Cultural & Social Awareness Commission

MINUTES CITY OF WOODSTOCK CULTURAL AND SOCIAL AWARENESS COMMISSION May 2, 2022 A Special Meeting of the City of Woodstock Cultural and Social Awareness Commission was called to order by Chairperson Juanita Vega at 5:34PM on Monday, May 2, 2022, in the Council Chambers at Woodstock City Hall. The meeting was appropriately noticed and all members of the Commission and members of the media requesting such were notified at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting. A roll call was taken. COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENT: Abdul Akel, John Kendall, Crystal Squires, Joe Starzynski, and Chairperson Juanita Vega. COMMISSION MEMBERS ABSENT: Jose Rivera and Kerry Smith STAFF PRESENT: Human Resources Director/Staff Liaison Deb Schober and City Clerk Cindy Smiley ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES Motion by J. Starzynski, second by J. Kendall, to accept the minutes of the April 12, 2022 meeting as presented. Ayes: Akel, Kendall, Squires, Starzynski, and Chairperson Vega. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: Rivera and Smith. Motion carried. 4. DISCUSSION ITEMS A general discussion of the items on the agenda took place with all Commissioners and Ms. Schober participating. Chairperson Vega yielded the floor to Commissioner Squires. Commissioner Squires stated the first item is Discussion and Approval of the Cultural and Social Awareness Commission 2022 Plan. She noted the Plan has been updated to reflect the Commission’s discussion at the last meeting stating it may be adjusted as the Commission gets into the Plan. Chairperson Vega thanked Commissioner Squires for her work on the Plan and Commissioner Kendall for bringing together the information on event opportunities, opining they are fantastic. Ms. Schober stated she has spoken with Executive Director Danielle Gulli regarding the possibility of including the survey as part of the information gathering portion of the Branding and Comprehensive Plan initiatives, noting the City Council’s concern about survey fatigue. She stated Ms. Gulli confirmed a survey will go out sometime within the next nine months as part of the Branding initiative but stated the Commission would only be allowed placement of two questions on that survey. Ms. Schober stated, in addition, that is not soon enough to accommodate the CSA Plan timeline. She stated if the Commission wishes to put out a separate survey, it should be done sooner rather than later, to avoid running into the Branding initiative survey. Ms. Schober stated, further, Ms. Gulli indicated that people will not participate in a survey with more than ten questions.  Cultural and Social Awareness Commission 05/02/22 Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 3 Brief discussion ensued of the revised Plan and its timeline. Motion by J. Starzynski, second by J. Kendall, to approve the Cultural and Social Awareness Commission 2022 Plan. Ayes: Kendall, Akel, Squires, Starzynski, and Chairperson Vega. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: Rivera and Smith. Motion carried. Discussion then ensued of the draft survey questions as presented by Commissioner Squires. It was suggested to refrain from asking questions specific to individual City departments. Chairperson Vega suggested it would be better to ask people how they feel about diversity, equity, and/or inclusion in the community, particularly asking if they feel included and how they feel about diversity in the community. Commissioner Squires opined there should be a couple of questions about how the City actively deals with diversity to know if there is anything the City should be working on. It was opined department-specific questions could be addressed later should something surface to indicate it is needed. Commissioner Akel suggested including a space for comments. Lengthy discussion followed of the questions including the number of questions and paring them down to a number which would elicit the most participation in the survey and avoid survey fatigue. The Commission discussed what type of information the Commission is wishing to gain from the survey. They agreed to ten questions and worked to eliminate certain questions and combine others to reach ten. Commissioner Squires stated she will rewrite the questions to reflect the discussion and send to Ms. Schober for dissemination to the Commission members for their review. Commissioner Akel left the proceedings and exited the Council Chambers at 6:03PM. Discussion then ensued of dissemination of the survey. Commissioner Squires stated, once the questions are approved, she will create the survey using Survey Monkey. It was agreed to create a half-sheet/quarter-sheet or postcard containing a QR code by which the public can access the survey. Participation will be solicited in the following ways: by Commission members at public events, as identified by Commissioner Kendall; survey will be placed on Facebook and the website; survey/QR sheets will be distributed to organizations and agencies; and the Chamber of Commerce/Real Woodstock will be contacted. Discussion ensued of presentation of the Plan to the City Council for approval at the May 17 meeting. Ms. Schober provided guidance on the appropriate information to be included in the report for the Council. Commissioner Squires stated she will prepare a presentation for the Council on the Plan and the survey, including the questions on the survey and how it will be disseminated, getting it to Ms. Schober by the end of this week. It was the consensus of the Commission to defer discussion of the Plan tasks and responsibilities until the project is approved by the City Council. NEXT MEETING DATE  Cultural and Social Awareness Commission 05/02/22 Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 3 It was the consensus of the Commission to hold a Special Meeting on Monday, May 23, 2022 at 5:30PM to finalize the project and prepare for dissemination of the survey at the Memorial Day Parade. PUBLIC COMMENT There was no comment forthcoming from the Public. ADJOURN Motion by J. Starzynski, second by J. Kendall, to adjourn this Special Meeting of the Cultural and Social Awareness Commission to a Special Meeting at 5:30PM on Monday, May 23, 2022 in the Council Chambers at Woodstock City Hall. Ayes: Kendall, Squires, Starzynski, and Chairperson Vega. Nays: none. Abstentions: none. Absentees: Akel, Rivera and Smith. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 6:29PM. Respectfully submitted, Cindy Smiley, City Clerk