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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-12-18 DIAC Regular Meeting MinutesTHE CITY OF manna MINUTES DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ADVISORY COMMISSION SPECIAL CALLED MEETING 120 W. 7th St., Anna, TX 75409 Monday, December 18, 2023 @ 6:00 PM 1. Call to Order, Roll Call, and Establishment of Quorum. Theresa King -Bell called the meeting to order at 6:10 p.m. Commission Members Present: Theresa King -Bell, Elijah Nelms, Yoshanda Sims, and Glenn Brown. Quorum is present. Commission Members Absent: Dallen Morgan, Valencia Edwards and Rahul Luthra. Others in Attendance: Assistant City Manager Taylor Lough. 2. Invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. Glenn Brown provided an invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Neighbor's Input. Michael Penner of 628 Lilianna Lane in Anna Town Square participated in the fourth Neighbor Academy and encouraged the Commission to sponsor the program. Andrew Michrina of 902 Fulbourne Drive suggested Natural Springs Park stays a quiet, teaching and learning park. Mr. Michrina shared the amenities of various parks and programs in the community. He explained shuffleboard was replaced with cornhole at Slayter Creek Park. He suggested the City provide horseshoes and shuffleboard equipment for seniors to borrow as you can for fishing equipment. 4. Reports. a. Reintroduction of Commission and staff. Taylor Lough directed the Commission to a handout with the photos and bios of city management staff. Commission members present introduced themselves and why chose they to serve on the Commission. b. Commission information repository. Taylor Lough directed the Commission to the resources provided on the City Secretary's Office website. The agenda and related documents were shared electronically prior to the meeting. C. Current projects update. Taylor Lough reminded the Commission to provide input on the memorandum regarding the multicultural event by the end of the year. Staff is working with Project Unity for an agreement. The Youth in Government Day will be held on January 26 at the Anna Municipal Complex. Attendance, engagement, a survey sent after the event will indicate measures of success. For the youth employment program, the interns could provide a presentation to the Commission about what they learned and their suggestions for where the city may improve for future events. 5. Items for Individual Consideration a. Consider/Discuss/Act to draft a code of conduct for the Commission. Theresa King -Bell reminded the Commission about attendance requirements. Yoshanda Sims stated the Commission needs to enforce attendance and bring action to the Commission if a member is in violation. The Commission took no action. a. Consider/Discuss/Act to create a process to develop procedural guidelines for the Commission. Taylor Lough explained the recent reports to the City Council and read Section 3. Duties and Responsibilities. Yoshanda Sims asked that the Council liaison and staff provide updates and bring items for Commission advice. Theresa King -Bell made a motion to re -word this agenda item to "development of process flow and procedural guidelines" for the initiatives discussed by this commission. Elijiah seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion passed. b. Consider/Discuss/Act on meeting schedule. The Commission would like to keep the current frequency. Yoshanda Sims will not be able to attend the January 2024 meeting. c. Consider/Discuss/Act on approval of the minutes from the November 27, 2023 Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Commission meeting. Elijiah Nelms made a motion to approve the minutes. Theresa King -Bell seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion passed. 6. Future Consideration. a. Advise the City Council to celebrate that Anna neighbors from diverse backgrounds attended Neighbor Academy. Glenn Brown shared that he would like to recognize the neighbors from diverse backgrounds who participated and engaged in the Neighbor Academy. He would like to recognize and highlight the attendees and neighbors. He suggested the Council and Chair acknowledge neighbors at the multicultural event or on the TV in the Municipal Complex. Elijiah Nelms stated this may encourage more program participation. Glenn Brown asked for suggestions on how to rephrase. Theresa King -Bell made a motion to move this item to the next agenda for individual consideration. Glenn Brown seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion passed. d. Discuss the role of the city in acknowledging Pride month. Elijiah Nelms shared that this should be examined. Temple, Texas has a billboard with the shape of Texas with the Pride flag inside that states "We see you. You are welcome here." Yoshanda Sims shared may also fall within recognizing Black History Month or other recognition months. Elijah shared that the city recognizes Juneteenth as it is a federal holiday. Pride month is not federally recognized. Yoshanda Sims stated it would mean a lot to acknowledge Black History Month in monthly newsletters. Theresa King -Bell made a motion to add this individual consideration next month. Glenn Brown seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion passed. 7. Adjourn. Theresa King -Bell made adjourned the meeting at 7:55 p.m. Elijah Nelms seconded the motion. Theresa Ki g- ell, Chairperson faylor , o gh,�t ff li ison