HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-12-13-Vision2020demochange rpt (Final Report) CIVIC PARTICIPATION BY ASIAN
RESIDENTS OF LEXINGTON :
EXPERIENCES, FINDINGS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Subcommittee on Demographic Change
Lexington 2020 Vision Committee
Final, December 13, 2013
Table of Contents
ExecutiveSummary........................................................................................................................6
Introduction...................................................................................................................................9
Background...........................................................................................................................................9
SubcommitteeCharge ..........................................................................................................................9
Subcommittee membership ...............................................................................................................10
Subcommitteeactivities .....................................................................................................................10
Outlineof the report...........................................................................................................................11
Anote on our terminology..................................................................................................................11
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents....................................................................12
Lexington's Asian population..............................................................................................................12
Breakdown of Lexington's Asian population ......................................................................................12
Residents of Asian origins in Lexington and neighboring communities.............................................13
Asian populations in Lexington schools and in school districts with large Asian population.............14
Percentage of Asian students by school.............................................................................................14
Ageprofiles.........................................................................................................................................15
Citizenshipand nativity.......................................................................................................................15
Englishproficiency..............................................................................................................................16
Educational attainment and income...................................................................................................18
Asian community associations............................................................................................................19
Participationin Town affairs...............................................................................................................20
Factors attracting Asians to Lexington...........................................................................................22
Subcommitteecharge.........................................................................................................................22
1
Methodology.......................................................................................................................................22
Factors that attract Asian-Americans to Lexington ............................................................................22
Likely permanent residents vs. transient residents............................................................................23
Barriers to participation in Town affairs........................................................................................25
SubcommitteeCharge ........................................................................................................................25
Methodology.......................................................................................................................................25
Findingsand Analysis..........................................................................................................................26
Assessment of our methodology regarding the identification of barriers .........................................35
Activities or events to increase the community's inclusion of Asian-Americans..............................37
Subcommitteecharge.........................................................................................................................37
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools................................................38
Subcommitteecharge.........................................................................................................................38
Methodology.......................................................................................................................................38
Findings-Summary.............................................................................................................................38
DetailedFindings.................................................................................................................................39
Steps taken by Massachusetts communities to increase inclusion..................................................46
Subcommitteecharge.........................................................................................................................46
Methodology.......................................................................................................................................46
Findings...............................................................................................................................................47
Recommendations.......................................................................................................................48
Recommendations regarding reducing barriers to civic participation by Asian residents.................48
Other recommendations.....................................................................................................................50
Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................52
Appendix A—Subcommittee Charter............................................................................................54
Appendix B—Background data collection sheet ............................................................................55
2
Appendix C—Interview Guide for those who are serving or have served on elected bodies or
committees..................................................................................................................................56
Appendix D—Interview guide for those who are serving or who have served on PTAs, PTOs and
LexFun.........................................................................................................................................58
Appendix E—Letter of consent.....................................................................................................60
Appendix F—Process for interviewers...........................................................................................61
Appendix G—Evidence that Asian residents are staying on in Lexington after their children leave
home...........................................................................................................................................62
List of figures
Figure 1 - Massachusetts communities with the highest percentages of Asian residents.........................12
Figure 2 - Breakdown by origin of Lexington's Asian residents..................................................................13
Figure 3 - Evolution of Asian populations in Lexington and neighboring communities.............................13
Figure 4- Percentage of students of Asian origin in Lexington Public Schools (2012-2013)......................14
Figure 5 -Age profiles of Lexington's Asian and non-Asian residents in 2010...........................................15
Figure 6-Citizenship and Nativity of Chinese, Indian and Korean residents 18 and over in 2000 and 2010
....................................................................................................................................................................16
Figure 7 -Self-assessed English proficiency of Chinese residents over the age of five..............................16
Figure 8-Self-assessed English proficiency of Indian residents over the age of five.................................17
Figure 9 -Self-assessed English proficiency of Korean residents over the age of five ...............................17
Figure 10- Educational attainment for residents 25 years of age and older.............................................18
Figure 11-Top reason for moving to Lexington cited by 29 interview subjects........................................22
3
Figure 12- Percentage of all reasons for moving to Lexington cited by 29 interview subjects.................23
Figure 13 - Percentage of responses given by interview subjects who served on elected bodies and
committees to the questions: "What did you enjoy most about serving on the board/committee?" and
"How did you personally benefit from serving on the board/committee?" ..............................................28
Figure 14- Percentage of responses given by interview subjects who served on PTA and PTO boards to
the questions: "What did you enjoy most about serving on the board/committee?" and "How did you
personally benefit from serving on the board/committee?".....................................................................29
Figure 15 - Percentage of responses given by those who served on Town bodies regarding the nature of
barriers impeding civic participation by Asian residents............................................................................31
Figure 16- Percentage of responses given by those who served on PTA and PTO boards regarding the
nature of barriers impeding civic participation by Asian residents............................................................32
Figure 17—Age profiles for"Asian alone" residents,for all other residents and for elected officials and
for volunteers only(20 years and older) ....................................................................................................33
Figure 18- Percentage of residents with Asian ancestry in several communities in the Greater Boston
area.............................................................................................................................................................46
List of tables
Table 1- Massachusetts school systems with the highest percentage of students of Asian origin by
schoolyear..................................................................................................................................................14
Table 2- Participation of Asian residents on Lexington's elected bodies and committees .......................20
Table 3- Participation by Asian parents on PTA and PTO boards of Lexington's public schools (2012-
2013)...........................................................................................................................................................21
Table 4- Estimates of the percentage and number of Chinese, Indian and Korean adults likely to stay in
the USA, and thus Lexington, as long as any other non-Asian adult residents..........................................24
Table 5- Profile of interview subjects.........................................................................................................27
4
Table 6—Current and planned services and challenges in the Fire Department.John Wilson, Chief.......39
Table 7- Current and planned services and challenges in the Police Department. Mark Corr, Chief.......40
Table 8- Current and planned services and challenges in the Human Services Department. Charlotte
Rodgers, Director........................................................................................................................................41
Table 9- Current and planned services and challenges in the Health Department. Gerard Cody, Director
....................................................................................................................................................................42
Table 10-Current and planned services and challenges at Cary Memorial Library. Koren Stembridge,
Director.......................................................................................................................................................43
Table 11 -Current and planned services and challenges in the Recreation Department. Karen Simmons,
Director.......................................................................................................................................................43
Table 12 -Current and planned services and challenges in the Lexington Public Schools' English Language
Learner Program (ELLP). Robyn Dowling-Grant, Coordinator...................................................................44
Table 13 -Current and planned services and Lexington Public Schools' Human Resources. Robert Harris,
AssistantSuperintendent............................................................................................................................45
Table 14-Civic participation in select communities with substantial Asian populations..........................47
5
Executive Summary
Background
The Subcommittee on Demographic Change was chartered by Lexington's 2020 Vision Committee to
follow up on several recommendations of the Demographic Change Task Force, which the 2020 Vision
Committee had also set up and whose report was released in March 2010. The Subcommittee's most
important objective was to identify the barriers, real or perceived,that are preventing greater
participation of Lexington's Asian residents on the Town's boards and committees and to suggest steps
that would lower barriers to their participation. The earlier study had found that, while residents of
Asian ancestry were estimated to represent about 20% of the Lexington's population,they only filled
about 2%of the positions on the Town's boards and committees.
A Caveat
Throughout the report,we use the terms such as "Asian residents,"fully cognizant that this group is not
a homogeneous one. Indeed,these residents represent many different cultures and may face different
issues. Where our data sources permit, e.g., immigration status or proficiency in English, we are able to
draw some distinctions, particularly among residents of Chinese, Indian and Korean ancestry. However,
when it comes to our main objective, identifying barriers to civic participation, the numbers that we are
dealing with are too low to draw any distinctions based on ancestral origin.
Background data
To establish the context for the current investigation,the Subcommittee drew on data from the Census
Bureau,the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education,the Town of Lexington,
and conducted an email survey. Our investigations reveal the following:
• According to the 2010 Census, Lexington ranks the fourth highest in the Commonwealth in the
percentage of Asian residents: 19.9%. Only Quincy at 24.0%, Lowell at 20.2% and Malden at
20.1% have higher percentages.
• The Lexington Public Schools rank second in the Commonwealth in the percentage of students
of Asian ancestry—30.9% in the 2012-13 school year. Quincy Public Schools rank first at 34.2%.
• The quality of our schools was most frequently cited by Asian residents as their reason for
moving to Lexington.
• Adult Asian residents have relatively more advanced degrees than non-Asian resident
• Median family incomes are similar: approximately$160,000 in 2010.
• With the exception of the older residents,the English proficiency of Asian residents is generally
high.
• The age profile of Asian residents differs substantially from that of non-Asians:the median age is
about seven years lower.
• Approximately 70%of adult Asian residents were either born in the United States or are
naturalized citizens. This suggests that they may remain in the United States indefinitely.
6
Executive Summary
• The two Asian community organizations—the Chinese American Association of Lexington (CAAL)
and the Indian Americans of Lexington (IAL)—have begun to encourage their members to
become more active in civic affairs.
• In 2013, 3%of Lexington residents serving on the Town's boards and committees are of Asian
ancestry. For PTA/PTO boards,the participation rate is substantially higher: more than 13%.
Findings
To identify barriers—real or perceived—to civic participation, the Subcommittee conducted structured
interviews of Asian residents who currently, or recently, served as members of the Town's elected
bodies and committees. The Subcommittee also interviewed Asian members of PTA and PTO boards,
using a virtually identical interview guide. Our findings reveal that both categories of interview subjects
attribute the low participation to three factors:
1. Demographics of the Asian residents: Young, working parents, some of whose free time is taken
up with their children's cultural activities, leaving little time for civic affairs; relatively few older
residents who might have time for participation in Town affairs.
2. Culture: A lack of comfort with speaking up and being in the spotlight as well as a limited
tradition of volunteering in civic affairs.
3. Lack of awareness: Not aware that much of the work of running the Town is performed by
volunteers; lack of information on the work of committees and on the skills being sought by the
committees.
Some of those who served on PTA and PTO boards also cited command of English and a perception of
not being welcomed by non-Asians.
The Subcommittee also investigated the steps being taken and planned by Town departments and the
Lexington Public Schools in response to the growth of Lexington's Asian population. For the Police, Fire,
Health and Human Services,the challenges lie primarily in (a) communicating with elderly Asian
residents—predominantly Mandarin-speaking—who speak English poorly or not at all, and (b) ensuring
that their staffs develop sensitivity to the Lexington's different Asian cultures. Their solutions rely on a
combination of translated documents, using translators where needed and holding cultural sensitivity
training sessions. The Lexington Public Schools are responding by hiring more teachers for the English
Language Learner Program, as mandated by Commonwealth Law, and by attempting to hire more
teachers and staff of Asian ancestry. They attribute their limited success in hiring the latter to a very
small pool of candidates and the preference of some candidates for teaching in urban schools.
Finally,the Subcommittee attempted to learn about activities aimed at increasing civic participation of
Asian residents in several communities in the Metropolitan area. Although a few of these communities
have elected Asian residents to town-wide bodies, we learned of no formally sponsored initiative similar
to the work of our Subcommittee.
Recommendations to reduce barriers to participation
The Subcommittee believes that removing barriers to participation would help the Asian communities
by creating a better understanding of their views, culture and norms, and it would make Asian residents
more comfortable living in Lexington. From the perspective of the Town as a whole, it would avoid
7
Executive Summary
potential polarization and enrich the Town with the skills, culture and traditions of its Asian residents.
Removing the barriers will require outreach or"pull"from the Town and PTAs and PTOs combined with
"push"from CAAL and IAL. Accordingly,the Subcommittee recommends the following:
1. For the Board of Selectmen
• Continue to promote the inclusion of Asian residents.
• Take steps to establish an ongoing dialogue with CAAL and IAL.
2. For the officials with authority to appoint board and committee members—the Board of
Selectmen, the Town Manager and the Town Moderator
• Modify the management of the committees under their purview with the objective of
fostering greater participation by Asian residents.
3. For the PTAs and PTOs
• Set up communications channels with CAAL and IAL.
• Seek advice from Asian PTA/0 board members on how to attract more board
participation by Asian parents.
• Establish a collaboration with the CAAL and IAL to identify the factors leading to the
perceived lack of welcome and suggest steps to change that perception.
4. For CAAL and IAL
• Continue to encourage their members to participate in Town affairs and on PTAs and
PTOs.
• Continue to provide support to those who do participate.
• Strengthen their communications with Town leaders.
Other recommendations
5. For the Fire, Health, Human Services and Police Departments
• Twice a year, invite CAAL and IAL to participate in their coordination meetings.
6. For the 2020 Vision Committee
• Continue to monitor the demographics and civic participation of Asian residents.
7. For the Town Clerk
• Provide data to enable item#6 above.
