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Home My WebLink About2015-02-09 HRC minutes Draft HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION of the City of Palm Springs Minutes from Feb. 9, 2015 Meeting COMMISSIONERS Present at this Meeting Present FY Year-to-Date FY 2014-15 Excused Absences FY 2014-15 Unexcused Absences Dee Dee Wilson Barton David Brown Jilska Chandrasena Janel Hunt Jack Newby Wes Rankins Suzanne Severin Deborah Sutton-Weiss Les Zendle Maddie Barton, Student rep. Maribel Wright, Student rep. X X X X 0 X X 0 X X 0 7 6 4 6 6 7 7 4 6 6 3 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 The above roll call record is based on all meeting Minutes from July 14, 2014 thru Feb. 9, 2015 1. Chair Wilson Barton called the meeting to order at 3:02 p.m. 2. Student Representative Maddie Barton led the flag salute. 3. Commissioner Chandrasena recited the Mission Statement. 4. Commissioners Present: Brown, Chandrasena, Hunt, Rankins, Severin, Wilson Barton and Zendle. Student representative Maddie Barton was also present. Commissioners Absent: Sutton-Weiss, excused; Newby, unexcused 5. POSTING OF THE AGENDA: The agenda was posted in accordance with the Brown Act on or before 6 p.m., on Feb. 4, 2015. 6. PUBLIC COMMENT: None 7. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE DEC. 8, 2014 AND JAN. 12, 2015 MEETINGS: Following a motion from Commissioner Zendle and second by Commissioner Hunt, the minutes from the Dec. 8, 2014 and the Jan. 12, 2015 HRC meetings were unanimously approved 7-0 (Vice Chair Newby and Commissioner Sutton-Weiss absent). 8. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/AND OR VOTE 8.A Participation in the Black History Month Parade, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015: Commissioner Hunt volunteered to complete and submit the application for the HRC to be in the parade and will serve as the Commission’s liaison to the parade. Chair Wilson Barton, Commissioners Brown, Chandrasen, Rankins, Severin and Zendle all said they could represent the HRC in the parade. Chair Wilson Barton will write the parade announcer’s script and provide her electric vehicle and music and Commissioner Severin will bring the HRC banner. Chair Wilson Barton will email information about the parade to Vice Chair Newby and Commissioner Sutton-Weiss who were not at the meeting. 8.B Participation in the Palm Springs Neighborhood Involvement Committee’s Picnic & Community Expo, Saturday, March 28, 2015: Commissioner Rankins volunteered to complete and submit the application for the HRC to have a booth at the event and Commissioner Brown volunteered to bring the table, popup and other items as well as hand-out materials. Which Commissioners will staff the booth will be decided at the Human Rights Commission Minutes Page 2 of 3 Meeting of Feb. 9, 2015 2 March HRC meeting. Chair Wilson Barton will update the Commission’s flier with information for April, May and June so it can be handed out at the event. Chair Wilson Barton will donate the funds for candy and Commissioner Rankins will buy it. 8.C Community Service Awards Critique and Review the Criteria for the Awards: Topics discussed included press efforts and response; possibility of a reception, promoting the event at a City Council meeting, having a professional photographer, printed invitations or an invitation template for email distribution, thank you notes, student involvement and attendance. Chair Wilson Barton said each Commissioner has a responsibility not only to nominate award recipients but also to invite people to attend. The Commission also discussed having the awards presentation in February instead of January. Although the Commission spent time critiquing the event to make it better, Commissioner Zendle noted that it was a very successful event. In discussing the number of awards, Chair Wilson Barton suggested limiting it to 10. Commissioner Zendle agreed that the goal should be to have 10 or fewer award recipients. Commissioner Rankins said the Commission should find out what other events are taking place in February that might compete for media coverage before moving the awards presentation to that month. The consensus was to check community calendars and look at moving the awards presentation to February. The topic will be on the HRC’s June agenda for a decision on when the awards presentation will be made. In reviewing the criteria for awards, Commissioner Zendle explained giving an award to a separate entity within a larger organization that has already received an award. 8.E Upcoming topic and focus of the Commission – March through July and Commissioner assignments – March through July: Commissioner Hunt has arranged for Allison Hayes, an administrator with the Riverside County Office of Education, to speak to the Commission about cultural proficiency. Ms Hayes will be the guest speaker at the March 8 HRC meeting. Commissioner Chandrasena said she has arranged for four agencies to address the Commission on the topic of disabilities – the Chamber of Commerce regarding Palm Springs hosting athletes who will be competing in the Special Olympics in Los Angeles, the Braille Institute, Veterans Affairs Office and Kathy Little, Special Education Director for the Palm Springs Unified School District. Commissioner Severin asked if the Commission could receive information before the meeting about the topic the guest speakers will be addressing. Two of the four speakers on the topic of disabilities will address the Commission in March and the other two in April. Chair Wilson Barton said she would contact Vice Chair Newby regarding the topic of AIDS/STDs in the high school for the June HRC meeting. Commissioners Hunt and Chandrasena left the meeting at 4 p.m. 8.D Mediation Services: Commissioner Severin said mediation training will be held from 6 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 11 in the Large Conference Room at City Hall. Commissioners Rankins, Hunt, Sutton- Weiss and Chandrasena have signed up for the training to be conducted by Commissioner Severin and former HRC Chair Jerry Trussell. Commissioner Severin said she and staff met with the City Attorney regarding expanding the Commission’s mediation services. He recommended the Commission’s expanded mediation focus on cases referred to the HRC by City departments. Commissioner Severin said this will give the Commission exposure as to the services it can provide to the City. After meeting with the City Attorney, Commissioner Severin said before the program begins, a discussion needs to take place first with the City Manager, then with City Department Directors and then what is being proposed needs to be presented to the City Council. 9. STUDENT COMMENTS: Student Representative Maddie Barton said on Jan. 21 the high school had a lock-down drill to practice what to do if a shooter were to be on the campus. Also, at the high school, more than 900 students earned academic awards, she said. The high school also added a new group counseling program in conjunction with Safe House of the Desert, she said. 10. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS: Commissioner Severin said she participated in the homeless count at the end of January. She also said that when Palm Springs got its Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index Score of 100 an article appeared in the newspaper with information about the cities that received a score of less than 100. She said she drafted a letter to Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage offering to share with them what the Palm Springs HRC does in an effort to increase their scores. The letters were signed by Chair Wilson Barton. Commissioner Rankins said he participated in the Day of Action that took Human Rights Commission Minutes Page 3 of 3 Meeting of Feb. 9, 2015 3 place at the James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center along with about 300 volunteers, Chelsea Clinton, Mayor Pougnet and City staff. He also spoke about upcoming Black History Month activities. Chair Wilson Barton praised Commissioner Severin for her work on the mediation program and Commissioner Zendle for his work chairing the Community Services Award subcommittee. 11. STAFF COMMENTS: None 12. AGENDA ITEMS FOR THE MARCH 9, 2015 HRC MEETING: The guest speaker for the month was discussed earlier in the meeting. 13. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 4:14 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lee A. Bonno Staff Human Rights Commission Liaison Director of Neighborhood & Community Relations