Town and Gown Committee

TOWN AND GOWN COMMITTEE MEETING 12:00pm TUESDAY – MARCH 12, 2024 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE ROOM MINUTES I. Call to Order Chairman Steve Mallon welcomed everyone and called the meeting to order at 12:08p.m. II. Roll Call Chair Mallon asked the Clerk to call the roll: Members Present: Tina Banks-Gray, Nicole Clark, Brian DeProfio, Novelle Dickenson, Dana Epstein, Mary Fugere, Carolene Goodwyn-Harris, Kellie Goral, Steve Mallon, Glenn Oder, Jennifer Oliver, Richelle Payne, Pam Richardson, Tracy Staten Guests Present: Angela Haywood (Bryant & Stratton) Staff Present: Shu Mohammad, Annette Oakley (City Manager’s Office) III. Approval of Minutes Chair Mallon stated the February 13, 2024 minutes were distributed for review and if there are no changes, called for a motion to approve. Tina Banks-Gray made the motion to approve the minutes and Novelle Dickenson seconded. A vote was taken and motion passed. IV. Election of Vice Chairman On behalf of the Nominating Committee, Mary Fugere reported they would like to nominate Tracy Staten to serve as Vice Chair. There being no additional nominations, Chair Mallon called for the vote; all in favor and motion passed. Chair Mallon congratulated Tracy Staten! V. Key Updates: ➢ Bryant & Stratton – Carolene Goodwyn-Harris/Angela Haywood • Carolene reported Bryant and Stratton has a great opportunity to impact the early childhood education profession with a CDA Exam Prep Bootcamp. There will be a meet and greet on Monday, March 18th in Virginia Beach and Wednesday, March 20th in Hampton. She provided event flyers (copy on file). • Angela reported the upcoming 3rd Annual Women’s History Symposium on Thursday, March 21st at 5:30pm. The event will take place at their Hampton campus and the three panelists are Captain Janet Days, Michele Ellis Young, and Mary Bunting. She provided flyers (copy of file) and encouraged all to attend. Angela also reported the Bryant & Stratton Lady Bobcats (basketball) are the NJCAA Region 10 and South Atlantic District Division 2 Champions! Carolene also noted their coach was named Coach of the Year! ➢ Hampton Conventions and Visitor’s Bureau – Mary Fugere reported on the following • Upcoming events: o March 13 – St. Patrick’s Day concert ‘Poisoned Dwarf’ at The History Museum  o March 15-17 – Hampton Roads Tattoo at the Hampton Roads Convention Center o March 16 – ‘Are you Smarter Than an 8th Grade Nun’ at The American Theatre o March 16 – Langley Speedway’s Spring Day of Destruction o March 16 & 17 – Reptile and Pet Show at the Hampton Roads Convention Center o March 24 – Soundscapes Peninsula Youth Orchestra at The American Theatre • Several gymnastic competitions and basketball games will be held at Boo Williams • Several swim meets were recently held at The Aquaplex Mary mentioned she tried to join the International Town & Gown Association (ITGA), however they were having some online issues, so she will attempt to join again. The purpose is to observe best practices by other organizations and communities and get new ideas of ways we can work together. Chair Mallon mentioned he was talking to a member earlier about the committee bylaws and purpose. He noted the S.W.O.T. exercise the committee did several years ago with Chair Bob McKenna. He suggested that we take a look at those again, learn some things by joining the ITGA and set a course for the future of the committee. ➢ Human Resources – Nicole Clark reported they have launched the new Internship Program and have received 97 applications. She thanked everyone for spreading the word to students and supporting this initiative. She will keep the committee posted as it progresses. ➢ Hampton City Schools – Tina Banks-Gray/Kellie Goral • Tina reported on the following: o March 13 & 20 - School Board will hold Public Hearings for the FY24-25 budget and scheduled to vote on the Superintendent’s proposed budget March 27. o March 13 - Hosting ‘Commitment to Graduate’ Ceremony for Class of 2027, regarding 9th graders commitment to graduate from high school in four years. o March 21 - Project Based Learning Showcase (PBL), which is connecting content and skills between disciplines and collaboration with community partners. It will be held at Hampton High School from 9:30am-1:30pm. o March 21 - Hosting ‘Teacher of the Year Banquet’ at The Landing Hampton Marina. Novelle inquired about the Fine Arts as it relates to the budget. Kellie mentioned the news has reported other localities cutting positions, but gave assurance the Arts for Hampton students are still supported 100%. She mentioned several upcoming Art events/activities. • Jennifer reported they are excited to support the United Way Campaign and their goal is $25,000. She reported they started yesterday and have already raised $7,000! After Spring Break, HCS will be celebrating The Month of the Military Child. They are also working towards Hampton being a Purple Star District. Many fun activities are being planned, such as purple t-shirts, lawn signs, and serving purple foods for lunch. They will be working with the City, VASSC, HRCC, CVB and Fort Monroe to light up the various locations in purple. • Kellie provided a flyer regarding the first phase of the schools budget, which is based on the Governor’s budget. In addition to the Governor’s proposal, HCS is proposing a 2% compensation raise. She mentioned health insurance will be going up 21% this year, but HCS will have no increase in contributions for staff. She thanked the City of Hampton for the collaboration with the schools in helping to balance the budget. She will bring the  revised budget to the next meeting. Kellie reported Kecoughtan High School Boys Indoor Track won the Class-5 State Championship and will be recognized at the School Board meeting. Also, an individual athlete at Bethel won long-jump State Championship and Hampton High School Crabbers brought home the State Championship Class-4 in basketball. Kellie reported HCS is bringing back full-time custodians, instead of contracting services out. She stated positions will be 12-month and include paid sick and