were tedious. Although EPR has a website with a mission statement, they were unable to come to consensus on a topic and were questioning whether or not they should even continue the group. Because it was difficult to grasp what the group wants, she feels this is not the right time to get involved. Fenrick explained the reason for wanting to partner was to raise awareness of human rights issues. Elassar mentioned when she was asked during one of the meetings what HRDC's intent was and she explained it, a lengthy discussion took place about how HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 5 EPR cannot be agenda driven. The group tended to want to shy away from heavy, dark stories;but oftentimes human rights books are inherently dark, and that is central to the story line. Elassar stated there was also conversation about the need for school involvement and representation in the group. Elassar told them the Commission has student representatives who could potentially fulfill that role. Based on her experience, however, she reiterated her recommendation to walk away. They need to figure out their direction before we can get involved. The purpose of EPR is positive, though, so perhaps we can revisit this down the road. Filardo and Narayanan agreed. An informal decision was made to discontinue pursuing a partnership at this time. Fenrick said she will follow-up with the group for closure. Higgins said if the group is looking for book ideas, they can look at the high school curriculum for suggestions. Fenrick said that is a good resource to keep in mind if we partner with them in the future. B. UNITY DAY AT HENNEPIN TEHNICAL COLLEGE (HTC) —Kaczmarek Fenrick circulated a flyer about a documentary called "Bullied" being shown at HTC on October 8 at 7 p.m. Kaczmarek explained it is about a Wisconsin boy who was bullied and severely beaten because he was gay. He subsequently sued the school district and won. The film is being shown as part of HTC's Unity Day against bullying. HRDC is co-sponsoring the event and Kaczmarek plans to attend. She will give a welcome and explain what HRDC does. Fenrick said the movie will be followed by a facilitated discussion. The panel will be made up of representatives from the police, school district, and an organization working in this area as well as a student. HRDC was asked by HTC to help with this event which is open to the community. The commission can raise awareness by sending out flyers and asking people to come. Fenrick also plans to attend. Narayanan said this should be publicized in the schools. Higgins said it would be appropriate to invite Central Middle School and Eden Prairie High School (EPHS). This movie is shown in health classes at the high school and that would be a good place to get the word out. She will also take it to Eagle Vision News. Elassar asked if it could be publicized via the Community Center where Higgins is employed. Higgins will work on this, too. Fenrick will send out an electronic version to share. She can make hard copies upon request. Buckland said she would like a half-size version to post at coffee shops. Higgins said Dairy Queen's community board would be another good place to advertise. Fenrick said she still needs a school contact for the panel, someone who can speak on behalf of the district to discuss what the schools are doing about bullying. Higgins and Lin agreed to take it to Principal McCartan at EPHS. Filardo offered to send it to the Eagle Heights and Oak Point principals and parent reps. She suggested looking into the school board accountability page on Facebook. Fenrick will email the school board and superintendent to see if someone can serve on the panel. Elassar asked if it could be shared with other contacts in Hennepin County as well. Fenrick said she has a couple of email list-servs to which she can send it. HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 6 C. COMMUNITY CINEMA (CC)—9/26, 10/24, 11/21 —Iacovelli/Elassar Iacovelli explained CC is an organization which partners with over 100 cities and other entities across the country to show films from the Emmy-award winning PBS series "Independent Lens". There are three films on the schedule for this fall. Two are called "The Graduates", the first of which focuses on three Latina (female) students and their educational struggles from high school to college. The second film is similar with a focus on Latino men. Fenrick circulated a flyer with the details. She explained this is a new relationship for HRDC. Much of the information came at the end of summer,but we had to lock in dates with Community Ed last spring. All of these films will be shown on PBS,but cities are allowed to hold a free pre-showing for the public to raise awareness. A facilitated discussion guide is also provided for a follow-up community conversation. The film showings will be held at the library. For each film there is a topic. CC requests community organizations who are working on these topics be involved. Because HTC has a couple of Latino outreach workers and a lot of Latino students, Fenrick has asked them to come to the first event and share about their programs and education. Iacovelli and Elassar have agreed to facilitate the September discussion; others are needed to help facilitate future sessions. Narayanan asked if we have a connection to the Latino community. Filardo said there is no Latino community organization in Eden Prairie. She and Buckland shared other Latino community contacts they knew of. Fenrick said Alberto Vargas, a Latino community liaison with the school district, will be there later in the evening to talk about the high school. Fenrick asked commissioners to distribute posters. There are also flyers available,but location and time need to be hand-written on those prior to posting. She will send an electronic version as well. Filardo asked about the age appropriateness of the films. Fenrick said she has not seen the films,but they are real life stories probably not over the head of a middle schooler. She will send a link to the documentary so commissioners can preview the film. Fenrick said she plans to ask CC if we can