8
Introduction
Background
In April 2010,the Demographic Change Task Force, chartered in 2008 by the Lexington 2020 Vision
Committee, released a report whose executive summary begins as follows:
Lexington is experiencing a dramatic change in its racial composition and a
substantial modification of its age profile.
In 1990,just over 6%of the Town's residents were of Chinese, Indian,Japanese,
Korean or other Asian origin. By 2000, the percentage of residents of Asian origin had
risen to 11%, at the end of 2009 it may have reached 20%. This percentage is
substantially higher in Lexington than in any other neighboring community.
According to the 2005-2007 American Community Survey, conducted by the Census
Bureau,Asian Americans of Chinese origin represented about 10%of Lexington's
population; they were followed by Indians and Koreans, each at about 2.5%, and
Japanese and Vietnamese at 0.5%each. At present, residents of Asian origin are
significantly under-represented in the Town's Departments, Boards and Committees.
The report recommended several steps to develop a better understanding of the growth of the Asian
population; it also recommended the formation of"a task force to identify and implement effective
ways to accelerate and broaden participation of Town's Asian-American population in its government,
boards, associations, and committees."
Apart from a request by Lexington's Town Manager, Carl Valente,that Town Department Managers (e.g.
Chief of Police, Cary Memorial Library Director) identify steps to be taken by their organizations in
response to the report, no other action was taken until late 2011. At that time,the 2020 Vision
Committee decided to charter a group,the Subcommittee on Demographic Change, to follow up on
several of the Task Force's recommendations. By February 2012,the charter was complete, and
recruitment of members was initiated. (Details in Appendix A)
Subcommittee Charge
The 2020 Vision Committee gave the Subcommittee the following charge:
1. Assess the steps taken by Town Departments to ensure that services, including emergency
services, are effectively delivered to Town residents who do not speak English or speak it poorly.
2. Investigate the factors that attract Asian-Americans to Lexington; estimate the proportion of
Asian Americans who move to Lexington with the intention of living here indefinitely and those
who are temporary residents.
3. Identify any barriers that currently limit the participation of Town's Asian-American population
in its government, boards, associations, and committees; propose and facilitate steps to making
them welcome on these bodies and comfortable in participating on them.
9
Introduction
4. Develop ideas regarding activities or events that will increase the community's inclusion of
Asian-Americans residing here.
5. Assess steps taken by Massachusetts communities that have experienced significant
demographic changes in recent years. Determine what worked and what did not, and what
could be applied in Lexington.
The 2020 Vision Committee recognized that#3 above was the most important of the Subcommittee's
responsibilities and would consume the bulk of its time and effort.
Subcommittee membership
Initially, the Subcommittee was chartered to consist of a maximum of ten members, including three
from the 2020 Vision Committee, 3-4 from the Asian-American community, and 2-3 from PTAs (later
broadened to include interested residents). In August 2012, having recognized the likely effort required
to complete its work by its target date of December 2013,the 2020 Vision Committee voted to increase
the maximum size of the Subcommittee to twelve members.
The Subcommittee members and their affiliations are listed below:
Name Representing
Nancy Corcoran-Ronchetti At large
Pat Costello At large
Nirmala Garimella Indian Americans of Lexington (IAL)
Margaret Heitz At large
Albert Huang Chinese-American Association of Lexington (CAAL)
Martin Hwang At large
Bhumip Khasnabish 2020 Vision Committee
Dan Krupka (Chair) 2020 Vision Committee
John Lee At large
Peter Lee 2020 Vision Committee
Susie Lee-Snell At large
"At large" members Martin Hwang,John Lee and Susie Lee-Snell are from the Korean community, which
has no formal organization such as CAAL or IAL.
Subcommittee activities
The Subcommittee met monthly, with four meetings devoted to discussions with department managers:
Mark Corr, Chief, Police Department;John Wilson, Chief, Fire Department; Charlotte Rodgers, Director,
Human Services Department; and Koren Stembridge, Director, Cary Memorial Library. It also had
discussions with Gerard Cody, Director, Health Department; Robyn Dowling-Grant, K-12 Coordinator
English Learner Education Program, Lexington Public Schools; Robert Harris,Assistant Superintendent
for Human Resources, Lexington Public Schools; Diamond Hayes, a Lexington-based real estate sales
associate and member of Lexington's Chinese community; and Hua Wang,who leads CAAL's program to
increase civic engagement of CAAL and its members.
10
Introduction
In light of the importance of understanding the barriers that limit participation of Asian residents in
Town affairs, several meetings were devoted to developing the process to achieve that understanding.
As described in the following,the core of the process consisted of interviews of Asian residents who
serve, or who had recently served, on the Town's elected bodies and volunteer committees as well as on
PTA and PTO boards.
At each monthly meeting of the 2020 Vision Committee, the Chair of the Subcommittee or one of its
members from the 2020 Vision Committee reported on the progress of the Subcommittee. Often,the
reports stimulated ideas which were subsequently conveyed to the Subcommittee.
Outline of the report
We begin with background material on Lexington's Asian residents, largely based on the latest data from
the US Census Bureau and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
(DESE). The data and information are used to establish a context for the current investigation and to
support some of our conclusions. We next examine the factors attracting Asians to Lexington, drawing
on the responses of 29 Asian residents and on an analysis of real estate transactions. Data on, and
analysis of,the barriers affecting the civic engagement of Asian residents constitute the next and most
important section of this report. We describe in detail the interview process used to obtain the data,
and we present our findings including (a)the benefits of civic participation reported by the interview
subjects; (b) the barriers Asian residents may perceive as affecting their participation in Town affairs;
and (c)their suggestions for increasing civic participation. The following section describes the steps
being taken and planned by Town Departments and within Lexington's schools in response to the size
and growth rate of the Asian population. We then turn to the steps being taken by communities, such
as Acton and Westborough with demographics similar to Lexington's, in response to the growth of their
Asian populations. All of our recommendations are presented in the final section.
A note on our terminology
Although the charter, given to us by our parent committee, uses the term "Asian Americans," we prefer
to use "Asian residents" as a shorthand way of referring to residents of Asian ancestry. We believe that
temporary residents who come from China, India, Korea, Japan—or from any Asian country—would not
refer to themselves as Asian Americans. We found that repeated use of the term "residents of Asian
ancestry" is stylistically awkward,while "Asian" sounds unwelcoming,though unavoidable in some
cases. In addition to "Asian residents" and, less frequently, "residents of Asian ancestry,"we use "Asian
population" and "Asian PTA/PTO members."
11
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
To provide context for the work of the Subcommittee,we present data and information on Lexington's
Asian residents, drawn primarily from the 2010 US Census and the Massachusetts Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education (MA DESE).
Lexington's Asian population
According to the 2010 census, Lexington had the fourth highest percentage of Asian residents in the
Commonwealth. Only Quincy, Lowell and Malden had higher percentages. The results for the 15
communities with the highest percentages of Asian residents are shown in Figure 1 .
Figure 1- Massachusetts communities with the highest percentages of Asian residents
30%
25% z4-o%
0
202% 20.1% 19.9%
w 20%
0 18.6%
1].4°h
16.3%
15.6:6 153%
15.1%
n 15
13.4%
12.6°k 12.5%
11.5%
10%
a
5%
;cA o3e0 9\ac c�oc Pic j6 `oJ$r .°' ,o�(� ia� cps° z�oa ao�Qr �o`� \�c`
6 �, �y z+ ,po eo+moo pio° S�iz3 de
S�
Source:Census Bureau(2010 Census SF1,Chart DP-1)
Breakdown of Lexington's Asian population
As shown in Figure 2, Lexington's Asian population is growing rapidly. In 1990, residents of Asian origin
represented 6.4%of the Town's population; by 2000,they accounted for 10.9%. Between 2000 and
2010 their numbers nearly doubled: In 2010, 19.9% of the Town's residents were of Asian ancestry. If
the overall Asian population has grown at the same rate as the number of Lexington students of Asian
origin (see below), Asian residents represent approximately 22%of the Town's population in 2013.
The Chinese residents,whose number tripled from 1990 to 2010, now account for about 50%of
Lexington's Asian population. Indian and Korean residents represent about 25%and 15%, respectively.
Currently,the Indian and Korean communities are growing more rapidly than the Chinese community.
12
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Figure 2- Breakdown by origin of Lexington's Asian residents
3,500
3,000 9.4%
1990 Census
2,500 2000 Census
IN 2010 Census
2,000 Notes
1.Percentages shown are with respect to Town population.
5 6° 2."Other Asian"includes residents from Bangladesh,
1,500 4.8% Cambodia,Pakistan and Thailand
1,000 3.5% 3 2%
2.2%
500
Chinese Asian Indian Korean Japanese Vietnamese Filipino Other Asian
Source:US Census Bureau
Residents of Asian origins in Lexington and neighboring communities
Lexington's percentage of residents of Asian origin is growing more rapidly than that of any other
neighboring community except Winchester. Figure 3, based on data from the past three censuses,
demonstrates that all communities have rapidly growing Asian populations. Indeed, from 1990 to 2010,
the Asian population in Lexington and its immediate neighbors grew by 216%.
Figure 3- Evolution of Asian populations in Lexington and neighboring communities
2S%
1990 Census
2000 Census
MA 2010 Census
20%
15%
13.4%
11.1% 10.6 109 10.6%
10% 9.:4°6...... 97% 9.3 1A.........
8.3%
7.3 7.3%
6 4% 6.7
s4° 58" ss%
50 46 48
30% 31%
33% 37%,. 35% 3556
w°� osa o°� °c oc o�c a� yc Jtc pa\
Source:US Census Bureau
13
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Asian populations in Lexington schools and in school districts with large Asian population
Table 1 demonstrates that the percentage of students of Asian origin in Lexington's schools has grown
faster than Lexington's total population. (The data exclude charter schools and schools offering a
specialized curriculum).
Table 1- Massachusetts school systems with the highest percentage of students of Asian origin by
school year
1997-1998 2002-2003 2007-2008 2012-2013
School System Y.Asian School System %Asian School System %Asian School System %Asian
Lowell 30.5 Lowell 29.9 Quincy 29.8 Quincy 34.2
Quincy 19.1 Quincy 25.5 Lowell 28.7 11 icua,hnju tirm 30.3
Malden 17.1 Malden 20.8 Acton 23.1 Lowell 29.6
Brookline 15.6 Brookline 18.9 Le:,dngt>o 6 Acton(ES) 29.5
Lynn 13.3 lActon 17.5 Malden 21.8 Boxborough(ES) 27.9
11expngtrsm I 1,3'a III, m ngton 1 163 1 Acton-Box borough 1 18.9 Acton-Box borough 1 23.3
Source:MA DESE
The percentage has been increasing at approximately 1%annually since 1995. Only Quincy schools have
a higher percentage.
Percentage of Asian students by school
In the 2012-2013 school year, Estabrook School had the highest percentage of Asian students—over
37%—while Fiske School had the lowest, about 23%. The middle schools and the High School had
approximately 29%. Figure 4 shows the details.
Figure 4- Percentage of students of Asian origin in Lexington Public Schools (2012-2013)
Percentage of students of Asian origin in in Lexington Public Schools-2012-2013
401
37.4%
36.3%
35% 34.6%
33.1% 33.1%
30.9%
30% .......29.7x. 296% 19.2%
25%
22.7%
20
15%
10%
0% 1 , , ,.
Bowman Bridge Estabrook Fiske Harrington Hastings Clarke Diamond LHS LPS total
Source:MA DES
14
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Figures 1 -4 and Table 1 demonstrate that Lexington's Asian population is large and growing rapidly,
with the growth rate of the Asian school-age population exceeding that of the population as a whole.
Next, we examine the Asian population in more detail.
Age profiles
Figure 5 shows that the current age profile (distribution by age group) of Lexington's Asian residents
differs substantially from that of non-Asian residents,yet both are characterized by a peak in the school-
age population that indicates that many families,Asian or non-Asian, move to Lexington as their
children attain school age. The proportion of school-age children of Asian origin, an unknown number of
whom were adopted by non-Asian parents, is about 28% higher. The median age of adults over the age
of 20 is about 7.S years lower, and the percentage of residents over the age of 55 is significantly lower
than their non-Asian counterparts. As we shall later discuss,the differences in the age profiles may
account for the limited participation by Asian residents in Town affairs.
Figure 5-Age profiles of Lexington's Asian and non-Asian residents in 2010
14
Median ages
Asian-all:39.6 years
Non-Asian-all:47.7 years
120A Asian-20 andover:46.7 years
Non-Asian 20 an over.55.2 years
-a 10
-%of Asian alone*pop
non-A-,alone pop
0 8
w
0 6
m
d q% .
