2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997
KATHERINE MUNTER
President
CAROLENE MARKS
Vice President
NICKY CALMA
Commissioner
KAY GULBENGAY
Commissioner
DORKA KEEHN
Commissioner
JING XU LEE
Commissioner
ANDREA SHORTER
Commissioner
EMILY MURASE, PhD
Executive Director
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COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES
Members Present Staff Present
Commissioner Nicky Calma Administrative Analyst Laura Marshall
Commissioner Kay Gulbengay Policy Analyst Anu Menon Commissioner Dorka Keehn Senior Policy Analyst Ann Lehman
Commissioner Jing Xu Lee (5:15) Policy Analyst Jill Tregor
Vice President Carolene Marks Grants Administrator Carol Sacco
Commissioner Andrea Shorter Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez
Excused: President Katherine Munter
I. CALL TO ORDER/AGENDA CHANGES
Vice President Marks called the meeting to order at 5:00 pm and welcomed all present.
Action: Approved agenda. m/s/c/ (Gulbengay/Keehn/Unanimous)
No public comment.
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Action: Approved draft minutes from February 27, 2008.
Commissioner Shorter requested that the February 27 minutes reflect the work of the Girls Committee to date.
Action: Approved amended draft minutes from February 27, 2008.
m/s/c/ (Keehn/Shorter/Unanimous)
III. EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS REPORT DISCUSSION
A. Executive Directors Report
Policy Analyst referred Commissioners to Dr. Murase's written report and thanked the Department staff for their support in the absence of Dr. Murase. Ms. Tregor reported that the Department received over 40 applications for the Request for Proposals. An expert review panel will review the applications and make recommendations at the April Commission meeting. Ms. Tregor announced that the March 4 celebration of Women's History Month was a success and thanked Department staff and Commissioners for their assistance.
Ms. Tregor reported that due to the City's $300 million deficit, the Mayor has requested that all departments submit an additional 8% salary reduction. Staff has been in touch will Dr. Murase and she will provide an update at the April Commission meeting.
Commissioner Gulbengay acknowledged Francis Tang and Jason Chan with the Mayor's Office who were present. Commissioner Gulbengay explained that the City has faced large budget deficits in the past and that the Board of Supervisors are working to introduce legislation to help the current deficit.
Commissioners discussed their concerns of the department possibly facing a staffing reduction and the impact it will have on the current projects being handled by the Department. Commissioners welcome further discussion of the current budget outlook upon Dr. Murase's return.
IV. CONSENT AGENDA
All matters listed hereunder constitute a Consent Agenda and are considered to be routine by the Commission on the Status of Women. They will be acted upon by a single roll call vote of the Commission. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the Commission so requests, in which event the matter shall be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered as a separate item. Members of the public may speak on each item listed on the Consent Agenda.
A. Resolution Marking April as Child Abuse Prevention Month
B. Resolution Marking April 22 as Equal Pay Day
C. Resolution Endorsing the 5th Annual UN World Conference on Women for 2012
Commissioner Shorter requested that the consent agenda be approved in the spirit of Women's History Month.
Action: To approve the Consent Agenda in the spirit of Women's History Month.
m/s/c (Shorter/Keehn/Unanimous)
No public comment.
V. OLD BUSINESS
A. Girl Committee Members
Commissioner Shorter introduced Nancy Xu a Junior at Lowell High School who has been recommended as a new member of the Girls Committee. Nancy explained that she is interested in joining the Girls Committee because she would like to make a difference in her community and for girls in San Francisco. She looks forward to working with the Girls Committee.
Vice President Marks thanked Policy Analyst Anu Menon and Commissioner Shorter for their dedication to the Girls Committee as they are the future.
Action: To approve Sara Lin and Nancy Xu as members of the Girls Committee.
m/s/c (Keehn/Gulbengay/Unanimous)
No public comment.
Action: To approve resolutions honoring the Girls Committee members.
m/s/c (Shorter/Keehn/Unanimous)
No public comment.
VI. NEW BUSINESS
A. Batters Intervention Programs Best Practices
Dr. Mary Cavanaugh of UC Berkeley, a new member of the Justice & Courage Oversight Panel and a nationally recognized expert in the field of batterer's intervention program, reviewed existing batterer's treatment programs. Dr. Cavanaugh explained that group counseling is the most widely-used approach for batters. Approximately 90% of state treatment mandates include group intervention as the most appropriate modality; however there is no scientific evidence that supports that the group approach is better than another. It is unfortunate but some batterers become even more dangerous once they have gone to jail or have received treatment. There is also no assessment or evaluations of the batterers when entering programs which in turn does not allow anyone to assess the level of criminal behavior or the impact of the treatment.
Dr. Cavanaugh suggested that more money needs to be allocated to intervention as well as secondary evaluation to determine the effectiveness of the treatment. She reported that 60% of batterers will drop out of intervention programs.
Commissioner Keehn reported that in the majority of deaths that are linked to domestic violence, the batterers have already gone through treatment programs.
