Special DHRC Minutes

SPECIAL DOVER HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION The Special Dover Human Relations Commission (DHRC) meeting was held on October 19, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. with Chairman Henderson presiding. Members present were Mr. Fleming, Mrs. Herbert, and Mr. Offredo. Mr. Gaddis, Ms. Mullen, and Ms. Paige were absent. AGENDA ADDITIONS/DELETIONS Mr. Fleming moved for approval of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Offredo and unanimously carried. DHRC Committee Updates Government Policy, Programs, and Practices Committee (Gaddis) No update was provided. Community Engagement Committee (Mullen) No update was provided. Education Committee (Fleming) During the Special Dover Human Relations Commission meeting of September 21, 2017, members were provided a handout regarding a Parent Student Resource Fair being put on by the Community Engagement Forum, Restoring Central Dover, National Council on Agricultural Life and Labor (NCALL) on September 30, 2017. Mr. Fleming stated that this event had been held and was not extremely well attended; however, a lot of valuable information was dispensed. He noted that Mrs. Herbert and Mr. Gaddis had attended. Mr. Fleming advised that the conference was interesting, presented a lot of perspectives, and a lot of individuals were present who gave information on what is available to parents of students with special needs. Mrs. Herbert stated that, even though they failed to get parents to come, there were many professional people at the conference who knew their own professions but not someone else’s, and they learned a lot. Mrs. Herbert indicated that she thought that the advertising for the event might have been the problem. Communications Committee (Paige) Mr. Offredo advised that he and Ms. Paige had worked on the draft Dover Human Relations Commission brochure, which was pretty much in its completed format, aside from the section under “Our Meetings.” He noted that they had left this section blank because he was unsure if members had discussed on which Thursday of the month they would be meeting. Mr. Offredo indicated that the brochure was 99.9% complete and suggested that it be placed on the next meeting agenda. Mrs. Herbert explained that, during the DHRC meeting of September 21, 2017, members had recommended that the DHRC meet on the third Thursday of the month. Mr. Offredo stated that before the next meeting he would update the brochure to reflect that information, review it, and provide it to Mrs. Jody Stein, Administrative Assistant, City Clerk’s Office, to be included on the agenda. Responding to Mrs. Stein, Mr. Offredo stated that he would prefer to wait until the next

SPECIAL DOVER HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 19, 2017 PAGE 2 meeting to finalize the brochure, rather than attaching it to the current meeting minutes, so that members could review it once again prior to Council’s review. Mr. Henderson suggested that it be included somewhere in the brochure that he is the Chair of the DHRC. He stated that he had no other problems with the brochure. Mr. Fleming stated that he had reviewed the draft brochure, which looked really good. He indicated that, at one point, members were thinking about modifying the statement regarding DHRC meetings in Chapter 58 - Human Relations of the Dover Code. Responding, Mrs. Herbert stated that she thought that members had resolved that issue during a previous meeting when they stated that they would hold special meetings and could then meet as much as they wanted. Mr. Fleming stated that he was not aware that the Commission could do that. He explained that he wanted to mention it before Mr. Offredo finalizes the brochure, if members were thinking of making a change. State Human Relations Commission Liaison Report During the Special DHRC Meeting of September 21, 2017, Mrs. Herbert advised members that she and Mr. Henderson had attended the State Human Relations Commission (SHRC) executive committee meeting held on August 10, 2017 and expressed to the SHRC that the DHRC wanted to be able to work together with them. She noted that Mr. Calvin Christopher, Chair, SHRC, stated that this would be placed on the September agenda for the whole SHRC; however, when she and Mr. Henderson arrived at the September meeting, it was not on the agenda. Mrs. Herbert explained that she attended the SHRC meeting on October 12, 2017 and the DHRC’s request was again not on the agenda. She stated that she asked when the item would be placed on their agenda and they settled the matter by provided a contact, Dr. Nancy Maihoff, Ph.D. Mrs. Herbert informed members that, according to Dr. Maihoff’s card, she is a consultant in research design, statistics evaluation, educational testing, and test development who lives in Dover. She advised that she had told Dr. Maihoff that she would call her; however, she was unsure whether members wanted Dr. Maihoff to come before the DHRC or if they wanted Mrs. Herbert to have a conversation with her before that. Mr. Henderson asked what the value would be in having Dr. Maihoff come and share with the DHRC. Responding, Mrs. Herbert stated that she did not know because she had not had a chance to talk with Dr. Maihoff. She indicated that she had heard that someone had come from the State in the past. Mrs. Herbert noted that she left the SHRC meeting after she accomplished her mission; however, the person who stood up to speak as she was leaving stated that they wanted their concern to be kept confidential. She stated that she assumed this individual was told that their concern could not be kept confidential since it was an open meeting. Mrs. Herbert explained that apparently the SHRC hears complaints; however, she was unsure whether this individual was in the correct place to state her complaint. Mrs. Herbert stated her assumption, based on the wording in the DHRC’s Strategic Plan, that members want to know how to communicate with the SHRC if there is an issue that they feel the