......Igv",a^
lie
2
Asian alone,i.e.,not in combination with other races
b°' yh 41 J* foq 11b '1°' 4h 4,
by" �O h� b0' b5' �O' ^y' ,b0 -r
Source:U.S.Census Bureau Age group
Citizenship and nativity
Because only US citizens may run for elected positions, and because citizenship status may affect
interest in Town affairs, a low percentage of Asian residents who are US citizens could affect
participation in Town committees. Figure 6 suggests, however,that citizenship should not be a major
barrier for Chinese residents: Based on the most recent Census Bureau data, about 78%of Lexington's
adult (18 and over) Chinese residents hold US citizenship, either because they were born in the USA or
by virtue of naturalization. For Indian residents,the corresponding figure is 61%. By contrast, only 25%
of Lexington's adult Korean residents hold US citizenship.
15
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Figure 6-Citizenship and Nativity of Chinese, Indian and Korean residents 18 and over in 2000 and
2010
2500
9.7%
2000 .
1500 .
Not a citizen
Naturalized
1000 .
45%' 1408 1 Natve
29%
2.4% 2.2%
S00 ._
fi45 1.S%
351
290
0
IN ,......wpm nmmurwn� �'n wiw�l^an_ IIW�nw
Chinese 2000 Chinese 2010 Indian 2000 Indian 2010 Korean 2000 Korean 2010
Estimated percentage of Lexington's 18 and over population
Source:4me rican Community Survey 2006-2010(Table 605003)and Census Bureau 2000 Summary File 4(Table PCT044)
English proficiency
It is natural to expect that self-assessed proficiency in English might influence participation of
Lexington's Asian residents in civic activities, whether associated with schools or with Town business.
Figures 7-9 suggest that, on the whole, only a small number of Asian residents believe they do not speak
English "well" or do not speak it at all.
Figure 7-Self-assessed English proficiency of Chinese residents over the age of five
1400
a 1200 1185
0
m 10V Only English
m
m
1000 Very well.........
Q
Well
111111 Not well or not at all
c
800
0
-a
$ 600
c 491
R
400 .34.
0
E 224 199
Z 200 .........165
118 104 104
37 12
St.17 18 to 64 6S+
Agegroup
Source:American Community Survey 2006-2010(Table 16004)
16
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Figure 8-Self-assessed English proficiency of Indian residents over the age of five
500
461
450
o'
`n 400
m
IM Only English
Very well
c 350
m
Well
° 111111 Not well or not at all
300
a
c
o
14 250
c
v
a
� 200
0
m
c
m 150
0
m
103
100
72
z
50 j
22 14 23 9 12
5 to 17 18 to 64 65+
Agegroup
Source:American Community Survey 2006-2010(Table 16004)
Figure 9-Self-assessed English proficiency of Korean residents over the age of five
250
219
n
0
0
m 200
m 181 Only English
m
5 Very wel l
c
m 160 Well
153 111111 Not well or not at all
v 150
`o
Y
o
d
a
c
100
0
m
c
y 68
61
`o
v
z'
111111 22 22
9
0 .WIAI
5 to 17 18 to 64 65+
Age group
Source:American Community Survey 2006-2010(Table 16004)
Figure 9 suggests that there are no Korean residents aged 65 or older, it is important to point out that
the data are based on a sample with a margin of error of+/- 127.
17
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Because Indian schools teach students in English from an early age, it is not surprising that it is Indian
residents who are most proficient in the language.Almost half of the school-age children speak only
English, and the majority of Indian residents 65 and older speak English very well. Relatively speaking,
Korean residents are less proficient in English than Chinese and Indian residents. The figures show that
there are about 400 Asian residents who speak English poorly or not at all; almost half of these are
Chinese residents over the age of 6S.
Educational attainment and income
Figure 10 presents data on educational attainment (the highest level of schooling completed) for
residents 25 years of age and older. It shows that a remarkable 63%of Lexington's Asian residents hold
advanced degrees (Master's, Professional school degree, Doctorate degree). For the rest of the
population,the comparable figure is 48%. As we shall see,the high percentage of Asian residents with
advanced degrees may affect civic participation.
The high educational attainment does not appear to translate into a difference in income. According to
Census Bureau data, in 2010,the median family income for Asians and Whites(the majority of the rest
of Lexington's population)was approximately$160,000.
Figure 10- Educational attainment for residents 25 years of age and older
70%
62.8%
60
in Al I others
0
m 50% Asian 478%
v
40
0
a
a 30
m 26.4%....
v 21.296
a
v 20
0
v
°p 10.9%
rs
10% 9.1%
6.4%
a IIIIII IILS% 4.2% IIIIII3.0% 4.1%
°e
t ec atii e�°i aJa
5
Source:ACS 2009-2011,Charts B15002,8150026
18
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
Asian community associations
Chinese American Association of Lexington (CAAL)
CAAL, formed in early 1980s, grew out of the effort to establish a Chinese school in Lexington. Its
current mission is to represent Chinese-American interests in education, local politics and cultural
issues. It also provides members with opportunities for involvement in the Lexington community
through networking and social events.
CAAL members have been actively involved in the Lexington Fair Housing and Human Relations
Committee, School Superintendent Review and Interview Committee, Estabrook School Principal Search
Advisory Committee,the Lexington 2020 Vision Committee,the Lexington Education Foundation, Cary
Library Foundation Board of Directors,the LexFest Lexington festival and the Lexington 300 Celebration
Committee. CAAL sponsors a town-wide Chinese New Year dinner and celebration, an annual summer
family picnic, a forum for candidates for School Committee and the Board of Selectmen, and a Diversity
Award for the Lexington Public Schools.
In 2011, CAAL formed the Community Task Force (CTF)to encourage CAAL members to participate in
civic activities, including PTAs and PTOs, and to ensure that CAAL itself participates in as many Town
activities and events as reasonably possible. Stimulated by the CTF, CAAL now participates in the Martin
Luther King parade, contributes to the campaign for Christmas lights, and is represented at Lexington
Education Foundation's annual fundraising function. One of CTF's major goals was to have a CAAL
member elected to a Town-wide office. It succeeded with the election of Weidong Wang to the
Lexington Housing Authority. Its current objective is to further increase representation in Town Meeting
and other elected bodies,while ensuring that the candidates run on platforms addressing Town issues,
not as representatives of the Chinese community.
Despite its success,the CTF continues to struggle with getting more CAAL members involved. One major
reason is lack of time to make the three-year commitment associated with Town committee
membership. Many prefer specific projects, which have a clear objective and a finite duration.
Indian Americans of Lexington (JAL)
The IAL was formed in 2008 when Lexington's Indian American community had grown to about 300
families. Until then the community's main activity was the annual celebration of the cultural festival of
Diwali. The founders felt the time had come to expand its purpose, to increase its visibility by
contributing to the community as a whole and to establish a more formal structure.
Current activities, largely for the benefit of IAL members and their families, include the Diwali Festival;
the IAL Friends Club,which serves as a support network for Indian families; seminars, discussions and
dialogues between IAL members and leaders,thinkers and educators; and a program to increase the
Cary Library's holdings of Indian books and other materials. The latter also serves to expose Lexington
residents to Indian culture.
19
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
To increase links with the Town,the IAL has established a Public Affairs and Town Liaison Committee
whose objective is to create consciousness among the members about the importance of involvement in
civic affairs, and to generate visibility and contacts in those areas for the good of the members of the IAL
community. As part of this initiative,the IAL has partnered with the Lexington Historical Society to host
events of joint interest, and participated actively in the Town's 300th celebrations.This year two
members of IAL joined the Citizens' Academy in town and two more joined the Cary Memorial
Foundation Board.
The IAL has also formed a Community Outreach Committee to raise the Indian community's awareness
of humanitarian causes, and to motivate its members to contribute. Local beneficiaries include the Food
Pantry and Friendly Independent Sympathetic Help (FISH).
Motivating IAL members to participate in Town affairs has proven to be a challenge for IAL leaders
because many members do not appear to be interested in, or have time for, such activities. The
members are more inclined to serve on PTAs and PTOs because they are invested in their children's
education.
IAL leaders have also recognized that the IAL finds it difficult to achieve its desired impact because the
Association has not set up a formal membership structure and does not collect dues. This hinders
outreach and planning. The IAL also faces the challenge that many in the Indian community feel more
affinity for their regional subgroups, e.g., the Gujarathi or Tamil association and many others in which
they are active. However this year,the IAL is pushing to engage the community in a more concerted,
focused manner with the formation of a new executive board and a broad agenda.
There are no organizations like CAAL and IAL for Korean and Japanese residents.
Participation in Town affairs
Elected bodies and volunteer committees
Analysis of the memberships of Lexington's elected bodies and volunteer committees in 2013,
summarized in Table 2, reveals that only 17 Asian residents out of approximately 530 (3.2%) serve either
as elected officials or as members of Town committees. Yet, according to the 2010 census Asian
residents 20 years and older comprised 18.2%of Lexington's residents in this age group. And that figure
may have grown to over 20% in 2013. Whatever number is used, it is evident that Asian residents are
significantly under-represented on these bodies.
Table 2- Participation of Asian residents on Lexington's elected bodies and committees
Total number on Number of Asian Participation of
Number of Asian Participation of volunteer residents on Asian residents on
Total number of residents on elected Asian residents on committees,not volunteer volunteer
elected officials bodies elected bodies elected committees,not committees
elected
210 7 3.3% 320 10 3.1%
20
Data and information on Lexington's Asian residents
PTAs and PTOs
Table 3 presents data on the participation of Asian residents on PTA and PTO boards. It demonstrates
that their representation in these organizations—13%—is much higher than it is on Town boards and
committees. Nevertheless, it is less than half of the percentage of students of Asian ancestry in
Lexington Public Schools.
Table 3- Participation by Asian parents on PTA and PTO boards of Lexington's public schools (2012-
2013)
Percentage Asian Asian
of students Number on residents on Number on residents on
of Asian Executive Executive General General
School ancestry# Board Board Board Board Source
Bowman 33.1 8 0 71 9 Florencia Donaghy
Bridge 36.3 11 1 2 47 11 Sue Buckley Kingsbury
Estabrook 37.4 11 1 39 4 Gretchen Reisig
Fiske 22.7 8 3 40 4 Deepika Sawhney
Harrington 34.6 8 0 55 9 Kim Goldinger
Hastings 33.1 9 2 72 9 Bettina McGimsey&Becky Barrentine
Clarke Middle School 29.2 12 0 42 2 Kathleen Lenihan
Diamond Middle School 29.6 7 1 2 15 1 Dawn Rusnak
High School 29.2 7 1 15 4 Lori Bliss Tambone
Total 81 11 396 53
Asian 30.9 13.6 13.4
#Source of percentages for each school:http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/state_report/enrolImentbyracegender.aspx
21
Factors attracting Asians to Lexington
Subcommittee charge
Investigate the factors that attract Asian-Americans to Lexington; estimate the proportion of Asian
Americans who move to Lexington with the intention of living here indefinitely and those who are
temporary residents.
Methodology
To identify the factors that attract people of Asian ancestry to Lexington,we contacted the subjects of
our interviews, described in the next section (Barriers to participation in Town affairs), and asked them
the following question: "Please let us know the most important reasons that led you to move to
Lexington." To estimate the proportion of Asian residents likely to remain in Lexington indefinitely,
thereby becoming potential participants in Town affairs,we combined Census Bureau data and an
analysis of home purchases prepared by Diamond Hayes, a realtor and guest at our November 2012
meeting.
Factors that attract Asian-Americans to Lexington
Because we asked our question regarding the reasons for moving to Lexington without limiting the
number of reasons,the responses ranged from a single reason to seven. When more than one reason
was given, we assumed that the first on the list was the top reason. Figure 11, based on 29 responses,
shows how frequently a particular top reason was cited.
Figure 11-Top reason for moving to Lexington cited by 29 interview subjects
Other,14%
Iio�ase,1U°�
Schools,55%
u
Ir
It is not surprising that more than 50% cited the quality of the schools as the top reason. Evidence of
the importance of Lexington's schools in attracting families—regardless of origin—had been noted
22
Factors attracting Asians to Lexington
earlier in explaining the school-age peaks in the age profiles shown in Figure S. Nearly 15%were
attracted by Lexington's diversity, suggesting that they moved here because they believed that they and
their families would not be isolated or stand out. Approximately 10%simply liked the house they were
shown: it was attractive, the right size or the right price. "Good community' was cited by 7% of the
interview subjects without elaboration. The other reasons included having friends who lived in Town,
the Town's beauty and finding an apartment that accepted dogs.
When all the reasons cited by the interview subjects are considered,the distribution changes
substantially. Schools continue to be the most frequently cited, but"geography"—proximity to work or
to Boston in general—accounted for 22%of the responses. The "Other" category includes low crime
rate, progressive politics and educated citizens. Figure 12 shows the results.
Figure 12- Percentage of all reasons for moving to Lexington cited by 29 interview subjects
Hous
4%
Schools,32%
Personal connection,
7%
DW ky,1�4 Y i °
e s
It is important to note that the results shown in Figure 11 and Figure 12 are based on responses of
interview subjects who have resided in Lexington from one year to 47 years. Consequently,the
distribution of reasons for moving to Lexington may not correspond to the distribution of Asian
residents who arrived in the last few years.