Commissioner Shorter suggested looking at new ideas of how to deal with batterers since what is currently being does not seem to be working towards reducing the incidence of domestic violence.
B. Status of Women Report
Policy Analyst Ann Lehman explained that the Department will be producing a report on the status of women and girls in San Francisco and would like input from the Commissioners on what should be included in the report. In 1996, the Department produced a report on the status of women and girls in San Francisco and, in 2003, an updated report was done on the status of girls. Ms. Lehman explained that the Department is looking at reports done by the Institute for Women's Policy Research, Sonoma County, Santa Clara County and the city of Chicago all to determine what essential data should be included in the report.
Commissioners discussed how long it has been since a report was done and how important it is to aggregate data on women and girls in San Francisco. Commissioner Shorter emphasized the importance of a full report on women and girls, not only about domestic violence but also what is being done to serve the women and girls of the City. Commissioner Keehn suggested possibly using a grading system when writing the report in order to see what is working and what is not.
Staff identified the following areas to research by collecting disaggregated data:
· Rape data
· DV cases
· Public housing and Section 8
· Women owned businesses
· Women on corporate boards
· High school graduates
· Beyond high school
· Health insurance
· Disease rates
· Homelessness
· Elder women
· Incarceration rates
· Detailed job analysis
· Income levels
· Athletic participation
· % of City services
· Languages access
· Crimes against women
· Voting trends
· STD/HIV
· Family rates structures
Commissioners identified the following additional areas as topics that should be covered:
· Employment earnings
· Healthcare
· Housing
· Women in politics
· Access to loans for homes and families
· Keeping families in San Francisco
· How livable is San Francisco for women
· Elder services
Ann reported that the steps to creating the report would be as follows:
· Step 1: Planning the Report
q Creating and advisory committee
q Finding funding
q Developing a timeline and workplan
q Developing the structure and organization of the report
· Step 2: Data collection on indicators of women's status
· Step 3: Data interpretation and analysis
· Step 4: Report narrative drafting
· Step 5: Data presentation
· Step 6: Disseminating and using the report
Commissioners suggested that once the report has been completed, a media plan should be developed. Ms. Lehman explained that the next step will be to create an advisory Committee so that Partner Agencies, the Commission, the Department, and public will have input on the report. Commissioner Calma suggested setting up a timeline to know how long the entire process will take.
C. Community Meeting Location
Vice President Marks welcomed suggestions from Commissioners for the location of the May Commission meeting that will be held out in the community. Commissioners suggested holding the meeting in a community in one of the following districts:
· Ingleside
· Castro
· Sunset
Commissioner Gulbengay suggested the Irish Community Center in the Sunset and would provide the contact information to Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez. Ms. Tregor emphasized that due to mid- year budget cuts, the Department has limited staff to do outreach to the community were the meeting will be held.
VII. ANNOUNCEMENTS/PUBLIC COMMENT
Ms. Lehman announced that, on March 28, the Department will meet with Calvert and Verite to discuss what companies should be invited to partner with us for the CEDAW Private Sector Initiative. Ms. Lehman requested any contacts that Commissioners may have.
Ms. Lehman reported the Department is working with the Controller's Office to conduct a gender analysis of the Human Services Agency (HSA), to determine the impact of state budget cuts.
Natalia Rivera with Mission Neighborhood Center/Mission Girls (MNC) explained that she has brought some of the girls that receive services at MNC to provide testimony of the various services funded by the Department. Amanda Valtierra, Edith Coral, and Mariela Castillo, all seniors at International Studies Academy, explained that MNC provides them services that are not accessible at their school. MNC provides these young women mentoring services, focus groups on topics that affect young women, and homework assistance.
VIII. ADJOURN
Motion to adjourn meeting. m/s/c (Marks/Shorter/Unanimous).
Meeting adjourned at 6:35 pm.
The ringing of and use of cell phones, pagers, and similar sound producing electronic devices are prohibited at this meeting. Please be advised that the Chair may order the removal from the meeting room of any person(s) responsible for the ringing or use of a cell phone, pager or other similar sound-producing electronic devices.
Explanatory documents: For copies of explanatory documents listed in this agenda, and other related materials received by COSW, please contact the Department on the Status of Women at 25 Van Ness Ave, Suite 130, San Francisco, CA 94102; phone: 415-252-2570, fax: 415-252-2575. Also, to the extent possible, documents will be available on the COSW website at http://www.sfgov.org/cosw.
Know Your Rights under the Sunshine Ordinance(Chapter 67 of the San Francisco Administrative Code)
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Lobbyist Registration and Reporting Requirements
Individuals and entities that influence or attempt to influence local legislative or administrative action may be required by the San Francisco Lobbyist Ordinance [SF Campaign & Governmental Conduct Code § 2.100] to register and report lobbying activity. For more information about the Lobbyist Ordinance, please contact the San Francisco Ethics Commission at 25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 220, San Francisco, CA 94102; phone: 415-252-3100, fax: 415-252-3112; web site: sfgov.org/ethics.
