College Park Seniors Committee

College Park Seniors Committee Virtual Meeting December 6, 2023 7:00 p.m. Draft Minutes Seniors Committee Members: PRESE ABSEN NT T 1. Woei-Nan Bair X 2. Adele Ellis X 3. Carol Gray X 4. Mary Anne Hakes X 5. Kathy Baer X 6. Gail Lovelace X 7. Bonnie McClellan X 8. Darlene Nowlin X 9. Arelis Perez X 10. Robert Thurston X Also present : Kiaisha Barber, Director of Youth and Family Services; Ryna Quinones, College Park Communications and Events Manager; David Segal, Guest; Joi Woods, Contract Secretary The meeting began at 7:02 p.m. I. Guest Speaker Ryna Quinones , College Park Communications and Events Manager A. Overview of the Communication and Events Department 1) Oversees media outreach and publications 2) Resident Guide [mailer], social media, press inquiries 3) Department includes: Events Coordinator, Graphic Designer, and Videographer B. The Community Survey Results and planning input 1) The survey offers insight from residents about city services, city functions, education and other benchmarks. The survey does not address or measure outcomes. Initiatives, goals, and outcomes are highlighted in the city’s strategic plan.  2) The survey is conducted every 2 years, the next survey is scheduled to launch next year Fall 2024. Quinones and the Committee discussed results from the 2021 city survey. a. The surveys are mailed to residents using geotags to ensure the surveys were equally distributed among each District b. There is an intentional focus on making the sampling process representative of College Park residents across each district 3) Survey items and the focus on communication a. Approximately 3500 residents were randomly selected through mailing. b. Approximately 80% of survey participants responded to a question about visiting the city’s website c. Approximately 49% of survey participants responded to a question about preferences to receive city information d. Interest in number of Seniors voting 4) Informing residents about the use of survey findings through mailings and press releases. Ryna Quinones noted that much of the survey data is used to establish areas for improvement and are incorporated into the strategic plan. 5) The committee discussed meeting with Ryna Quinones to add in questions to measure the city’s current communication methods, how residents receive information and their preferences a. Quinones noted possibilities to meet after the budget session in May 2024 C. City Website Updates 1) The city’s website is being updated to improve navigation throughout the site. a. Committee members offered feedback to enhance the website’s search capability. Quinones will share the feedback with the website service provider. b. A feature called Chatbot has recently been launched to assist with search functionality on the website. c. Exploring technical assistance opportunities to help residents navigate the city website through a partnership with CP Scholars  d. Committee members inquired about opportunities for the Seniors Committee and Aging in Place Committee to test the website prior to launching updates and provide feedback from the perspective of residents who are aging in place.  Ryna Quinones will inquire about a beta test for the site D. City Communications beyond the website- The College Park Here and Now and Municipal Scene 1) Committee members inquired about contributing information in the publications to keep residents informed about the efforts of the Age Friendly College Park Initiative, Neighbors Helping Neighbors CP, and the Senior Advisory Committee. a. Seniors Committee members were invited to contribute posts along with information on seasonal topics for the Municipal Scene for Senior Residents each month. The Municipal Scene is not “space” limited, allowing for videos, photos, et al unlike CP Here and Now and website.  Committee members discussed topics including: emergency preparation, AARP Livability Workgroup Updates, and information along with information geared towards residents aging in place b. Quinones invited committee members share other known avenues to distribute city information  Committee members requested to receive written due dates for contributions to city publications. The due dates for the College Park Here and Now and Municipal Scene is the 20th of each month. E. Seniors’ Page The group discussed options and criteria to create a Seniors page on the city’s website and in the Resident GUIDE with links to senior resources. F. Using message boards in strategic locations throughout the city to disseminate information in English and Spanish. G. Emergency Preparedness Plan UMD Graduate Students have completed the draft plan; it will be submitted the week of 12/11/23. 