Likely permanent residents vs.transient residents
We used the data on citizenship and nativity of Asian residents, presented in Figure 6,to estimate the
number of residents of Chinese, Indian and Korean origin who are likely to stay in Lexington as long as
their non-Asian counterparts. If we assume that adults, 18 and over,who were either born in the USA
or are naturalized citizens,will remain in the USA—and thus Lexington—we arrive at the estimates
shown in Table 4.
23
Factors attracting Asians to Lexington
Table 4- Estimates of the percentage and number of Chinese, Indian and Korean adults likely to stay
in the USA,and thus Lexington, as long as any other non-Asian adult residents
Chinese Indian Korean
Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Number
Likely to stay in
78% 1754 61% 411 2511a 126
Lexington
Perhaps transient 22% 481 39% 263 75% 375
If the estimates are correct, nearly 80%of Chinese residents will stay, but only about 60%of Indian and
25% of Korean residents will do so. Although,the estimates for the Chinese and Korean residents are
plausible,the estimate for Indian residents appears to be low in light of the data on home sales provided
by Diamond Hayes: In 2011, of the 283 single-family homes sold in Lexington, 19.3%were purchased by
Chinese (9.4%of Lexington's population in 2010), 15.8% by Indians (4.8% of Lexington's population in
2010) and 2% by Koreans (3.2%of Lexington's population in 2010). If a home purchase is taken as
evidence of a commitment to stay in Lexington indefinitely,the home purchases by Indian residents
suggest that the estimate (of those likely to stay) based on nativity and naturalization —61%—is too low.
The Subcommittee believes that a better estimate of the percentage of Indian residents likely to remain
in Lexington lies between 60%and 80%. On the other hand, the estimate of 25%of Korean residents
likely to stay appears to be reasonable. If we assume that 70%of Indian residents are likely to stay, we
estimate that 60-70%of Asian residents would be potential candidates for serving on Town boards and
committees.
24
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Subcommittee Charge
Identify any barriers that currently limit the participation of Town's Asian-American population in its
government, boards, associations, and committees; propose and facilitate steps to making them
welcome on these bodies and comfortable in participating on them.
Methodology
Before describing our methodology,we wish to point out that we recognized at the outset of our
investigation that the barriers we were seeking to identify could be real or perceived. For example,
otherwise well-qualified residents who speak English very poorly would face a real barrier to
participation on a Town board or committee. Similarly well-qualified residents whose English is
impeccable may perceive that they are not welcome on a committee in which they are interested. One
can also imagine real barriers, deliberately set to exclude certain people. Suffice it to say that we
encountered no examples of such barriers.
To identify the barriers,the Subcommittee conducted structured interviews of Asian residents who are
serving or recently served as members of
• elected bodies (e.g.,Town Meeting)
• Town committees(e.g., Communications Advisory Committee)
• parent-teacher groups (e.g., PTAs, LexFun)
In the interviews, generally conducted by one member of the Subcommittee and lasting about 45
minutes,we sought to learn
• whether the interviewee obtained the position because she was recruited or encouraged, or
whether the interviewee applied for the position
• the interview subject's experiences in the position, probing for any problems that might be
associated with being of Asian ancestry
• their most enjoyable experiences serving on the various committees and the benefits they
derived from their service
• their assessment of the barriers to greater participation in Town affairs faced by Asian residents
• their assessment of the importance of increasing participation of Asian residents
• their suggestions for steps that could be taken by Asian communities as well as by the Town to
increase the participation of Asian residents
Before conducting the interviews, we asked the interview subjects for background information that
would provide the interviewers some context for the interview. For example, we requested:
• their history of participation in Lexington—positions and dates
• their history of participation in civic activities before moving to Lexington
• demographic information (e.g., ancestry,whether or not US born, number of years in the US
and in Lexington)
25
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
To assure the interview subjects that we would not reveal their private opinions, we prepared a letter
describing the steps that we would take to preserve their privacy and requesting their consent to the
interview. The letter, signed by the Subcommittee Chair,was given to the interview subjects, and they
were asked to sign two copies before the interview. One copy was retained by the interview subjects,
the other was kept on file by the Subcommittee Chair.
Copies of the interview instruments (background Information, interview guide for Town "committee"
members, interview guide for"PTA/PTO" members and the consent letter) are found in Appendices B—
E.
To promote uniformity in the interviews, the Subcommittee participated in a training session conducted
by Marian Cohen, PhD, a member of the parent 2020 Vision Committee and Professor of Sociology at
Framingham State University. Dr. Cohen also played a major role in the design of the interview
instruments.
Potential interview subjects serving on Town "committees" (elected bodies and volunteer committees)
were identified by searching the "Boards and Committees" section of the Town web site and identifying
members with Chinese, Indian,Japanese and Korean surnames. To identify prospective interviewees on
PTAs, PTOs and LexFun,we approached Leslie Zales, Chair PTA/0 Presidents Council (PPC), who, in turn
asked PTA and PTO presidents to forward the names and contact information of potential interview
candidates to the Subcommittee.
Interviewers were responsible for contacting their interview subjects, and then for following a process
that included sending the "background" form and a personalized consent letter to the interview subject;
scheduling and conducting the interview; and transmitting the interview report, completed
"background" form, and signed consent letter to the Chair of the Subcommittee. (Please see Appendix
F for details).
Information and data contained in the background form and interview report were summarized and
entered into an Excel spreadsheet by the Chair of the Subcommittee. To preserve a measure of
confidentiality, interview subjects were identified by a random number between 1 and 100, and a key
linking the names and numbers was maintained in a separate file. Only the Chair of the Subcommittee
had access to the complete spreadsheet and the key.
Findings and Analysis
Background information on the interview subjects
Table STable 5 presents data on the two categories of interview subjects, viz., "Town Meeting/Town
committee" and "PTA/PTO." In addition to the 34 residents whose demographic data is shown, we
interviewed two subjects whom we regard as highly knowledgeable stakeholders because of their
current responsibilities and experience relevant to our investigation. One was of Asian ancestry;the
other was a non-Asian PTA/PTO executive board member.
26
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Table 5- Profile of interview subjects
Category of interview subject
Town Meeting/ PTA/PTO
Town committee
Ancestry
China/CAAL member 9/7 8/2
India/IAL member 7/4 4/2
Japan - 1
Korea 2 3
Birthplace
Outside USA 16 1s
USA 2 1
Median number of years
in the USA 28 27
to participation on first committee 12 4
after moving to Lexington
Language(s)spoken at home
English only 6 8
English plus one or more others 11 2
Chinese only 1 2
Korean only - 2
Tamil only - 1
Sex
Male 14 3
Female 4 13
Age bracket
Under 40 2 2
40-65 12 13
Over 65 4 -
The most significant observations are that only 3 of the 34 interview subjects were born in the United
States, and that those who serve on PTA and PTO boards began to participate much more rapidly upon
arrival in Lexington than those who serve on Town "committees" despite the virtually identical median
years of residence in the USA. The short time to initial participation may reflect the high priority
accorded to the education of the subjects' children—the most frequently cited reason for moving to
Lexington. It is also possible that serving on PTA and PTO boards is regarded as being less demanding
than serving on Town committees. About half of those serving on PTAs and PTOs report that only
English is spoken at home.
In proportion to their town-wide population, residents of Indian ancestry appear to more likely to be
involved in Town or school affairs than other Asian residents. While this may be an artifact of our
relatively small sample size, it is possible that most adult Indian residents received much of their
education in English, and are thus more comfortable in situations characterized by informal discussions.
About 81%of the PTA/0 board members whom we interviewed were women,while 78%of the
members of elected bodies and committees were men.
Experiences in obtaining the position and serving on the committee
With a few exceptions, interview subjects reported that they had been invited to join a committee or
had been encouraged to participate. The few, who were not invited or encouraged to join, applied
27
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
because they were interested in running for office or volunteering, and felt confident that they had skills
and experiences that would be appreciated.
Almost all who are serving or who served on Town committees report that they encountered no
problems that could be ascribed to their ethnic origin. Only one commented on an "entrenched
mindset" and an aversion to new ideas. Likewise,the majority of those who served or are serving on
PTA and PTO boards reported no problems that could be attributed to their Asian origins, but a few
were concerned about "traditional thinking." In addition, one reported being uncomfortable socializing
with other PTA board members, and one reported being criticized by her own Asian community for
allegedly using PTA board membership to seek special favors for her children.
Most enjoyable aspects of participation and benefits of participation
Interview subjects were asked to describe (a) what they had found most enjoyable about serving and (b)
the benefits they had derived from their service. As we learned in analyzing the responses, the two
categories of interview subjects gave very similar answers to these two questions. We therefore
combined the responses, and organized them into five themes. Figure 13 shows the percentage of
responses, by theme,for interview subjects who served on elected bodies and committees.
Figure 13- Percentage of responses given by interview subjects who served on elected bodies and
committees to the questions: "What did you enjoy most about serving on the board/committee?" and
"How did you personally benefit from serving on the board/committee?"
k5:%is�Ihfluencing,1
Learning,52%
>
Percentage of responses of board and committee interview subjects
Below,we illustrate the responses of those who served on elected bodies and committees with a
selection of(mostly) paraphrased comments. It is worth noting that, despite the fact that many on
"committees" may be considered to have special expertise,the majority of their responses are
associated with learning.
28
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
• Learning
• Becoming aware of hurdles faced by other Asian families
• Learning about how Town is run and money is spent
• Learning from others who have a lot more experience
• Learning a lot about different technical aspects of energy conservation
• Drawing satisfaction with the work
• Sense of serving the Town
• Appreciation by the rest of the committee
• Making a difference
• Influencing the organization
• Opportunity to voice concerns of Chinese community
• Opportunity to share cultural background
• Shaping the Committee's goals
• Developing new relationships
• Meeting interesting people
• Enjoying the camaraderie on the committee
• Getting integrated into the Town
• Contributing special skills to the organization
• Contributing my insights to important work
• Helping the Committee execute its program
The responses of those who served on PTA and PTO boards may be classified into the same five themes.
Figure 14 shows the breakdown by theme. Once again, the most frequently given response was
"learning from the experience." However, "satisfaction" is cited almost as frequently as "learning."
Figure 14- Percentage of responses given by interview subjects who served on PTA and PTO boards to
the questions: "What did you enjoy most about serving on the board/committee?" and "How did you
personally benefit from serving on the board/committee?"
Contributing
AkLearning,32%
Gleveloplr�g
reletionAlps l7/
Percentage of responses of PTA/0 interview subjects
29
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Below, we list examples of their responses, mostly paraphrased, organized into the five themes.
• Learning
• Learning how to help her child
• "Learning so much through my kids—from nursery rhymes to curriculum"
• Learning about how school systems work
• Learning about other cultures
• Drawing satisfaction from the work
• Giving back to community
• Personal pride in doing something worthwhile
• Sharing information about school with other Korean parents
• Seeing kids amazed at what parents do and know via the Science Fair
• Giving her the opportunity to be role model for her children so they will volunteer as
adults
• "My kids love it when I'm involved in the school."
• Personal satisfaction of introducing activities that proved to be popular
• Developing relationships
• Building new friendships
• Developing more connection to the community
• Better understanding of the views of others
• Getting to know teachers, her child's friends and other parents
• Influencing the organization
• Policy making on Site council
• Bringing a male perspective to an environment that is mostly women
• Introducing Asian Arts night, which elicited wide interest from school community
• Getting parents involved in activities, e.g., panel discussion on parents with diverse
backgrounds (gay, single, extended)
• Contributing special skills to the organization
• "As someone with background in management, I enjoyed problem solving and resolving
issues."
• Making an impact on the kids through Science Club and Math Night
The lists, by virtue of their lengths and variety of reasons, could serve as recruiting material for
volunteer work. They also suggest that those who served on PTA and PTO boards drew more
satisfaction from their participation than those on elected bodies and Town committees. Although this
tentative conclusion could be the consequence of a small sample, it could also follow from parents'
interest in their children's activities and welfare.
Concerns regarding the low participation by residents of Asian ancestry
The interview subjects were asked if they viewed the under-representation by Asian residents on Town
boards and committees as being problematic. If they believed it to be so,they were asked to provide
their reasons.
30
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
By a 2:1 ratio,those who serve (or served) on Town bodies felt it was problematic. The most frequently
cited reason was that lack of participation results in a negative image of the Asian population. Other
reasons cited were a concern that their rights and interests would not be adequately considered, and
that the Town would fail to benefit from their talents.
One of the interview subjects drew attention to the danger of creating a negative stereotype: "If people
don't know you,they tend to stereotype you. Therefore,you need to get involved to get known and
have people understand how you think." Another stressed the need for the Asian residents to
acknowledge that Lexington is their home and their responsibility: "This is our home. We're not doing
our share. We're not being responsible. We need to keep our identity and maintain our heritage, but
we can't just take. We need to give."
