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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-10-29 Joint BOS, SC, and HRC-min Joint Meeting Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Human Rights Committee October 29, 2019 A Joint Meeting of the Lexington Board of Selectmen, School Committee, and Human Rights Committee was called to order at 9:05 p.m. in the Cafeteria of the Samuel Hadley Public Services Building, 201 Bedford Street, Lexington, MA. Present for the Board of Selectmen (BOS): Mr. Lucente, Chair; Mr. Pato; Ms. Barry, Ms. Hai and Mr. Sandeen as well as Mr. Malloy, Town Manager; Ms. Axtell, Deputy Town Manager; and Ms. Katzenback, Executive Clerk. Present from the School Committee (SC) were: Ms. Jay, Chair; Mr. Bokun; Ms. Sawhney; Ms. Colburn; and Dr. Hackett, Superintendent. Present for the Human Rights Committee (HRC) were: Ms. Roy, Chair; Ms. Swann; Ms. Gisolfi- McCready, Ms. Huang, Mr. Toronto. Also Present were: Ms. Interess, Director of Human Services, and Detective Barry, Lexington Police liaison. The purpose of the meeting was an update from the Superintendent of Schools and Town Manager on the work of the Diversity Advisory Task Force. Dr. Hackett stated the Diversity Task Force was formed, following a report of the 2020 Committee, to examine and address the needs of the Asian populations in Lexington. Initially, the Task Force was to study how demographic changes in Lexington impact civic involvement, Town and School programs, and community life. Identified concerns at the time included reducing barriers and overcoming unconscious bias. After several years of work and an expansion of mission to include ethnicities other than Asian, the Task Force lost a sense of clarity regarding its goals. In June 2019, the group decided to revisit its purpose and approach. To renew a sense of direction, two strategies were identified: holding community conversations and integrating initiatives at the neighborhood level. A well-attended conversation about race was held at the Cary Library in the summer of 2019. Two more conversations are scheduled for November 9 and December 7, 2019. They will both be facilitated by an Asian Studies professor who teaches at UMASS Boston and they will be geared specifically to the challenges of Lexington’s Asian populations, the original focus of the Task Force. Dr. Hackett said the Task Force believes it is time to sunset the current Diversity Task Force and convene a new task force with renewed focus on the Asian populations. Mr. Malloy reported on another topic: whether the Lexington’s employee base reflects the diversity of the resident population. A survey of Town and School staff was conducted to gather data regarding gender, age, race/ethnicity, LGBTQ identification, and disability. Statistics of note: Residents of Lexington are 48% male and 51% female. On the Town staff side, these ratios are closely reflected but on the School side, 84% are female and only 16% are male. Town Meeting Members are 55% male and 45% female. 1 With regard to age, the Town has a larger number of older employees and the Schools has a larger number of younger employees. Taken together, the percentages closely mirror resident age ratios. Regarding race/ethnicity, staff ratios do not come close to the 27% of residents who are of Asian descent. This is the biggest mismatch in the comparisons. Seventeen percent of Town Meeting Members are Asian. Mr. Malloy said removing the constraints of Civil Service for the Lexington Police Department, a recent change, should improve the diversity of that hiring pool. With regard to disabilities, employee numbers exactly reflect the resident population. Based on informal, independent research using national rather than Town demographics, employee and resident LGBTQ percentage estimates match up very closely. Mr. Malloy reported that 71 Town/ School employees fluently speaking languages other than English. In all, staff speak 123 different languages, a previously unknown and valuable resource. Mr. Malloy said he will continue to track these demographic percentages every year from now on. Multiple meeting participants said they were grateful to learn these statistics because they will help them when speaking to public concerns. Ms. Roy (HRC) said perhaps hiring practices could change to further improve staff diversity, specifically noting the imbalance of Asian ratios. Ms. Huang (HRC) said she knows personally and anecdotally of Asian people who have applied to the Town and Schools for employment but they were never contacted. Dr. Hackett said tracking applicant demographics would be valuable information. She welcomed being contacted directly by applicants from under-represented groups. Ms. Sawhney (SC) noted that members of groups who break the ice and become active in Town government often encourage others to get involved. Ms. Swann (HRC) and Ms. Interess expressed interest in studying how block parties might introduce and bond diverse members of the community. Ms. Jay (SC) said it should not be done in a typical block party format but should instead offer more activities to draw more people in. They should not be thought of as a “one and done” situation. Mr. Lucente agreed that the key is to make sure “everyone is invited to the table”. Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the Board of Selectmen voted 5-0 to adjourn the meeting at 10:05 p.m. The School Committee and Human Rights Committee voted to adjourn as well. A true record; Attest: Kim Siebert Recording Secretary 2