City of
Human Relations Commission
November
28, 2007 Minutes
|
MEMBERS
PRESENT: |
Chair
Ernesto Hodison, Commissioners James Dunn, Bessie Walker, and Lori Tapahonso |
|
Vice-Chair
Barbara Hillmer, Commissioners Bob Augelli, Ray Chao, Kevin Johnson, and
Terri Wilke |
|
|
STAFF
PRESENT: |
Interim Director Toni Wheeler, Human Relations
Specialists Paul Winn, Michelle Smith, and Human Relations Associate Cynthia
Colbert |
|
STAFF
ABSENT: |
None |
|
PUBLIC
PRESENT: |
Mrs.
Nancy Dunn |
Chair Hodison
called the meeting of the Lawrence Human Relations Commission to order at 11:08
AM in the LHRD Conference Room.
ROLL
CALL
Roll call
revealed a quorum of the Commission was not present.
ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA FOR NOVEMBER 28, 2007
This item
was tabled until a quorum of the commission could be present.
ACCEPTANCE OF STAFF REPORT FOR AUGUST 1 TO OCTOBER
31, 2007
This item
was tabled until a quorum of the commission could be present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR MEETING OF AUGUST 15, 2007
This item
was tabled until a quorum of the commission could be present.
ELECTION OF CHAIR AND VICE-CHAIR
This item
was tabled until a quorum of the commission could be present.
OLD BUSINESS
Interim
Director Wheeler said the City Manager has authorized a position for the
department. The position would serve as Executive Director for the Commission
and would also be a staff attorney. She said the City is committed to having
the involvement of the LHRC in that process. To date, she has been working on
the job description. Director Wheeler said since this would be a hybrid position, she is utilizing the current Executive Director
job description to identify the key functions that need to be incorporated in
the new position of Staff Attorney / Executive Director. Once the job
description is ready for review, it will be shared with the LHRC members for
their input.
After
the development of the job description, a job opportunity bulletin will be
developed, which is standard practice for the City of
A
brief discussion ensued regarding the timeline for preparation of recruitment
materials.
Commissioner
Dunn asked about Director Wheeler’s comment regarding the review of cases.
Wheeler said she reviews cases when they are closed and the investigation is
complete. She has requested that certain documents be revised to more
accurately reflect compliance with department procedures. Dunn asked if that
means the procedures are changing. Wheeler said the procedures have not changed;
they are as stated in the City Code. Commissioner Dunn asked if her job has become
overwhelming, given the additional duties of Interim Director for the LHRC/HRD.
Wheeler said that this is a busy city and she is a busy person, but she
believes she has been able to be accessible to the staff and to provide
direction when it is required. She said
she does not believe the department is suffering during this interim/transition
period.
Commissioner
Walker asked if the intent is to keep the department located at 947
A
brief discussion ensued.
HUD/RECCR Training / August 22 – 24, 2007
HRS Smith said Human Relations staff and two LHRC members
attended the annual training, held in
Commissioner Walker said she really appreciated the session
she attended. She liked the fact that it was tracked separately for
commissioners and staff and enjoyed the commissioner session workshop on finding
and making a recommendation in cases; knowing what to look for. Chair Hodison
said he was in attendance as well, and felt it was very good training, and he
enjoyed having interaction with people across the region. He said interacting
with other agencies made him appreciate being in
A brief discussion ensued.
Equal
Opportunity Law Update Seminar 2007
HRS Winn said the training was held at the Holiday Inn and
had approximately 125 attendees. He noted some of the LHRC commissioners
attended and the training was excellent. HRS Winn added that excellent feedback
was received from those attending; they enjoyed the training. He said we did
not have as many people attending as in previous years and that is being looked
at closely. He said the seminar covered employment, mediation, and fair
housing. He noted the seminar provided for CME’s for
mediators, CLE’s for attorneys, and CEU’s for human resources professionals. He believes the
high number of available course credits continues to be a magnet bringing
professionals to the seminar. He thanked everyone who aided in making the
seminar a success. He said people attended not just from
Chair Hodison said he felt it was a very well put together,
professional seminar. He said the speakers were very good, especially so,
Attorney Alan Rupe. HRS Winn noted that Mr. Rupe has been one of the speakers
for several years past. He said many return attendees have mentioned enjoying
Alan Rupe’s presentations. Chair Hodison said Mr.