Those who serve on PTA and PTO boards were slightly more concerned about the low participation than
those on Town bodies. Their concerns centered on the need to have the perspectives of the Asian
communities understood. Here is how one of them expressed it: "Issues could arise in Town that might
affect them, but they would have little influence." He added: "The Town itself could benefit from their
culture, perspectives and skills. Without their participation,this is more difficult."
Barriers to participation
If the majority of the interview subjects believe that low participation is problematic, what barriers did
they identify as preventing Lexington's Asian residents from getting more involved in Town activities?
The breakdown of barriers cited by those on Town bodies is shown in Figure 15,while Figure 16 shows
the breakdown for those on PTA and PTO boards.
Figure 15- Percentage of responses given by those who served on Town bodies regarding the nature
of barriers impeding civic participation by Asian residents
^P
s'aP��o^d^L
'6
Lack of role Demographics,28%
models,6%
V Iluu.
Lack of awareness,
19%
Percentage of responses of board and committee interview subjects
31
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Figure 16- Percentage of responses given by those who served on PTA and PTO boards regarding the
nature of barriers impeding civic participation by Asian residents
fl`
O
(0
O
Perceived lack of N Demographics,24%
welcome,13% o
CGlture,19 /
Percentage of responses of PTA/0 interview subjects
The top three barriers, cited by both categories of interview subjects are discussed below:
Demographics. Typically, both parents work and, by virtue of being slightly younger than their non-Asian
counterparts, may be at an earlier stage in their careers. Consequently, their remaining, limited,time
tends to be devoted to their children's activities, which often include language and cultural classes in
addition to sports and music. Little time is thus left for participating in civic activities. We refer to this
group as "young and busy." Participation by Asian residents is further reduced because, as shown in
Figure 5,there are relatively few Asian residents over the age of 55, who might have the time to serve
on committees. These two factors contribute to a demographic barrier.
Figure 17 illustrates the demographic barrier using four age profiles for residents 20 years of age or
older: (1) for Asian residents ("Asian alone, not in combination with another race"); (2) for all other
residents; (3) for 316 residents serving on the Town's volunteer committees, excluding staff and elected
officials; and (4) for 201 residents elected to Town Meeting and other boards. (The data for profiles 3
and 4 are based on 2013 membership, but the members' ages are calculated as of 2010 to ensure
consistency with the age profiles,which are based on 2010 census data).The age profiles for volunteers
and elected officials are quite similar:The majority of the participants range in age from 45 to 75. The
figure shows that volunteers and elected officials are somewhat older than the Town's non-Asian
residents and considerably older than Asian residents. Thus, the percentage of Asian residents who
might have time to serve on boards and committees is proportionally smaller than for non-Asians.
32
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Figure 17—Age profiles for"Asian alone" residents,for all other residents and for elected officials and
for volunteers only(20 years and older)
20%
Median ages for residents 20 or older -----%of Asian alone*
Asian alone: 46.7 yrs
18% Other than Asian alone: 55.2yrs /of non-Asian alone
Volunteer committees: 58.Syrs
16% Elected officials: 60.0 yrs ' ,.of Volunteers only
° %of Elected officials
L
0
3 pp
° 12% m00000000
b0
d
OD
f6
10
bb
O
W
ate+ $%
O
41
m 6%
u
a
4% �.
2%
0% .,T
,Lb .Loi ,hb 39 bb bpi �b �9 �b b� 1b 1oi �b �y
Agegroup
*"Asian alone":Respondentis self-identified as being Asian,not in combination with another race
Sources:Census Bureau-2010 census;Lexington Town Clerk's office-2013 membership,ages attained in 2010
Culture. Even if time were available for Town activities, there appears to be a cultural barrier.
Responses fell into three categories:
• Lack of comfort in debating
o "[D]ebating opposing sides if the issue would have been considered 'rude' in Chinese
culture."
o "Too shy to take on the role."
o "Not comfortable in the spotlight."
• Lack of tradition of volunteering for civic activities
• "[I]n Chinese culture there has been little or no parent involvement in schools."
• "As a (Korean) culture,we tend to keep to ourselves."
• "Family takes priority, not serving the Town."
• Concerns by intellectuals about involvement in politics
o An interview subject from China cited the fact that Chinese intellectuals were badly
burned by politics during the Cultural Revolution. Although much time has passed, it is
possible that younger generations of intellectuals—and, as demonstrated in Figure 10,
many in Lexington's Chinese community are highly educated—still don't wish to get
involved in such matters despite understanding that they now reside in the United
States, not China.
33
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
Lack of awareness. Many are not aware that so much work in Lexington is performed by volunteers.
The lack of awareness shows up in three ways:
• Holders of elected office as volunteers
o "1 didn't know that the Board of Selectmen is an elected volunteer body."
• Lack of knowledge of local government
o "First generation doesn't know how government works."
o "Not familiar with Town Government."
o "Koreans know very little about how the community works."
• Lack of information regarding opportunities to serve the Town
• "Lack of knowledge about committees and their work."
• "Friends ask friends to get involved, so it's an issue of dealing with new residents."
• "Level of commitment: 3-year appointment, monthly meetings."
Those serving on PTA and PTO boards frequently identified two additional barriers.
Language. Half of the PTA/0 interview subjects advanced this barrier, but they did not elaborate. The
Subcommittee believes that the barrier is not the ability to understand and to speak English in a
business setting, because—as shown in Figures 7, 8 and 9—the majority of Asian residents speak English
well. Rather,we believe that it refers to a lack of comfort in participating and debating effectively in an
informal setting. "Language"was also identified as a potential barrier by those serving on the Town's
elected bodies and committees, but much less frequently.
Perceived lack of welcome. Although the question regarding barriers, posed during the interviews,
refers to barriers to participation on the Town's boards and committees, not PTA and PTO boards, we
believe that the answers of the PTA/PTO interviewees reflect their own experiences on PTA and PTO
boards. Despite the fact that many report enjoying their participation on the boards, one quarter of the
PTA/PTO interviewees cited the following:
• Lack of encouragement
o "Need to bridge the gap between the communities—possibly a welcome committee.
They assume Asians know, but parents need to reach out and guide Asians how to
participate—show them they are a valuable and useful members."
o "Also some Chinese people may not feel like they are part of the community."
• Cliquish committees
o "Sometimes there's a group and it's hard to break in."
• Intimidation by incumbent
o "Intimidation factor of people already entrenched in these positions who have a name,
stature and reputation."
These responses are consistent with some of the interview subjects' perceptions regarding a lack of
welcome to new ideas mentioned above.
34
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
The remaining barriers appearing in Figure 15 and Figure 16 are self-explanatory. The "Other"
categories include the need to get acclimated in Town before devoting oneself to volunteer work, and
concern over the commitment to three-year appointments and monthly meetings associated with
committee work.
Suggestions offered by interview subjects for how the Asian associations could contribute to
increasing participation
Interview subjects agreed that the Asian associations—CAAL and IAL—should encourage greater
participation and offered the following examples:
• Identify potential candidates, whether for Town boards and committees, including Town
Meeting, or for PTA and PTO boards.
• Offer to provide support and mentorship to those who volunteer.
• Set goals for participation, such as a target number to be elected to Town Meeting.
• Monitor opportunities to participate in Town events or projects.
They also suggest that CAAL and IAL adopt a variety of communication channels to create awareness
among their members regarding issues and opportunities. In order to accomplish this, CAAL and IAL
should
• Solicit Town leaders to keep the associations aware of opportunities.
• Maintain a list of open Town positions that might be of interest to their respective communities.
Suggestions offered by interview subjects for steps to be taken by Town leaders to increase
participation
Interview subjects serving on Town boards and committees made recommendations that fall into two
categories:
• Encourage diversity. They suggested that this could be accomplished by setting diversity targets
and monitoring participation; encouraging committees to build diverse memberships; and
through personal outreach to members of the Asian communities.
• Create awareness of opportunities to serve the Town. The interview subjects suggested that this
could be done by distributing flyers; creating information packets for newcomers; and by
enhancing the Town web site.
Those serving on PTA and PTO boards offered the following recommendations:
• Be more welcoming. Suggestions include offering assignments that make use of their skills;
creating the opportunity to test their interest in a committee with a temporary or trial position;
sponsoring multicultural events; participating in events sponsored by Asian communities; and by
translating important Town documents.
• Create awareness of opportunities to serve the Town. Suggestions include providing more
complete information on boards and committees, and by giving talks at PTA and PTO meetings
on opportunities to serve the Town.
Assessment of our methodology regarding the identification of barriers
A potential shortcoming of our methodology is its reliance on interviews of Asian residents who have
participated in civic affairs rather than interviews of Asian residents who have chosen not to participate.
35
Barriers to participation in Town affairs
While we acknowledge this potential shortcoming,we believe that we have captured opinions of some
who have decided not to get involved through the interview question "Have you encouraged other
members of your community to participate on this board or committee or other boards and
committees?" Twenty-six of the 34 interview subjects reported that they did encourage others. When
asked the follow-up question regarding the typical response (of those whom they encouraged),the most
frequently cited reasons were "too busy," "wouldn't be good at it," and "OK for special events; not
interested in full-time commitment." Thus the responses of those who have decided not to participate
are consistent with the reasons summarized in Figure 14 and Figure 15. We believe,therefore, that our
methodology leads to credible findings.
36
Activities or events to increase the community's inclusion of Asian-Americans
Subcommittee charge
Develop ideas regarding activities or events that will increase the community's inclusion of Asian-
Americans residing here.
The ideas have been incorporated into the Recommendations section (p.48).
37
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Subcommittee charge
Assess the steps taken by Town Departments to ensure that services, including emergency services, are
effectively delivered to Town residents who do not speak English or speak it poorly.
Methodology
The Subcommittee identified eight departments or programs that might be most affected by the Town's
demographic change: six Town departments (Fire, Police, Health, Human Services, Library and
Recreation) and two Lexington Public School programs (English Language Learner Program and the
hiring of teachers of Asian ancestry). We asked their leaders to address the following topics:
• Current services or activities stimulated by the growth in the number of the Town's Asian
residents
• Steps being taken or planned, if any, in response to the demographic change
• Challenges or needs for which complete solutions have not been developed
Findings-Summary
Four departments— Fire, Police, Health and Human Services—have shared, and continue to share, a
concern and responsibility for working with a group of elderly Chinese residents of the Lexington
Housing Authority's Greeley and Vynebrook Villages,who speak English poorly or not at all. The deaths
of two residents of Greeley Village while attempting to cross Worthen Road in the vicinity of Stop &
Shop led to the installation of a talking light at the intersection of Worthen Road and Bedford Street and
a crosswalk on Worthen Road near the Stop&Shop. In addition, ID cards were created for Greeley
Village residents by an intern in Human Services. Meanwhile,the Fire Department is seeking to have
emergency cards created for residents of Greeley and Vynebrook Villages.
The Police and Fire Chiefs and the Directors of Health and of Human Services have also drawn attention
to the importance of better understanding the cultures of the Asian communities, even when the
residents speak English well. Accordingly,they are seeking to arrange appropriate training sessions for
their staffs.They are also considering a monthly coordination meeting, whose topics would include
issues unique to the Asian communities.
The Cary Memorial Library has long held a collection of Chinese and Indian material, created with the
assistance of interested Lexington residents. In addition to planned expansion of these collections, it is
seeking to build a Korean collection. Two members of the Library speak Mandarin and are able to assist
Mandarin-speaking patrons not only with its standard services but also with the college application
process.
The Recreation Department is exploring the addition of programs of special interest to Asian residents—
Bollywood Dancing, ping pong, badminton and cricket. The challenges to their introduction include
limited facilities, outdoors and indoors.
From 2006 to 2013, Lexington Public Schools almost doubled the number of full-time equivalent
instructors in the English Language Learner Program (ELLP) as the number of ELLP students, primarily of
38
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Asian origin, rose by 82 percent. As the ELLP has grown, its leaders have come to recognize that the
program would benefit from having native speakers as well as a psychiatrist/psychologist and a social
worker to assist with cultural transition issues. In addition,the ELLP leadership would like to have access
to native-speaking medical personnel, because it believes that health issues can impede learning.
The Lexington Public Schools are also trying to increase from 4.3%the percentage of teachers who are
of Asian ancestry. In this effort, they are challenged by a very limited pool of candidates. To add to the
challenge, the pool is effectively reduced because some candidates prefer to teach in urban schools,
because these schools are regarded as offering a more interesting environment. Yet another challenge
is that some candidates do not perceive Lexington to be sufficiently diverse—despite the evidence
presented in this report.
Detailed Findings
The tables below provide the details for each department or program.
Table 6—Current and planned services and challenges in the Fire Department.John Wilson,Chief
Current services Laminated list of translators. Fire trucks and EMS vehicles now carry a laminated card
stimulated by growth with list of translators who are available by phone. Multi-language translators are often
of Asian population called first.
Assistant Chief position created to oversee training.The position was created in 2013
and filled through promotion.The current focus is certification training for EMS.
