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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-06-11-2020-min (Demographic Change Subcommittee)Town of Lexington Subcommittee on Demographic Change Minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday, June 11, 2013 Parker Room, Town Offices Present: Nancy Corcoran - Ronchetti, Pat Costello, Nirmala Garimella, Margaret Heitz, Albert Huang, Martin Hwang, Bhumip Khasnabish, Dan Krupka The meeting was called to order at 7:45 p.m. The minutes of the meeting held on May 14, 2013 were approved. Action items • Contact Minuteman regarding the idea of writing a series of articles modeled on "Immigrant Stories — Journey to Lexington" that appeared in that paper between July and August 2005 - Nancy • Look for the above articles, which may exist only on microfilm, on Factiva - Martin • Ask Carl Valente to alert several Department Managers that Margaret and Pat will be contacting them regarding updates on the status of activities associated with the Town's Asian residents that came up during their meetings with our subcommittee - Dan • Distribute relevant portions of the summary of responses from PTA and PTO members in advance of our July 8 meeting - Dan Interviews: Status, plans and assignments • We have completed 36 interviews — 20 of members of Town boards and committees, including four with members of Town Meeting. Only one remains to be completed. The number of interviews exceeds the target of "20 to 30" that we set for ourselves at the outset. Report preparation • Town committee management. A description of the current methods of Town committee management, sent to Dan by Candy McLaughlin, led to a discussion of the past efforts to provide information to newcomers to Lexington. The League of Women Voters had published a pamphlet for newcomers to Lexington, which may have been distributed through the Welcome Wagon, realtors, or both. But it was discontinued several years ago. That, in turn, led to the idea of small -scale gatherings in private homes to welcome newcomers, championed by Nirmala. Other, related methods include the Town Meeting Outreach Committee and a late- summer cookout, hosted by CAAL. • Minuteman article. Nirmala succeeded in tracking down an article published in the Lexington Minuteman regarding what attracts people to Lexington. She located it down with help of the Library's Reference desk. Because it was published before September 2005, it is available on microfilm and is thus inconvenient to distribute. Martin will attempt to track it down on Factiva so that it can be more easily distributed. Nancy will contact The Minuteman and suggest that the article be updated (Please see Action Items). If the Minuteman agrees, Margaret will not need to write the article that she had volunteered to develop. • Analysis of Interview findings. We discussed our individual analyses of the barriers to greater participation indicated by the "board and committee" interviewees. Our different perspectives and methods led us to conclude that the reasons are more complex and intertwined than we had imagined when we embarked on the study. A summary of our tentative conclusions, entitled "Initial assessment of barriers," is included as an appendix to these minutes, and may serve as a starting point for part of our report. Plans for next month's meeting We will repeat the analysis of interview findings, this time concentrating on the PTA /PTO responses. We will also work on preliminary recommendations. Next Meeting Our next meeting: Monday, July 8 in the Parker Room of the Town Offices. Please note change of date The meeting adjourned at 9:20 p.m. Minutes submitted by Dan Krupka PJ APPENDIX TO MINUTES FOR JUNE 11, 2013 Initial assessment of the barriers preventing greater participation of residents of Asian ancestry on Town boards and committees (June 12, 2013) Demographics • Although residents of Asian ancestry now represent about 20% of the Town's population, and fill only about 3% of slots on Town boards and committees and on Town Meeting, it is important to recognize that many are relatively new to Lexington. In 1990, they represented only 6.5% of the population. Thus, a comparison their current population with their participation in Town affairs is not entirely appropriate. • Although those of Chinese and Indian ancestry appear to be settling in as permanent residents, as evidenced by home sales and by their U.S. citizen status, the Koreans (3.2% of Lexington's population in 2010) tend to be temporary residents: A smaller percentage are naturalized citizens and the majority are renters. • The age profile for residents of Asian ancestry reveals that the adults are younger and have more children than mainstream residents. This may have the following consequences: o They devote more time to their families than mainstream adults with children, leaving little time for other activities o The pool of older Asian residents, who might have the time to devote to Town affairs, is considerably smaller than it would be if the age profiles for mainstream residents and those of Asian ancestry were the same • The majority of Asian couples are engineers and scientists with salaries that may not allow one spouse the time to participate in Town or school activities. Culture and language • Few interviewees cited language as a barrier. Since the majority of the Asian residents are professionals, they need to be sufficiently proficient in English to contribute effectively at work. • There is not a tradition of volunteerism in China and India. Some interviewees were surprised to learn that all Town government is in the hands of volunteers. • In Chinese tradition, academic and intellectual pursuits are perceived to have higher status than government service. Thus, since many in the Chinese community are highly educated, they may not wish to participate in Town affairs. • Some interviewees believe that residents of Chinese and Indian ancestry would be uncomfortable in heated debates that may arise in Town affairs • Many interviewees cited the need to acclimate — to feel comfortable in their new environment — before getting involved it Town affairs. In fact, although residents of Asian descent whom we interviewed had lived in the U.S.A. for a long time, a median of 27 years, the median time from arrival in Lexington to initial participation in Town affairs was 10 years. It is possible that their acclimation time may not differ significantly from that of the mainstream population. • There have been very few residents of Asian ancestry who have been elected to Town -wide office or to Town Meeting. Thus, there is a lack of visible role models. Awareness of Town government and opportunities to serve • Lack of familiarity with Town government and lack of information regarding opportunities to serve on volunteer boards and committees was one of the most frequently cited barriers. o There is no formal process for providing new arrivals with information about Lexington government and boards and committees o Although the Town web site lists boards and committees and their charters, it does not provide information on the skills required to be an effective member of the board or committee and does not describe members' responsibilities :l