Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities May 14, 2015, Minutes Commissioners Present: Luke Byram, Sheryl Ellis, JoAnn Fritsche, Todd Holloway, Roxanne Miles, Krystal Monteros, Gerrit Nyland, Gary Peterson Commissioners Absent: Susan Dye, Don Izenman Staff Present: Sandy Davis, Jerry Lee, Donlisa Scott, Julie Stoltman, Vicki Walker Guests Present: None Call to Order: Chair Nyland called the meeting to order at 4:00 pm. The agenda was approved. Joanne Fritsche motioned to accept the April 9th meeting minutes. Gary Peterson seconded the motion. The motion then carried with a correction made to the date of the CFI annual picnic to August 8, 2015. Public Comment > None Presentation Current Project and Future Plans – Office of Equity and Human Rights, Julie Stoltman. Sr. Policy Analyst, and Jerry Lee, EEO Officer > The City Council and the Mayor created the Office of Equity and Human Rights in January to see how we can serve the City of Tacoma. The Office of Equity and Human Rights has five goals that the Council adopted by resolution. 1) A workforce that reflects the community it serves. 2) Purposeful community outreach and engagement. 3) Equitable service delivery to all residents and visitors. 4) Support for human rights and opportunities for everyone to fulfill their potential 5) Equity in local government decision making; which includes all commissions and elected officials. > Additional initiatives that the Office of Equity and Human Rights are working on include: * My Brother’s Keeper Initiative * Welcoming Cities Initiative * Tacoma 2025 Strategic Plan > If anyone is interested in cultural awareness training, you can contact Jerry Lee or the Training Department. Sandy Davis will email the information regarding upcoming classes to the Commissioners. Reports: Commission Liaison Report – Sandy Davis > The banner has been ordered and Ms. Davis will bring it to the next COD meeting. > The Proclamation for the 25th Anniversary of the ADA was finalized by Media and Communications. Ms. Davis requested that it be read on July 21, 2015, and there will be a small reception prior to the reading. Ms. Davis will provide more information in the coming weeks. > The City of Destiny Award Night Volunteer Appreciation and Baseball event is scheduled on June 3, 2015, at Cheney Stadium. Invitations to the event will be sent to COD members early next week. > Updates to the COD handbook were provided to everyone. Human Resources Report – Joy St. Germain, Human Resources > Director St. Germain was absent and her update was read by Ms. Davis. A meeting was held on May 11th, with Chair Nyland, the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, the COD Liaison, Directors from Human Resources, Public Works, Information Technology, Finance, Neighborhood and Community Services, Environmental Services, Planning and Development Services, Tacoma Fire Departments, and the Media and Communications, and the Equity and Human Rights Offices. The purpose of the meeting was to check in on the status of the ongoing work with the City and the COD. Director St. Germain reported that as a ‘check in’ after last year’s transition of administrative support of COD to the HR department. An open, interactive, and productive discussion resulted. > New letterhead displays the logo that will be used for Commissions, Committees and Boards. You can view the member recruitment toolkit at the cityoftacoma.org/servetacoma website. > The COD asked about business cards, Ms. Davis stated she would look into ordering new cards for everyone that will have the Serve Tacoma logo. Business: 25th Anniversary Planning Update – Luke Byram, Roxanne Miles and Gerrit Nyland > Chair Nyland spoke to Director St. Germain regarding the reception that will be held prior to the reading of the proclamation. He would like each department to produce a poster of their accomplishments for the last 25 years. More information will be provided at the next COD meeting. > Commissioner Byram provided a sign-up sheet for anyone wanting to volunteer for the Ethnic Fest. > Vice-Chair Miles provided a letter that will be sent to agencies requesting their support at the Ethnic Fest. She will meet with the producers to establish what they will be doing at the festival. Commissioner Ellis, Commissioner Monteros, Commissioner Byram, and Chair Nyland agreed to volunteer. > Vice-Chair Miles provided drafts of six position papers that represent the COD’s positions and Sub-Committee areas: Accessible Taxis, Emergency Management, Mental Health, Person First Language, Parking, and Invisible Disabilities. Vice-Chair Miles will send the papers to everyone, collect feedback, and work with Ms. Davis for the Communications department to review. Social Media Objectives – Effective Communication Committee – Luke Byram > Commissioner Byram reported that the Effective Communication Committee met and discussed their goals concerning social media. It was agreed that the Commission must use the City’s official pages. They are not in a position to start a new Facebook page per City of Tacoma’s communication policy. At their next meeting they will review the City of Tacoma’s COD website for missing information or updates. > Commissioner Peterson thought that a brochure would be another way to advertise the COD. Commissioner Byram said that he would like to have time on the next agenda for the Effective Communication Committee to discuss a brochure for COD. Employment Discrimination Investigation Update – Gerrit Nyland > Chair Nyland shared that employment discrimination complaints have dropped. He met with Director St. Germain to discuss lack of discrimination complaints, captioning issues, and building codes. Chair Nyland is scheduled to meet on May 18th with the City Manager and other directors to discuss concerns. > Chair Nyland may decommission the ADA Web Accessibility team. They are at a point where they can report quarterly to the Effective Communication Committee. Good of the Order: > CFI Youth Transition Workshops will be held on July 13-17, in Lakewood, and August 17-21, in Kent at the Open Doors for Multicultural Families. > Nola Renz, the new director for TACID. She will start on June 8th. Meeting adjourned at 6:02 pm Next Commission on Disabilities meeting – June 11th, 2015 - 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm. 1 To request this information in an alternative format or to request a reasonable accommodation for this event, please contact Sandy Davis, (253) 591-5452; TTY 711 1 To request this information in an alternative format or to request a reasonable accommodation for this event, please contact Gail Himes, (253) 591-5785; TTY (253) 591-5153