2002_Human Rights Comm Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes, November 12, 2002 Present: Chair Thelma McKenzie, Mark Chapin, Steve Smith, Karen Vnuk, Larry Voeller, Howard Wagner and Steve Zorn Absent: Phillip Crump, Martha Hardesty and Hannah Neprash Staff: Carolyn Curti The meeting was called to order by Chair Thelma McKenzie at 7:00 p.m. Approve Minutes Steve Zorn moved to accept the minutes of October 8 as corrected to reflect that Mark Chapin acted as Parliamentarian at the League of Minnesota Human Rights Commissions Annual Meeting. Larry Voeller seconded the motion. Minutes of the previous meeting were approved. Essay Contest Update Commission members reviewed process to collect and evaluate essays. Howard Wagner agreed to pick up the essays from the schools. Carolyn Curti will copy and distribute an equal share of essays to all Commission members as soon as they become available. Members will read the essays and select their top three essays by the December 10 meeting. City staff will make copies of the top 30 essays and distribute. Commissioners will read the top 30 essays and rate before the January meeting. Winners will be selected at the January meeting. Winners will be honored at a City Council meeting in February. Commissioners discussed ways to thank teachers and to acknowledge essay contest participants. Carolyn Curti will find out the cost of placing an ad in the local newspaper. Committee Reports HRC Brochure - Steve Zorn discussed the current brochure. It does not say what the Commission does. Steve distributed some general suggestions for a brochure but said it may be too early to develop since the Commission is still defining itself. Howard Wagner asked what the purpose of the brochure is and how it will be distributed. Commissioners discussed the mission statement, and Mark Chapin pointed out the duties as prescribed by City Ordinance. Improving and Increasing Education and Outreach - Karen Vnuk reported that she and Phil Crump discussed improving the Commission's presence on the web. The Commission could add important links and include information about what the Commission is working on. This is an easy way to keep the community informed about what is going on. Carolyn Curti indicated that time constraints limit the amount oftime staff has to work on web pages, but if Commissioners provided appropriate links, staff would be able to add that information. Karen reported about the RAS Education Committee. She said the first meeting was very interesting and members are working very methodically. Currently they are discussing how people learn. The members are very committed to improving diversity.