vacation, health, dental, and vision insurance. She will provide a flyer regarding upcoming hiring events and if committee members know of anyone interested, please encourage them to apply. ➢ Grey Goose/The Baker’s Wife – Dana Epstein mentioned, in regards to the swim meets at The Aquaplex, she had several catering opportunities and heard great reviews about the facility. She is looking forward to the various events that bring a large volume of people to Hampton, noting an upcoming concert in May. She also mentioned there will be a choir concert on Palm Sunday at 4:00pm at St. Johns’ Church and invited all to come. She stated The Baker’s Wife has an event on the first Sundays of each month, called Sunday Suppers and encouraged all to come out and try the new menu. ➢ Workforce Council - Tracy Staten reported they have many participants coming into the office who are interested in the Virginia Technical Academy for electrical, plumbing, and HVAC. ➢ City Manager’s Office – Brian DeProfio/Shu Mohammad • Shu mentioned the Hampton budget input survey will be online through March 20th and encouraged all to visit the website. • Brian also encouraged all to take the online polling to give input on the Budget. He reported on the following budget items: o Two public budget input sessions were held last week and there will be a Facebook Live session tonight at 6:30pm. o February 28 - City Council held a Budget Retreat meeting and staff received feedback and are now gathering public input. o April 10 - Budget Preview o April 15 - City Manager releases Recommended Budget o April 24 & May 1 - Public Hearings on the Budget o May 8 - Final budget reading and adoption Brian also reported on some of the following City projects: o Downtown Projects - Queensway landscaping improvements, Settlers Landing Road and Carousel Park improvements, as well as replacing the bulkhead off of King Street o Booker T. Washington - renovations to the pedestrian walkway o Darling Stadium - replacing track and turf o Air Power Park - repairs, renovations and drainage work o Hampton River dredging o Fire Station in Wythe (to be completed in the fall) ➢ Fort Monroe Authority: Glenn Oder reported on the following items: • Hosting Woman’s History Month tours, as well as daily Fort Monroe tours. He encouraged all to participate. • Water tower was removed; they set up a time-lapsed camera to capture the process.  • The Governor’s budget includes $50 million for Fort Monroe infrastructure improvements, which is very significant. It will be about 3-5 years of construction taking place. The Governor also included $2.5 million in the budget for The African Landing memorial. He mentioned the project includes a park, sculptures, parking, a plaza, etc. and will have national and international significance. • They are planning the largest concert series this summer, with great music and hot dogs! • Two Easter Sunrise Services; Chapel of the Centurion at Continental Park, and a York County church will host a service at Outlook Beach. • FMA has enjoyed partnerships with the Town and Gown Committee, particularly with Hampton University. They recently held a pizza party with students and professors and did a presentation on The African Landing. ➢ Hampton University - (Pam Richardson/Richelle Payne/Novelle Dickenson): • Richelle stated being on the Town & Gown Committee has been very helpful; she has met several people and looks forward to meeting and working with others. She reported on upcoming events: o June 2-6 - Launching a School of Religion Conference o School of Pharmacy is excepting applications and will be expanding the curriculum. o March 27 - Partnered with The Smithsonian on a God-talk film, which is an exploration for expressions of faith conversations. o March 29 - Day of Giving – encouraged all to go online and give to higher education. o April 2 - HU Online is having a Virtual Recruiting Fair o April 6 - National Association of Dramatic and Speech Arts Conference o March 23 - Tickets go on sale for The Jazz & Music Festival at the Hampton Coliseum. Each night local bands to open the concert. • Novelle Dickenson reported next Wednesday, HU will launch the 42nd Annual Conference of The Black Family and gave background on the creation and purpose of the conference. There will be an opening session at Ogden Hall, honoring Lt. General Darrell Williams and his wife. There will also be work sessions, speakers and a closing luncheon. He encouraged committee members to attend. Novelle also mentioned the Choir Guild will perform at the Minister’s Conference in June. • Pam Richardson reported on the following: o Retool Your School Project – She encouraged all to go online to vote for HU through Home Depot until March 24 at retoolyourschool.com. The money raised for the project helps HU with various improvements. o March 29 - Day of Giving; there will be on-campus events and presentations – visit the HU website for information. o May 10-12 - Reunion & graduation weekend, with vendors and activities. Class of 83’ reunion will be held at The Vanguard. o September 7 - Alumni Day with the first home football game. o Spring sports has started - Lacrosse, baseball and track are underway. She invited all to come out and support the teams. o Sponsorship packages will be out soon for Homecoming (October 26) – they are revamping some of their offerings and are looking for partnerships.  ➢ Downtown Hampton Development Partnership (DHDP) – Steve Mallon reported DHDP has been working closely with the City on several projects, identifying key projects and activities that will enhance the Downtown area. One project, in particular, is improvements to Settlers Landing Road, creating a more pedestrian-friendly environment -- making it more of a main street, as opposed to a thoroughfare. He reported on the upcoming events: • April 20 - Mosaic Festival • May 31-June 2 - Blackbeard Festival • June/July/August - Block Parties • July 4 - plans for a celebration in Downtown VI. Next Meeting: The next meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2024. VII. Adjourn: There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.