Membership,Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts.The association maintains an
information database. Members use it to exchange information and tips regarding
communication with non-English speakers.
Planned Services Cultural diversity training.Assistant Chief will oversee cultural diversity training for
staff,which is especially needed by inspection officers who visit residents routinely.
Residents may be distrustful, and officers must put them at ease.
Challenges/ Emergency information forms.Accessible,filled-in emergency forms are critical for
Needs handling medical and other emergencies when the person cannot communicate.
Bilingual individuals with good handwriting are needed to enter the information for
non-English speakers.
Flash cards.When real-time translation is not available,a set of flash cards with English
and Mandarin text and pictures could assist with communication.
Coordination with Police,Health and Human Services Departments. Hold monthly
coordination meetings to discuss current issues, including those dealing with Asian
communities.
39
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 7-Current and planned services and challenges in the Police Department. Mark Corr,Chief
Current Services National translation service.The Department subscribes to a translation service
stimulated by available by phone that facilitates communication with non-English speakers.
growth of Asian
Domestic Violence Service Network.When appropriate,the police can involve this
population
Concord-based organization,which has Asian language speakers.
On-site diversity training. Local Asian residents provide training on Chinese, Hindu,
and Muslim cultures--including detailed questions and answers--to officers and staff.
Work with Fire and Human Services Departments.The police identify at-risk elders
who need medical and other services.
Mandarin speaker.The department has one Mandarin-speaking officer. He serves
Lexington residents, and the department can exchange his services with neighboring
towns for the services of officers with fluency in other languages.
Planned Services Hiring.To broaden department diversity the department plans to hire more officers
with Asian language skills.
Challenges/ Civil Service.To keep pace with the rapidly growing Asian community, more diversity
Needs within the police department is a critical need.The Massachusetts civil service system
puts tight constraints on Lexington's ability to diversify. Recent requests for a list of
candidates with Mandarin language have not produced results.
Reducing fear and distrust.Asian residents, like all residents, need to be willing to call
the Police and to accept Police as a positive resource. Many Asian residents come
from regions where involving police is avoided at all costs. Putting them at ease with
the Lexington police staff and practices is a continuing challenge.
Coordination with Fire,Health and Human Services Departments. Hold monthly
coordination meetings to discuss current issues, including those dealing with Asian
communities.
More opportunities to meet.The police department eagerly seeks as many chances as
possible--events, meetings, house gatherings--to meet with people in small or large
groups to talk,to answer questions,and to socialize.
40
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 8-Current and planned services and challenges in the Human Services Department. Charlotte Rodgers,
Director
Current services Evergreen Support Group(Elderly Chinese).Twice monthly,the Senior Center hosts about 50
stimulated by participants. Many reside in Lexington Housing Authority villages, live on small government
growth of Asian payments,and depend, in part,on the food pantry, which is strongly supported by CAAL.
population Evergreen Support Group organizes Chinese New Year festivities where they perform and
invite other performers.
Classes targeted at Asian residents. English as Second Language(ESL)and Citizenship classes
(offered to all).
Lunches. Occasional Chinese or Indian menu.
Program translation.Senior Center program is translated into Mandarin—hourly stipend is
available for these services.
ID cards. Recent intern created ID cards for seniors in Greeley Village.
Response to pedestrian fatalities on Worthen Road.
• Talking lights installed at intersection of Worthen Road and Bedford Street
• Cross-walk installed near Stop&Shop through a collaboration with the Traffic Safety
Advisory Committee
• Human Services Department collaborated on a pedestrian safety training program
held at Greeley Village
Planned Services Pedestrian safety training.Joint program with Police Department in English and Mandarin.
Challenges/ Mandarin-speaking outreach/social worker. Department would like to hire a staff member
Needs with these qualifications.
Coordination with Police,Fire and Health Departments. Hold monthly coordination
meetings to discuss current issues, including those dealing with Asian communities.
41
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 9-Current and planned services and challenges in the Health Department. Gerard Cody,Director
Current services Communicable disease case investigation. Disease prevention documents are available in a
stimulated by variety of languages. Case workers from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health may
growth of Asian provide translation services for disease tracking purposes.
population
Health Fair.The Lexington Health Division participates in an annual Health Fair at the
Lexington Chinese Bible Church. Influenza vaccinations are available along with other health
education documents on various topics including but not limited to diabetes prevention,TB,
West Nile Virus(WNV), Eastern Equine Encephalitis(EEE)and Lyme Disease. A translator is
available during the health fair and documents are provided in Mandarin.
Health Education Programs. Programs on a variety of topics including but not limited to
insect vectors(Lyme disease,WNV and EEE)are available in various languages.A Mandarin
translator was available for two of the eight seminars that were offered about disease
transmission by ticks and mosquitoes in 2013.
Restaurant Worker education seminars. Conducted three times annually. Training videos
available in Mandarin. Documents on the importance of hand washing,avoiding cross
contamination during food preparation and other related topics are also available in
Mandarin.
Community Health Network Alliance (CHNA) Health Communities Survey.Available in
Mandarin. Several residents completed the survey in Mandarin. Results were translated into
English and were included in the survey results.
Planned Services Health Education Programs in English and Mandarin.Topics include but are not limited to
safe food preparation, diabetes prevention,TB,WNV, EEE and Lyme Disease.Through the
CHNA grant the Health Department is working with partners to have an Alternative Health
Faire,where non-traditional,often Eastern Medicine treatment modalities are emphasized.
Challenges/ Working with Mandarin-speaking residents. (1)Operating public influenza clinics and
Needs obtaining accurate health history information from the Mandarin-speaking resident wishing
to get vaccinated. (2)Operating emergency shelters and obtaining accurate registration
information from the Mandarin—speaking resident wishing to stay in the shelter.
Coordination meetings. Health Division monthly meetings with Police, Fire and Human
Services to discuss current issues, including those dealing with Asian communities.
42
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 10-Current and planned services and challenges at Cary Memorial Library. Koren Stembridge, Director
Current services Chinese and Indian books and DVDs. Collection built with assistance from members of
stimulated by Chinese and Indian communities.
growth of Asian
Chinese newspapers.
population
Chinese-speaking librarians.Two Mandarin-speaking members of the staff help to identify
Chinese acquisitions,communicate with Mandarin speaking patrons and assist parents in
navigating the college selection and application process.
Conversational English for Chinese speakers. Led by English At Large,a Medford-based non-
profit organization
Indian wedding. For one day,the Library staged an Indian wedding.
Planned Services Korean books.Selection and acquisition with assistance from John Lee of our Subcommittee.
Indian films. Demand is growing.
Chinese collection.Space being created to accommodate growth. Also seeking Chinese art.
Used book store. Chinese language section to be added.
Challenges/ Strategic plan. Input sought from Chinese community
Needs Emergency information cards. Library wishes to assist Police and Fire Departments in
distributing emergency information cards for residents with limited English capability.
Asian culture programs.Suggestions sought for programs to help all residents learn about
Asian cultures.
Table 11-Current and planned services and challenges in the Recreation Department. Karen Simmons,Director
Current services No programs specifically for Asian residents.Asian residents well represented among
stimulated by program participants and staff.
growth of Asian
population
Planned Services Bollywood dance/fitness class. Discussions with iDance Boston to provide the program
Challenges/ Facilities for sports popular with Asian residents. Ping pong tables are damaged by weather;
Needs need to be indoors. Existing competition for playing fields makes it difficult to add cricket.
Possibility of badminton at High School. All programs need to be supported by fees because
funding for programs and equipment does not come from taxes.
Program suggestions. More input from Asian residents sought.
43
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 12-Current and planned services and challenges in the Lexington Public Schools' English Language Learner
Program(ELLP). Robyn Dowling-Grant,Coordinator
Current Services Assessment. English proficiency is initially assessed using the World-Class Instructional Design
stimulated by and Assessment(WIDA)-ACCESS Placement Test for English Language Learners. Thereafter,
growth of Asian students are assessed annually using ACCESS,WIDA's assessment,currently used in 28 states.
population
Instruction.Students receive daily lessons based on the WIDA standards which are aligned
with the goals of the Common Core. Typically,students require one to three years in the
ELLP to achieve the English proficiency required to succeed in the classroom.
Students. In 2012, 374 students enrolled in ELLP,an 82%increase since 2006. 82%of the
current students are in grades K-5th. 59%are Asian language speakers. Of the 6663
students in the district, 21%(1400) indicated that English is not their first language. The first
language for 7%is Mandarin or Cantonese;for 3% it is Korean;for 1%it is Hindi, Bengali, or
Marathi; and for another 1%it is Japanese.
Staff. In 2012,thirteen English as a Second Language(ESL) instructors served students in the
Lexington schools(Bowman-2, Bridge-2, Estabrook-2, Harrington-1, Hastings-1,Clarke-1,
Diamond-1, LHS-1,for a total of 11.45 FTEs. This represents an increase of 94%since 2006.
Planned Services No enhancements currently planned.
Challenges/ Support for history and science studies.Students typically encounter problems with English
Needs in history and science classes. A particular focus of the program is to enhance the academic
language necessary to comprehend content,especially as the content becomes more
complex. Students often lack the background knowledge to place new learning in its proper
context,especially in the areas of history and English/Language Arts,where cultural
knowledge is central to understanding.
Help with cultural transition. ELLP needs native speakers as well as a
psychiatrist/psychologist and social worker to assist with cultural transition issues. It would
also be beneficial to have access to native-speaking medical personnel,since health issues
can impede learning.
44
Actions taken by Town Departments and Lexington Public Schools
Table 13-Current and planned services and Lexington Public Schools' Human Resources. Robert Harris,
Assistant Superintendent
Current actions Asian teachers and staff.The Lexington Public Schools(LPS) have been actively seeking to
stimulated by hire teachers and staff with Asian ancestry. As of September 2013, 29 of 677 teachers(4.3%)
growth of Asian are of Asian ancestry. Of the total staff of LPS, 57 of 1572(3.6%)are of Asian ancestry. Staff
population members of Asian ancestry represent the largest minority group within the school's staff
Recruitment.Teachers are recruited using a variety of channels, including an annual job fair
co-sponsored with Metro communities with demographics similar to Lexington's,e.g.,
Carlisle, Concord, Lincoln,Sudbury,Wellesley and Weston. The overall attendance ranges
from 200 to 300, but turnout of Asian candidates has been very low.
Recently hired Asian teachers. 2011-12: 2; 2012-13:3; 2013-14: 5.
Planned actions Increase diversity. Continue to seek more teachers and staff of Asian ancestry using the
current channels. A Diversity Task Force, including a representative from the Chinese
community, provides advice and guidance.
Challenges/ Small candidate pool.The proportion of students pursuing a graduate program in education
Needs is low. At Boston College, a highly regarded source,only 24 of last year's class of 357(6.7%)
were of Asian ancestry.
Competition for graduates. Many graduates prefer urban schools or schools with easy
commuter access. Some perceive Lexington,despite its large Asian population,as not
sufficiently diverse. Finally,some regard urban schools as providing a more challenging—
and, perhaps,fulfilling—opportunity than an affluent community such as Lexington.
45
Steps taken by Massachusetts communities to increase inclusion
Subcommittee charge
Assess steps taken by Massachusetts communities that have experienced significant demographic
changes in recent years. Determine what worked and what did not, and what could be applied in
Lexington.
Methodology
The Subcommittee initially selected six communities with large and growing Asian populations: Acton,
Boxborough, Brookline, Cambridge, Newton and Westborough. Figure 18 shows the percentage of
residents of Asian ancestry residing in these communities in 2000 and 2010. Lexington data are
included for comparison. Winchester was added later when we learned that members of Winchester's
Chinese community had contacted CAAL to learn about the steps it had taken to promote civic
participation. Although Lexington had the largest percentage in 2010,the Asian population grew more
rapidly in Acton, Boxborough,Westborough and Winchester.
Figure 18- Percentage of residents with Asian ancestry in several communities in the Greater Boston
area
25%
ITV 2000 Census
4:.2010 Census
201/ 199%
18.6% 18.6%
16.3%
15.6%
15.1%
15%
12.8%
11A',6
11.5%
10.9%
10% .9.3%
86% 8.5%
8.1-A
77%
Acton Boxborough Brookline Cambridge Lexington Newton Westborough Winchester
Source:US Census Bureau
To learn about possible steps being taken in the original six communities to increase the diversity on
their boards and committees,the Subcommittee asked Town Manager Carl Valente to write to his peers
—town managers and town administrators—with the request to provide the Subcommittee Chair with
contact information for groups charged with missions similar to ours. Only one Town Manager
responded. He reported that his community had not performed any studies along the lines that we
were undertaking. Before concluding that none of the other communities had launched initiatives
46
Steps taken by Massachusetts communities to increase inclusion
similar to Lexington's,we contacted leaders of the League of Women Voters (LWV) in these
communities. To learn about activities in Newton,two members of the Subcommittee interviewed
Greer Swiston, a Newton Alderman of Chinese origin. Finally, we visited the communities'web sites to
estimate the number of Asian residents serving on boards and committees. Our estimates are based on
surnames only.