1) Bonnie McClellan will submit the plan draft for review by Ryna Quinones about the use of the city seal, imagery, and copyright compliance. Quinones requested the contact information of the plan creators. H. Collaborating with the Communication and Events Department  The group discussed protocols and logistics related to city communications and events. All efforts flow through Kiaisha Barber, Committee Liaison to the Communications and Events Department. 1) Posts for publications and other requests to disseminate information will be submitted to Barber and forwarded to Quinones. 2) The group discussed considerations to collaborate with the Events Coordinator in hosting events including a committee point person for the event and budget costs. 3) Committee members requested a copy of the city’s communication plan for distribution to the Age Friendly College Park Communication Committee. Ryna Quinones noted that the plan may be for internal purposes, but will check and will follow up with the committee. II. Call to Order Mary Anne Hakes called the meeting to order at 8:06 p.m. III. Approval of Agenda for December 6, 2023 Adele Ellis motioned to approve the agenda for December 6, 2023 as amended . Arelis Perez seconded the motion. All were in favor, none opposed. The motion passed. IV. Approval of November 1, 2023 Minutes Bonnie McClellan motioned to approve the November 1, 2023 minutes as amended. Adele Ellis seconded the motion. All were in favor, none opposed. The motion passed. VII. Neighbors Helping Neighbors College Park (NHN-CP) A. Arelis Perez shared highlights from the Volunteer Appreciation event hosted at Azteca Restaurant Cantina B. Current priorities include: 1) Acquiring 3 new board members and additional volunteers 2) Acquiring an Outreach Director, Volunteer Coordinator, and Secretary  Arelis Perez will forward the bi-laws that contain position descriptions to share with potential candidates C. Current efforts include: 3) A Senior Volunteer is interested in conducting home visits for shut-in residents 4) Thelma Martin, Board member will be conducting Senior Wellness check in calls VIII. Age Friendly College Park Action Plan A. The AARP Livability Community Initiative is now called [The] “Age- Friendly College Park” B. A January meeting is scheduled with Jim Holtz, from AARP to focus on setting priorities with performance measures for the Age Friendly College Park initiative. 1) Committee members are seeking to incorporate information about other initiatives that align with Age Friendly College Park to provide a total picture of all initiatives in College Park. C. Emergency Preparedness presentation is scheduled to occur on 12/7/23. Bonnie McClellan requested that it be recorded and shared. D. Exploring options for CP Scholars to provide support for senior residents to use Technology in association with the Communication domain E. Age Friendly University Discussion postponed F. Grant Opportunities were explored at the November workgroup meeting with Rocky, City Grant Writer. G. Group members reminded of the importance of continuing to track domain actions initiated and completed. IX. Additional Discussion – Attick Towers A. Arelis Perez noted that HACCP received a Maryland “Get Connected” grant that afforded 50 residents from Attick Towers with Chrome Books and 1 year of technical assistant after being invited by the City of Greenbelt to be included with their application. An invite was also extended to Spellman House. B. Clarice Performing Arts Center UM and Attick Towers partnered to provide opportunity for residents to attend selected concerts on campus. Free admission and shuttles were provided by the University. 13 residents participated. An additional 2 events are planned for December. New Business X. Annual Report Mary Anne Hakes noted that the annual report has been submitted. XII. City Updates- Youth, Family and Seniors Services ( YSF) A. Renovations at St. Andrews Episcopal Rectory are nearing completion B. YFSS acquired a new Case Manager and Driver C. YFSS still looking for activity spaces XIII. Meeting Schedule and Guest Speakers A. The next meeting is scheduled February 7, 2024. B. Future Guest Speakers 1) Jennifer L. Crawley, Maryland Department of Aging - February 2024 a. Arelis Perez will follow up to invite Jennifer L. Crawley 2) Gloria Aparicio Blackwell - Director of Community Engagement, UMD- March 2024 3) Danielle Glaros 4) Andy Fellows 5) Tom Dernoga, District 1 XI. Adjournment Arelis Perez motioned to adjourn the meeting . Gail Lovelace seconded the motion. All were in favor, none opposed. The motion passed. The meeting was adjourned at 8:58 p.m.