Rupe provided great information, good questions were asked of him, and there
was more interaction in his presentation. Chair Hodison said it’s helpful to
encourage people to provide feedback through the evaluation forms, so they can
be utilized in planning future seminars.
A brief discussion ensued.
Director Wheeler said she wanted to recognize Chair Hodison
since this is the first year the LHRC commissioners played a greater role in
introducing speakers as well as taking a more visible role in the seminar. She
said that’s important because that’s one of the most important functions Human
Relations provides and it’s one of the best ways to get our message out to the
community. Director Wheeler said she appreciated everyone’s willingness to
introduce speakers and noted that Chair Hodison, Vice-Chair Hillmer, and Commissioner
Terri Wilke were on hand to handle that task.
Director Wheeler said the staff is very open to hearing
from LHRC members about any areas for improvement. She affirmed that attendance
numbers are down 35% over last year and that is something the staff is
concerned about. She said the staff has talked internally about why that might
be happening and one explanation is that a lot of neighboring communities have
seen the success that we have enjoyed/have had with this seminar, are
reproducing it in their own communities, and that’s taking away from our attendance
base somewhat. Director Wheeler said the most sincere form of flattery is when
your program is copied in another community, but we should push ourselves to
identify ways to keep our program fresh and still make it something that is
attractive to our community. She encouraged anyone with ideas to share them
with staff, as they are certainly open to revamping it significantly if that is
the will of the commission.
Commissioner Lori Tapahonso arrived at 11:20 am.
Staff
Community Outreach Activities
HRS Winn said he has been involved with the annual Martin
Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration planning committee over the course of
this year and plans are being made for 4-5 different events in January. He said
the events will take place the third Monday in January and the days preceding
it. HRS Winn said the Monday events will include a breakfast and then a 6:30 pm
program at KU.
HRS Smith said she attended two events at Haskell. One was
for incoming students and another was for students studying in certain areas.
She said they went very well and generated a few housing complaints.
HRS Smith said plans are being made for the 2008 Fair
Housing Month activities, which include the Landlords Seminar and the Tenants
Fair Housing Information Fair. The events are scheduled for the last Friday and
Saturday in April. She said the facilities have been secured and she is now in
the process of securing presenters. HRS Smith said 2008 is the 40th year
for the Fair Housing Act. She said there will be a large event to commemorate
the occasion at the National HUD Policy Conference, April 9 – 13th,
2008.
Commissioner Tapahonso said there will be a Haskell
Highlight Night for incoming students in January 2008. She encouraged LHRC
members to attend. A brief discussion ensued regarding holding more outreach
activities for Haskell students.
HRS Smith said she is on the board of Housing and Credit
Counseling (HCCI) and their next meeting will be Thursday, December 6th
from 3:30 to 5:30 pm. She said instead of their regularly scheduled meeting,
they will have a mortgage/foreclosure prevention awareness focus group roundtable
meeting. She said anyone that would like to attend is welcome. She said if
anyone needs additional information to contact her.
COMMISSIONER’S COMMENTS
Commissioner Walker asked if the LHRC/HRD attends the
annual KHRA meetings held during the Kansas League of Municipalities
Conference. Director Wheeler said Human Relations staff does have a history of
attending. She noted HRS Smith had requested to attend another activity rather
than attend the KHRA meeting this year. Wheeler added that HRS Winn has in the
past, served on the KHRA board. Director Wheeler said she will see that LHRC
members are given notice of the meetings in advance so they may attend in the
future if they choose. She said it is usually held the first weekend in
October.
PUBLIC COMMENT
NONE
ADJOURNMENT
Chair Hodison noted there was not
a quorum at this meeting so he scheduled a special LRHC meeting for Wednesday,
December 12, 2007 at 11:00 am in order to convene a quorum and approve tabled
agenda items.
Meeting adjourned at 11:44 a.m.