show the previous film "Half the Sky" in October rather than showing back-to-back Latino education movies. It is about female empowerment around the world. Another option is a film about bringing Jewish and Palestinian young people together and their interaction living in a divided place. She will keep commissioners updated. Elassar commented the November film date was too close to Thanksgiving. Fenrick said anyone wishing to serve on this subcommittee can do so. Spring film dates need to be selected before December for the Community Ed calendar. Community Ed is helping with advertising and handling reservations. We have the option to follow the CC bi-monthly schedule or have monthly showings by filling in with other movies. HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 7 Filardo asked what being involved entails. Fenrick said being present to welcome people, talking about the Commission, and getting people into small groups to facilitate discussion of pre-determined questions. Higgins said she is planning to be there and can help. Elassar said it would be good to attract young people because many of the issues relate to teens. Fenrick said CC does have questions geared for youth so if there is a particular film drawing a lot of younger people, they could split off and have separate youth-focused and adult-focused discussions. Higgins said with more advance notice, there are many channels to advertise through at EPHS. D. CONNECTING WITH SCHOOL GROUPS —Filardo Filardo said she was in charge of connecting with clubs dealing with diversity and inclusion at EPHS. She contacted the main school contact as well as clubs for which she had information. So far she has only heard back from the exchange student club and is trying to arrange to have them talk to the Commission in October. She asked Higgins to talk to clubs at the school's fall activities rush and have them get in touch with her. E. INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL (IS) EVENTS —Narayanan/Buckland Narayanan said IS recently approached HRDC with a schedule and was looking for two ten-minute Indian cultural dances. He had been in contact with the Indian Association about this but there was not enough notice to procure suitable dancers. Buckland explained IS holds an annual International Day. This year they are showcasing seven different cultures on September 28, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. There will be a food court for attendees to sample different international dishes. There is also a performing arts component. Because school just started and the event is volunteer- run, information was sent too late. There will,however,be Chinese students dancing and a variety of instrumental performers from 1-3 p.m. There will also be a parade, and people are encouraged to come in traditional dress. The event is free,but there is a charge for food. Buckland announced there will also be an old-style Williamsburg Christmas Fair at IS with holiday shopping opportunities for arts, crafts, and jewelry on December 5, 5-8 p.m. These two events are advertised on the World At Your Door page of the Community Ed catalog. Fenrick circulated information about other World At Your Door events. Ethnic lunches will be held on October 1 and November 6 at local restaurants. Participants will have a chance to try to new foods and hear the owners share their stories. Two lunches will be held in the spring as well. Discussion ensued about planning and sponsorships. Buckland asked if there had been funds available if that would have made a difference in Narayanan's ability to get dancers on short notice. Narayanan said it would not. They are interested in participating next year given proper notice. HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION MINUTES September 19, 2013 Page 8 F. FUTURE PLANNING Fenrick said there are a couple things to think about in terms of planning for next year. One is the Human Rights Awards. She distributed copies of the old form noting the four categories of individual, non-profit, business, and youth. Anyone can nominate candidates,but commissioners are strongly encouraged to provide nominations. Narayanan said they should start the marketing process now. It should be advertised on the City website, too. He volunteered to head this up stressing one of the goals is to increase nominations. Different marketing strategies were discussed. Fenrick said she will compile a synopsis for distribution and send it out in electronic form. Narayanan said he will put together a timeline. Higgins and Lin agreed to help. Fenrick said she has been in touch with HTC regarding a joint event for Martin Luther King Day. They have expressed an interested in collaborating. Narayanan asked if we have any connection to African American leaders in Eden Prairie. Fenrick and Filardo said they knew of a couple. Fenrick asked Filardo to send an introductory email to the people she mentioned to see if they would be willing to serve on a task force or planning committee. Narayanan said he will create a Google Does to be emailed out. People can add their additional One Voice brainstorming ideas to the list over the next few weeks for discussion at the October meeting. Fenrick said she would coordinate with Narayanan on this. She noted that, after a bit more brainstorming, commissioners will need to start ranking items to determine where to focus efforts. Elassar suggested partnering with Parks and Rec for a 5K diversity run/walk with different cultural tables along the way. Fenrick said we could also do a welcome tour of Eden Prairie. VII. REPORTS FROM COMMISSION MEMBERS Narayanan said he has a friend dedicated to the cause of distracted driving. He is holding a walk on October 12 in Eden Prairie. Narayanan will email a link with the details. VIII. REPORTS FROM STUDENT COMMISSIONERS None. IX. FUTURE MEETINGS/EVENTS The next HRDC meeting will be Thursday, October 10, 2013, 7 p.m. at Eden Prairie Center, Room 125. X. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Narayanan moved, seconded by Kaczmarek, to adjourn. Motion carried 7- 0. Chair Kaczmarek adjourned the meeting at 8:57 p.m.