SPECIAL DOVER HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 19, 2017 PAGE 3 SHRC should handle. She indicated that Dr. Maihoff is very nice and had attended every SHRC meeting, noting that some of the people do not. Mrs. Herbert advised that she would call Dr. Maihoff to see if she had time to chat on the phone or sit down and talk. She stated her belief that the SHRC knows that the DHRC members are new and not quite sure of the path they should be taking. Mrs. Herbert noted that the SHRC is also an advisory committee and should understand the DHRC’s issue on that. Mr. Fleming stated that he and Mrs. Herbert questioned the value of attending all of the SHRC meetings. He suggested, once they find out the SHRC’s meeting schedule, that DHRC members take turns going so each of them would have some understanding of what the State is doing. Mr. Fleming noted that this would take the burden of attending every meeting off Mrs. Herbert. Mrs. Herbert indicated that, from what she had seen by going to SHRC meetings, she did not feel it was worth going to every meeting and was unsure if DHRC members would get that much out of it. She advised that the DHRC needed to know how to connect with the SHRC and touch base periodically. Mr. Henderson stated that he concurred and that DHRC members might want to go just to see what the State meetings are like. Mrs. Herbert indicated that the meetings are open to anyone. Mrs. Herbert stated her understanding that the SHRC liaison position did not involve attending all of the SHRC meetings but creating a way for the DHRC and the SHRC to communicate with each other, as was written in the DHRC Strategic Plan. She advised that, in this case, this communication would be through calls between herself and Dr. Maihoff, noting that members may want to do this differently. In response to Mr. Henderson, Mrs. Herbert advised that the SHRC meets on the second Thursday of every month at 5:30 p.m. in the Cannon Building on Silver Lake Boulevard. She indicated that she would like to discuss with Dr. Maihoff the possibility of having Dr. Maihoff tell her if the SHRC will be considering something that she feels the DHRC needs to come to a meeting to observe and hear, and set up this kind of rapport with her. Mr. Offredo noted that the SHRC is a public body and DHRC members could view the SHRC agendas and minutes online to see if there is something that they need to know about or attend, in addition to any reports they may have. Mrs. Herbert advised that she had been checking the SHRC agendas, which was how she knew the DHRC had not been included. She stated that she thought DHRC members had attended three (3) or four (4) meetings to get on the agenda. Mrs. Herbert indicated that she had been looking at the SHRC’s minutes and a lot of what they talk about is legislative, which she thought the DHRC should be very interested in. She noted that homelessness is one (1) of the issues. Mrs. Herbert stated that she thought that the SHRC was in the same position as the DHRC, noting that they cannot support anyone in particular, but can say things like, “The homeless should be treated as fairly as everyone else.” Mrs. Herbert stated that until she talks to Dr. Maihoff she will not know how to go about this. She stated that she wanted to develop a working relationship with Dr. Maihoff and was more concerned about the process of how to interact together than attending the meetings because all of their minutes are online.

SPECIAL DOVER HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 19, 2017 PAGE 4 Mrs. Herbert stated that she did not know how often the SHRC has executive sessions, noting that she and Mr. Henderson went to a meeting that was supposed to start at 5:30 p.m. and it started at 6:15 p.m. She explained that SHRC agendas are available ahead of time and suggested that members check them if they wish to attend a meeting because cancellations are sometimes reflected online. Mr. Henderson noted that Mr. Gerald Rocha had approached Ms. Paige regarding his interest in joining the DHRC. Responding to Mr. Henderson, Mrs. Jody Stein, Administrative Assistant, City Clerk’s Office, stated that Mr. Rocha resides in the First District. Mr. Henderson stated that he knew Mr. Rocha very well because they are in the same fraternity and he thought that Mr. Rocha would be very good for the Commission, noting that he is an active individual and a very good man. Mr. Henderson stated that he looked forward to possibly having Mr. Rocha on the Commission. Mr. Fleming moved for adjournment, seconded by Mr. Offredo and unanimously carried. Meeting adjourned at 6:17 p.m. Theodore A. Henderson Chair TAH/JS/dd S:\AGENDAS-MINUTES-PACKETS-PRESENTATIONS-ATT&EXH\Misc-Minutes\HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION\2017\10-19-2017 - Special DHRC Minutes.wpd