Findings
Table 14 summarizes our findings. Several of the communities have elected Asian residents to town-
wide bodies. None of these communities, however, has launched an initiative comparable to the one
undertaken by our Subcommittee to identify barriers to participation and to recommend steps that
could be taken to increase civic participation.
Table 14-Civic participation in select communities with substantial Asian populations
Representation by Asian Initiative(s)with potential to Initiatives undertaken by
residents on elected bodies increase civic participation by Asian residents to increase
Community September 2013 Asian residents their civic participation
Acton • 2 elected • Board of Selectmen voted • Chinese language school
to permit non-citizens to has programs for all ages;
serve on Town includes forums in English
committees and boards on topics such as how to
deal with the Town
Boxborough • 1 elected • No initiatives identified • No initiatives identified
Brookline • 13 total • LWV has a program on • No initiatives identified
• 3 elected how to run for Town
Meeting; not targeted at
Asian residents
Cambridge • Possibly 5 • No initiatives identified • No initiatives identified
• 1 elected
Newton • 2 elected • Celebrated Asian culture • No initiatives identified
with program in March
2013
Westborough • 1, possibly 2 • No activity as of • No initiatives identified
• None elected December 2012 reported
by Town Manager
Winchester • 2 elected • Winchester Multicultural • Chinese association in
Network sponsored a contact with CAAL
conference entitled regarding steps taken by
"Winchester in CAAL to increase civic
Transition." It included a participation of Chinese
segment on demographics residents
"How is the Face of
Winchester Changing?"
47
Recommendations
Recommendations regarding reducing barriers to civic participation by Asian residents
The Subcommittee's position on civic participation
We believe that civic participation needs to be viewed both from the perspective of Lexington's Asian
communities and from the perspective of the Town as a whole.
From the perspective of the Asian communities, greater participation would ensure that the views of
Asian residents are more likely to be understood and acted upon, and their cultures and norms better
appreciated. It would also foster a more welcoming environment, and help Asian residents to feel
comfortable living in Lexington.
From the perspective of the Town as a whole, greater participation should improve mutual
understanding and avoid potential polarization between the non-Asian population and the Asian
communities. It would also enrich the Town through the injection of the skills, experiences, cultures and
traditions of its Asian residents.
Why we believe that civic participation by Asian residents can be increased
Earlier,we described several barriers to civic participation perceived by our interview subjects:
demographics ("young and busy" and few older residents), culture, lack of awareness of the workings of
Town government, language, and perceived lack of welcome in the PTA and PTO boards. However, we
have data and information that suggest that barriers can be reduced and civic participation increased,
perhaps substantially. Below,we present evidence to support our optimism.
Demographics
Although we have argued that Figure 17, showing the age profile for Asian residents, provides a
demographic explanation for low participation, we expect the profile will evolve towards higher ages as
the residents grow older and younger ones arrive. Of course,the evolution of the age profile is based on
the assumption that many of the families will remain in Lexington after their children graduate from
high school or college. Two factors support the assumption: First, because most Chinese and Indian
residents are US citizens,they are likely to remain in this country. Second, because many of the families
have two working parents, both in good positions, they may remain in Lexington because moving may
not be an attractive option.
Evidence to support the assumption that the age profile will shift is based on a comparison of age
profiles for 2000 and 2010, described in Appendix G—Evidence that Asian residents are staying on in
Lexington after their children leave home. The analysis reveals that residents over the age of 45
represent the fastest growing segment of Lexington's Asian population. The analysis is consistent with
anecdotal evidence provided by a real estate associate with extensive dealings with Chinese residents
and by Chinese and Indian members of the Subcommittee. Their experiences suggest that Asian
residents remain in Lexington after their children graduate from high school and college, and that their
decisions to move from Lexington are based on the same considerations as their non-Asian
counterparts.
48
Recommendations
Culture
Two trends support our optimism on this front. First, as demonstrated in Table 3, participation on PTA
and PTO boards,which provides an introduction to civic affairs, is already much greater than it is on the
Town's boards and committees. Most interview subjects report enjoying serving on the PTA/O boards
and making new friends. Their experience and the networks they establish could motivate them to
become involved in Town boards and committees despite the fact that, as shown in Table 5,women
currently constitute the majority of Asian residents serving on PTA/0 boards, whereas it is primarily
Asian male residents who now serve on Town boards and committees. Second, as previously noted,
CAAL and IAL have launched initiatives to encourage greater civic participation on the part of their
members. Success by residents of Chinese ancestry in the 2012 elections is likely to encourage further
efforts in subsequent elections and could create more role models.
English language skills of Asian residents
Admittedly,there is little than can be done about this issue in the short term. However, improvements
are likely to follow the evolving demographics.
Lack of awareness(of the workings of Town government)and perceived lack of welcome on the PTA
and PTO boards
We believe that these two barriers could be substantially reduced. Below, we explain how.
Recommendations for the Board of Selectmen, the Town Manager and the Town Moderator;for
the PTAs and PTOs;and for CAAL and IAL
Further growth in civic participation can be achieved through the actions of Lexington Town bodies and
organizations ("pull") along with complementary initiatives by the Asian communities ("push"). Our
recommendations are based on: (1)the views of the interview subjects regarding the barriers to greater
participation, (2)their suggestions for steps to be taken by Town leaders and by CAAL and IAL, and (3)
the Subcommittee's own insights. We classify our recommendations into short-term (ST) and long-term
(LT) categories. The former could be implemented by December 2014, while the latter could be in place
by December 2015.
if econtirl,10iu11 Ili d atii. ns fior the II[34c:gird 4�4' &llle tm tenii
• Continue to promote inclusion of Asian residents through events such as "Diversity Day" and
symposia on the immigrant experience, perhaps in collaboration with PTAs and PTOs as well as
local groups such as the League of Women Voters and the Chamber of Commerce.
• Strengthen communications with CAAL and IAL beyond attendance at cultural events such as
Diwali and Chinese New Year: Institute candid discussions of how to more rapidly and effectively
integrate members of the Asian communities into the fabric of the Town. (ST)
Recontnllllll2llll Ili dal.11l. ns fi,.or officials 'wil h C II e aulhlolll[ity to, ii'31))pIIIJIVnnil blIIN11 d Imid ciiciviiiiniti lioe nllllen llbers
the Il[ lroaw Iof Selllochlinien, dile I Iro°wn Il%L:31'1lagliol, i]iii�id I lie Town II%loollier:3tor
Modify the management of committees under their purview:
49
Recommendations
• Request that each committee clearly describe its mission; list the skills and experiences required
(e.g., knowledge of finance, ability to effectively research topics of importance to the
committee, ability to produce reports); and describe what is expected of committee members
(e.g., attendance, responsiveness, active participation in discussions). (ST)
• Identify pathways to encourage short-term participation (e.g., on projects)that would allow
residents with appropriate skills to contribute and to gain exposure to the way the Town
operates. (LT)
• Develop a more open process for committees to publicize their work and to recruit residents
with the skills the committees require. Currently,the process appears to be based primarily on
inviting people from the personal networks of committee members or members of sponsoring
bodies. (LT)
111i�iuirr 1 h e i.ea d e r s n�i 19".A s �i iui,i d IIII1 i i:i s
• Establish communications with leaders of CAAL and IAL with the objective of identifying steps to
encourage a larger percentage of parents of Asian ancestry to participate on PTA/O boards. (ST)
• Within each school, ask Asian board members for their advice on how to be more welcoming to
Asian parents, and request their assistance in recruiting more Asian parents to serve on PTA/0
boards. (ST)
• Establish a collaboration with CAAL and IAL leaders to:
Identify the causes of the perception that some Asian residents do not feel welcomed
on PTA/0 boards. (LT)
Implement steps that would eliminate the above perception and increase the
participation of Asian parents. (LT)
IZecq nrlM110iu11 III d aiJii.ons i r)m°CAAIII[. and IIII.AIIIL
• Continue to encourage participation in Town and School affairs by identifying and
communicating opportunities to serve, providing information on how the Town works (e.g., a
mini Citizens'Academy) and how PTAs and PTOs operate, by identifying potential candidates
within the community and by mobilizing support. (ST)
• Strengthen communications with Town and School leaders, and use these channels to promote
greater participation by Asian residents. (ST)
Other recommendations
For the Police,Fire,Health and Human Services Departments
As we have learned,Town departments face two categories of challenges in working with some Asian
residents: The first is that a small number of elderly residents speak English poorly or not at all (please
see Figure 7,
Figure 8 and Figure 9). As a consequence, emergency situations may give rise to an extra level of risk for
Town staff and for the resident. The second concerns cultural norms such as those described by the Fire
and Police Chiefs and listed in Table 7 and Table 8.
50
Recommendations
Accordingly,we endorse the suggestion for a monthly coordination meeting of the Police, Fire, Health,
and Human Services Departments. In addition, we recommend that,twice a year,these meetings
include representatives from the boards of CAAL and IAL.
For the 2020 Vision Committee
We recommend that the Lexington 2020 Vision Committee continue to monitor and report on
demographic trends and civic participation by Asian residents. In addition,we recommend that it
investigate the experiences in other US communities, with larger percentages of Asian residents and
demographics similar to Lexington's.
For the Town Clerk
In light of the rapid growth in the number of Asian residents, Lexington needs more timely and complete
data (than provided by the Census Bureau's decennial census) to monitor changes in its demographics
and to gauge demand for services. We therefore recommend that racial origin and country of origin be
added to the Town's annual census. To ensure consistency with Census Bureau data,the Town should
use the wording employed by the Census Bureau and exclude college students not living in Lexington
from its count.
51
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, we thank the 36 residents who consented to be interviewed,told us about their
experiences in serving in a large variety of volunteer bodies and organizations, and shared with us their
opinions regarding the barriers to greater civic engagement faced by residents of Asian ancestry. We
earnestly hope that this report will lead to the lowering of those barriers.
We also thank the following for enlightening us regarding their work and how it bears on Lexington's
Asian residents: Sheila Butts (Assistant Director, Recreation Department), Gerard Cody(Director, Health
Department), Mark Corr(Chief, Police Department), Robyn Dowling-Grant (ELLP Coordinator, Lexington
Public Schools), Robert Harris (Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources, Lexington Public Schools),
Charlotte Rodgers (Director, Human Services), Karen Simmons (Director, Recreation Department), Koren
Stembridge (Director, Cary Memorial Library), Hua Wang (CAAL/CTF), and John Wilson (Chief, Fire
Department).
Marian Cohen, a member of the 2020 Vision Committee who earlier served on the Demographic Change
Task Force, provided invaluable help with the creation of the interview guide and process, and helped to
train us in conducting the interviews.
Leslie Zales, Chair of the PTA/0 Presidents' Council, cheerfully and patiently served as our contact with
the PTA/0 presidents,who, in turn, provided lists of potential interview subjects.
Diamond Hayes, a Sales Associate with William Raveis, spoke at our November 2012 meeting and
provided us with her analysis of the impact on demographic change on Lexington's real estate market
and with her insights on the factors that attracted Asian residents to Lexington.
Town Manager Carl Valente introduced the Subcommittee to his peers in several communities with
large Asian populations so that we could learn about any actions they are taking to integrate them into
the fabric of these communities.
Candy McLaughlin,Assistant to the Town Manager, guided us on Town protocol helped us to obtain the
data on Lexington's boards and committees in a format that permitted the relatively painless creation of
their age profiles.
Lisa Maguire,Administrative Assistant in the Town Clerk's Office, provided us with data and technical
advice that enabled us to create the age profiles for Lexington's elected officials and committee
members.
Alexandra Barker, Data Dissemination Specialist in the U.S. Census Bureau enthusiastically guided us to
the data needed to assemble much of the demographic foundation for this report.
Members of Lexington's 2020 Vision Committee helped us through their constant encouragement and
stimulating comments and suggestions.
52
Acknowledgments
Finally,we thank Marian Cohen, Ben Esty(former member of the Demographic Change Task Force),
Fernando Quezada (Chair of Lexington's 2020 Vision Committee) and Leslie Zales for their insightful
comments on a draft of this report.
53
Appendix A — Subcommittee Charter (Adopted by vote of the Lexington 2020 Vision
Committee on February 10, 2012)
Background
The report of the Demographic Change Task Force (DCTF), issued in March of 2010, contained two sets
of recommendations. One was aimed at developing a deeper understanding of the growth of
population of Asian origin and increasing its participation in Town boards and committees;the other
was concerned with trends in the Town's older population.
Since the report was issued,the 2020 Vision Committee has met with representatives of the Chinese
American Association of Lexington and Indian Americans of Lexington and Town Department Managers
have been asked to consider how to respond to the data and recommendations presented in the report.
But no other steps have been taken in response to the recommendations.
