Minutes - Salmon Bay*Diversity Focus Group Retreat
August 30, 2005
Present:
Jane Enterline, Irene Haddow, Nancy Kalos-Nakono, Kelly Delaney
Jane Enterline hosted a diversity focus group (*formally called diversity parent team or core group) at her Mount Rainier cabin where we discussed some of the previously tabled Diversity Committee agenda items from May 11- June 1, 2005
Middle School Student
Representation on Committee:
Nancy asked for clarification on the committee’s purpose.
·
We read the 1999-2000 Diversity Committee Mission Statement and agreed
to brainstorm and revise it at our first Diversity Committee planning meeting 9/21/05.
How our committee
conducts itself - discussion and plans:
Discussion:
· Irene is the Diversity Committee Chair and will maintain this position until someone else says they are interested in chairing, or Irene resigns- whichever comes first. There will be a six month transition period in either case. Irene will continue representing the committee at FOSBE meetings in 05-06.
·
Kelly Delaney is taking Julia Berg's place as scribe for the 05-06
school year to 1) help the committee while Julia focuses on parenting her new
daughter, and 2) to practice listening more and talking less. She is interested in sharing the position if
anyone else will help scribe. Kelly will represent the committee at middle
school PTA meetings. She is interested
in sharing this task as well.
· Diversity Committee planning meetings have been happening every one to three months and are open to all staff members and faculty, parents and guardians, and now, as noted above, middle school students. Meeting dates are posted in both elementary and middle school weekly bulletins.
· Irene explained that anyone at anytime is welcome to these meetings and can make proposals to address and explore diversity issues at Salmon Bay. The goal is to provide moral and task support to anyone who chooses to lead a diversity issue, project, or event at SB.
· (Diversity focus group discussion/support meetings have been happening one to two times a month) scribe’s note
· Jane said it is important that diversity focus groups don’t decide the committee’s agenda, and asked why we don’t just have committee meetings with project teams to carry out diversity work.
· Kelly said that for many parents/guardians it has been important to have a place to discuss, without an agenda or an authority figure, diversity issues pertaining to our kid’s education and community- in order to organize from a grassroots perspective. Project teams just naturally formed out of meetings like these and carried over to the larger committee. It was the passion behind that process that some found most meaningful.
·
Nancy said we need checks and balances. What is said is honest...or
should
be in a place where one feels safe and will receive the respect for voicing
a sensitive issue. Sometimes people
will fee afraid or intimidated in a large public setting....so having the
opportunity to speak frankly or bring up an issue can be told to someone in
confidence.
Plans:
·
Each month have either a Diversity Committee meeting or a Parent Ed.
night.
·
Have one diversity focus group daytime meeting each month.
· Announce times and post minutes of
all meetings.
How is our committee
progress measured?
·
Increased community participation in parent education
events.
·
Increased involvement in focus groups and committee
meetings.
Do we want to apply
for grants to develop curriculum?
·
We discussed the fact that $2000 was secured at the 04’-05’board retreat
from FoSBE for Diversity Art Works, which is now a curriculum based diversity
project. Judy Bierman requested a hold
be put on that money until she could more accurately assess how much the team
will need.
·
It is probable that this is a good project for a matching grant.
· Nancy is interested in writing piggy-back grants for projects that overlap; ie…
· Cultural Exchange program with science or history program. (Scribe’s example??)
· Nancy feels we need a current and relevant mission statement before grant-writing research can begin.
Projects and Tasks:
Contemporary American Indian Cultures Library Books
Project
Irene
Tasks still need to be divided:
– Obtain a list of all American Indian books that the Norine Gann Library owns.
– Find out
what Ginny and Linda recommend for contemporary American Indian studies.
– Contact
Pathfinder librarian to obtain a list of their recommendations.
– Contact Nancy for a list of Daybreak Star’s recommendations.
– Compile a master list for Ginny and Linda to review.
– Place order.
Diversity Committee Summit
Irene and Jane
- Compile Diversity Committee Summit surveys and contact info.
- Write Thank You e-mail to Summit attendees.
Recruitment
Jane
- Gather names of volunteers who are interested in diversity work from Marie Kirsch.
Irene and Kelly
- Attend Elementary Parent Information Night
and pass out buttons, bookmarks, and
diversity history/meeting dates info.
Everybody
- Invite ten people to Diversity
Committee meetings.
Task List Template
Nancy
- Format a task list template that we can use to organize, from end to beginning, the time and task frame for large Diversity Committee events.
History of Salmon Bay Diversity Committee
Kelly - Write a brief history of Salmon Bay Diversity Committee for parent information night and Fish Wrapper
Other Ideas
Kelly
- Talk
with Michael about the Asburgers Program and its role in community diversity.
Task leaders needed for these
ideas
-Have a diversity page in the Fish Wrapper, which might include committee history, milestones, current work, events, and meeting dates.
-Ask school councilor Anthony if he will work with the committee on an event about family diversity.
The minutes are submitted –
Kelly Delaney