The 2020 Vision Committee now wishes to set up a subcommittee to address the recommendations of
the DCTF with respect to the Asian-American population in Lexington. Its charge,timeline and
membership are presented below.
Charge
The subcommittee will:
1. Assess the steps taken by Town Departments to ensure that services, including emergency
services, are effectively delivered to Town residents who do not speak English or speak it poorly.
2. Investigate the factors that attract Asian-Americans to Lexington; estimate the proportion of
Asian Americans who move to Lexington with the intention of living here indefinitely and those
who are temporary residents.
3. Identify any barriers that currently limit the participation of Town's Asian-American population
in its government, boards, associations, and committees; propose and facilitate steps to making
them welcome on these bodies and comfortable in participating on them.
4. Develop ideas regarding activities or events that will increase the community's inclusion of
Asian-Americans residing here.
5. Assess steps taken by Massachusetts communities that have experienced significant
demographic changes in recent years. Determine what worked and what did not, and what
could be applied in Lexington.
Timeline
The work of the subcommittee is to be completed by December 31, 2013. Interim reports are to be
presented to the 2020 Vision Committee at two-month intervals.
Subcommittee membership (total membership to be nine)
• 3, including the chair, from the 2020 Vision Committee
• 2-4 from the Asian-American community
• 2-3 from PTAs
54
Appendices
Appendix B - Background data collection sheet
Name:
1. Experience on boards or committees
Lexington experience(Please list most recent first)
Organization Position Dates served
Experience prior to living in Lexington (Please list most recent first)
Organization Position Location Dates served
2. Personal data (For each question, please check the response most appropriate for you.)
• What is your ethnic origin? Chinese ❑ Indian ❑ Korean ❑ Japanese❑
Other❑ Please specify
• Were you born in the U.S.A.? Yes❑ No ❑
• If you were born elsewhere, how many years have you lived in the USA?
• How many years have you lived in Lexington?
• What is the language currently spoken in your home?
• Do you have any children? Yes❑ No ❑
• If yes, how many are currently in Lexington Public Schools? _ How many have graduated
from Lexington Public Schools?
• How many generations of your family live in Lexington?
• Are you a member of CAAL? Yes ❑ No F1
• Are you a member of IAL? Yes[-] No❑
• Are you a member of the CAAL or IAL board? Yes El No❑
• What is the highest level of education that you have achieved?
• What is your occupation?
• What is your sex? Male ❑ Female ❑
• What is your age? Under 40E1 40—65 El Over 65 ❑
55
Appendices
Appendix C - Interview Guide for those who are serving or have served on
elected bodies or committees
Name: Interviewer:
Date of interview:
3. First experience in obtaining the town board or committee position
• Were you invited to join the board or committee?
• If"yes," by whom?
• If"no,"what prompted you to seek the position?
• Did you have any concerns about accepting/seeking the position as a member of an
Asian group?
• If the response is "no,"go to next question.
• If the response is "yes," ask: What were your concerns?
• What steps did you take to obtain the position?
• Probe for details because the interview subject may be proud of the steps that
he or she took
• If the response includes involvement of the Chinese, Indian or Korean
community, probe for details
4. Experience in serving on the town board or committee
What did you enjoy most about serving on the board/committee?
o If any of these experiences are related to ethnic origin, ask for specific examples
• Did you encounter any problems while serving on the board/committee? If the response is not
related to ethnic origin, move to the next section
o If the response appears to be related to ethnic origin, probe for details
(communications, left out of decision making, other)
• What steps did you take to deal with the problem encountered
56
Appendices
5. Assessment
• Would you say that you, personally, benefited from serving on this board/committee?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Would you say that the board/committee benefited from your participation?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Would you say that your participation in Town affairs had an effect on the
Chinese/Indian/Korean community?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Those of us studying participation of Asian-Americans in Town affairs noticed that there aren't
many Chinese/Indian/Korean residents serving on the Town's boards and committees.
• Why do you think this may be so?
• Is underrepresentation, by their proportion of our Lexington population, by Asians on
Town boards and committees something that you view as problematic? If"yes", in
what way(s) do you think this is a problem?
• If"yes", ask the following questions:
• Have you encouraged other members of your community to participate on this
board or committee or other boards and committees?Yes
If"yes", what is the typical response that you receive?
• Should the Chinese/Indian/Korean community encourage greater participation
on Town boards and committees? If yes, what steps or actions could they take
to encourage greater participation?
• Should the leaders of Town boards and committees encourage greater
participation of the Chinese/Indian/Korean residents? If yes, what steps or
actions could they take?
• Only for those who no longer serve on a board or committee: I notice that you are no longer
active on a Town board or committee. Would you please tell me why?
• If no comments made that pertain to Asian ancestry, probe: Did your ethnic origin play a
role in your decision to end your participation?
• If"yes", what role did it play?
57
Appendices
Appendix D - Interview guide for those who are serving or who have served
on PTAs, PTOs and LexFun
Name: Interviewer:
Date of interview:
3. First experience in obtaining the committee position
• Were you invited to join the committee?
• If"yes," by whom?
• If"no,"what prompted you to seek the position?
• Did you have any concerns about accepting/seeking the position as a member of an
Asian group?
• If the response is "no,"go to next question.
• If the response is "yes," ask: What were your concerns?
• What steps did you take to obtain the position?
• Probe for details because the interview subject may be proud of the steps that
he or she took
• If the response includes involvement of the Chinese, Indian or Korean
community, probe for details
4. Experience in serving on the committee
• What did you enjoy most about serving on the committee?
o If any of these experiences are related to ethnic origin, ask for specific examples
• Did you encounter any problems while serving on the board/committee? If the response is not
related to ethnic origin, move to the next section
o If the response appears to be related to ethnic origin, probe for details
(communications, left out of decision making, other)
• What steps did you take to deal with the problem encountered
58
Appendices
5. Assessment
• Would you say that you, personally, benefited from serving on this committee?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Would you say that the committee benefited from your participation?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Would you say that your participation in school affairs had an effect on the
Chinese/Indian/Korean community?
o If"yes," ask in what way(s)?
• Those of us studying participation of Asian-Americans in Town affairs noticed that there aren't
many Chinese/Indian/Korean residents serving on the Town's boards and committees.
• Why do you think this may be so?
• Is underrepresentation, by their proportion of our Lexington population, by Asians on
Town boards and committees something that you view as problematic? If"yes", in
what way(s) do you think this is a problem?
• If"yes", ask the following questions:
• Have you encouraged other members of your community to participate on this
board or committee or other boards and committees?
If"yes", what is the typical response that you receive?
• Should the Chinese/Indian/Korean community encourage greater participation
on Town boards and committees? If yes, what steps or actions could they take
to encourage greater participation?
• Should the leaders of Town boards and committees encourage greater
participation of the Chinese/Indian/Korean residents? If yes,what steps or
actions could they take?
• Would you consider serving as the president of your PTA/PTO?
• Would you consider serving on a Town board or committee?
• Only for those who no longer serve on a board or committee: I notice that you are no longer
active on a committee. Would you please tell me why?
o If no comments made that pertain to Asian ancestry, probe: Did your ethnic origin play a
role in your decision to end your participation?
■ If"yes", what role did it play?
59
Appendices
Appendix E - Letter of consent
u:� t
li a rriic/Ar:9dress
Dear II"^1arnn,
I am writing to you on behalf of Lexington's 20/20 Vision Committee's Subcommittee on Demographic Change
("subcommittee"). It is charged with exploring the participation of the Town's Asian-American residents in Town
government(e.g.,committees, boards,associations)and in other volunteer activities(e.g. PTAs, Lexington
Educational Foundation). And we need your help.
One way the subcommittee wishes to gather this information is to interview current and former members of these
volunteer bodies because they can speak from direct experience. Since you currently serve as a member of the
Y:` Y' ,we would like to interview you.
To that end,we would like to set up a 30-to 4S-minute session with you,at your convenience,with "'r""0 one of the
members of the subcommittee. The interview includes questions regarding your initial decision to participate in
Town affairs,your experience on your first committee,and your perspective regarding participation by other
members of the .;1•u nese/Vu community. Prior to the interview, (( will ask you to provide some
demographic data, (e.g.,your birthplace,years of residence in Lexington as well as the names of the bodies that
you now serve on or have served on).
To ensure your privacy,any information or opinions you provide will remain strictly confidential. I will be the only
one with access to the raw data.
After conducting about 20-30 interviews,the subcommittee will analyze the data and publish its report. The
document will present statistics on the interviewees' responses and will offer recommendations. To add richness
and detail to the report,the subcommittee may want to quote some of the interviewees, and to attribute the
quote to them by name. Before doing so, we will seek your permission.
sincerely hope that you will agree to the interview. Before conducting it, "^(^(Y will ask you to sign two copies of
this letter,signifying your agreement with the interview terms. One will be for you,and the subcommittee will
keep the other.
Yours truly,
Dan Krupka
Chair,Subcommittee on Demographic Change
I have read this letter, understand it and consent to its terms and conditions.
Signature_ Name Date
60
Appendices
Appendix F - Process for interviewers
1. Contact interviewee
a. Explain objective (use confidentiality/consent letter as guide)
b. Describe interview process (use confidentiality/consent letter as guide)
c. After obtaining agreement, alert interviewee that Committee Chair will send the
confidentiality/consent letter and that interviewer will send Part I of the
interview (demographic information)
d. Request that interviewee return Part I to interviewer in advance of the interview
e. Arrange date/time/place for interview (The Library is very convenient as it has
many small rooms suitable for interviews. They can be booked through the
Reference Desk. Library number: 781-862-6288.
2. Ask Committee Chair to send the confidentiality/consent letter to interviewee. Please
provide interviewee's email address.
3. Committee Chair sends confidentiality/consent letter to interviewee with request to
hand it to interviewer at the interview
4. Review Part I before the interview
5. Conduct interview
a. Obtain signed confidentiality/consent letter
b. Fill in Part II. Enter responses below the questions. Handwritten is OK.
c. Request permission to follow up if necessary
6. Send thank you note to interviewee
7. Send a copy of the signed consent letter and the completed Parts I and II to Committee
Chair
61
Appendices
Appendix G - Evidence that Asian residents are staying on in Lexington after
their children leave home
The age profiles shown in Figure 5 and Figure 17, based on data from the 2010 census, show that Asian
residents are younger than non-Asians and that there are relatively few Asian residents over the age of
55. This might be taken as evidence that residents move from Lexington very soon after their children
leave home. However, Census Bureau data from 2000 and 2010) described below, suggests that the
pool of older Asian residents is actually growing quite rapidly. However,the data do not allow us to
demonstrate that they are staying on in the same proportions as non-Asian residents.
Figure G1 shows age profiles for"Asian alone" and "All other'for 2010 and 2000. In contrast to Figure 5
and Figure 17,which show profiles based on percentages of the two categories, Figure G1 shows the
absolute numbers.The figure indicates that the number of Asian residents approximately doubled over
this period and that the non-Asian population has dropped slightly and has grown older. To obtain more
quantitative insight,we calculated the percentage difference between the 2010 and 2000 data by age
group. Figure G2 shows the results.
Figure G1—Age profiles for"Asian alone"and "All other"for 2000 and 2010
3000
2000-Asian alone
2500 2000-All other
m
® 2010-Asian alone
aww�
2010 All other
2000
m 1500
z1000
Soo --�.
0
Ob yo, Oyb y,y°, O,tib y,tioi O.�b y,�oi Orb �b°i Orb yy°i O b y�0oi O1b �.�° Ocbb $h
Age group
Source:Census Bureau
62
Appendices
Figure G2—Percent population growth from 2000 to 2010 by age group for "Asian alone"and "All
other"
250%
Growth fastest for Asian residents 4S and older
200%
—Asian Alone
0
a »All other
0 150%
°o
0
E
0
o. 100
a
O
m n
0 uww
0% Age grc
3
0 oh �fl
3 ts�
d ti y ti ti p'o
- ,
-50%
-100
Source:Census Bureau
The plot reveals that,from 2000 to 2010, the fastest growing segment of Lexington's population
consisted of Asian residents over the age of 45. The number in the 45-49 age group grew by 100%,
while the number in the 65—84 range grew by approximately 200% (tripled). Meanwhile the non-
Asian population grew slightly in the 15—24 and 55—64 age ranges, while dropping in the 25—54
age range.
It is unlikely that the increase in the number of older Asian residents can be attributed simply to in-
migration. Some of the increase does arise from the arrival of grandparents brought to Lexington to
look after grandchildren. Most is likely to be the consequence of Asian residents choosing to remain
in Lexington after their children leave home. If this trend continues,the number of candidates for
Town boards and committees would continue to increase, not only reflecting the growth in the
number Asian residents between the ages of 45 and 74—the age group most prevalent on the
Town's boards and committees—but also because these Asian residents would speak English well,
having worked in positions requiring effective communication in English. Moreover, after living in
Lexington for 10 to 20 years they would have acquired some familiarity with how the Town
operates,the issues it faces and—possibly—motivation to become involved.
63