2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997
ANGELA WILLIAMS
President
KATHERINE MUNTER
Vice President
ANDREA EVANS
Commissioner
DORKA KEEHN
Commissioner
JING XU LEE
Commissioner
CAROLENE MARKS
Commissioner
ANDREA SHORTER
Commissioner
EMILY MURASE, PhD
Executive Director
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COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES
Members Present Staff Present
Commissioner Andrea Evans Executive Director Emily Murase, Ph.D.
Commissioner Dorka Keehn Policy Analyst Kim-Shree Maufas
Commissioner Jing Xu Lee Policy Analyst Carol Sacco
Commissioner Carolene Marks Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez
Vice President Katherine Munter Graduate Intern Laura Marshall
Commissioner Andrea Shorter
Members Excused
Commissioner Angela Williams
I. CALL TO ORDER/AGENDA CHANGES
Vice President Munter announced that she would be presiding over the meeting in the absence of President Williams. President Munter requested to move up the Family Violence Council presentation as it required a vote and some Commissioners were expected to depart early.
Action: Approved amended agenda. /s/c (Marks/Shorter/Unanimous).
No public comment.
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Action: Approved draft minutes from March 28, 2007. m/s/c/ (Shorter/Keehn/Unanimous).
No public comment.
III. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT DISCUSSION
A. Executive Director's Report
In the interest of time, Dr. Murase directed Commissioners to her written report. Dr. Murase announced that President Williams had submitted her resignation to pursue a professional opportunity in New York. Vice President Munter would now assume the role of president and later in the meeting nominations for a Vice President would take place. Dr. Murase informed the Commission that the Department is currently accepting applications for the vacant Senior Policy Analyst until filled.
B. Violence Against Women (VAW) Partner Agency Profile – Arab Cultural and Community Center
Sally Al-Daher, Executive Director of the Arab Cultural and Community Center (ACCC) explained that the organization is devoted to promoting Arab art and culture, and enriching the lives of the Arab American community. It is the only agency in San Francisco dedicated to the Arab community. Although the ACCC does not provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, they do refer clients to other agencies that provide services including shelter and transitional housing. The agency recently conducted a needs assessment by contacting 15 organizations who serve the Arab community. The survey found that 30% of Arab American women respondents felt that more information about domestic violence was needed. Based on results from the study, the agency facilitated 10 cultural competency trainings to help direct service agencies better address the needs of Arab Americans. From January to April, for example, the ACCC conducted cultural competency training for 120 employees and 60 physicians at San Francisco General Hospital.
The agency is further working to educate religious leaders on providing assistance to victims of domestic violence since they frequently are the first people victims turn to for help. As part of its outreach campaign, the agency developed pocket cards with resources for victims of domestic violence and posters, in Arabic, targeting violence prevention among boys. Although the ACCC is limited in staffing, 3 out of 11 employees are full-time and they are currently working with 2 AmeriCorps members to provide sexual assault /harassment trainings to Arab youth who are new to this country.
Commissioner Keehn suggested the Rockwood Fund and the Women's Foundation as possible resources for further funding.
No public comment.
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.
Action: To approve the Consent Agenda. m/s/c (Shorter/Evans/Unanimous)
A. Resolution Recognizing National Action for Peace on Mother’s Day
B. Resolution Recognizing the Pacific Asian American Women Bay Area Coalition in honor of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month
C. Resolution Recognizing Latina news anchor Jessica Aguirre in honor of Cinco de Mayo
D. Resolution Recognizing the Contributions of Prosecutor Linda Klee
Alfredo Pedroza, with the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Services Liaison to District 9, presented Linda Klee with a proclamation in honor of her contributions to the City of San Francisco on behalf on the Mayor.
No public comment.
V. OLD BUSINESS
A. Nominations of Officers for 2007-2008
Dorka Keehn nominated Andrea Evans for Vice President. Commissioner Evans thanked the Commission for the nomination but due to personal reasons, she declined the nomination at this time. Commissioner Evans nominated Commissioner Marks for Vice President.
Action: To approve Commissioner Carolene Marks as Vice President. m/s/c (Shorter/Evans/Unanimous)
No public comment.
B. Update on Needs Assessment
Lisa Korwin with Korwin Consulting has been contracted with the Department to conduct a needs assessment of current services to address violence against women and girls in San Francisco. Ms. Korwin reviewed her professional background, emphasizing her sensitivity in addressing violence against women. In the past, Ms. Korwin has worked on 3 domestic violence-related planning and evaluation efforts:
· City of San Jose Domestic Violence Advisory Board
· Next Door Solutions to Domestic Violence
· The Santa Clara Domestic Violence Advocacy Consortium
Ms. Korwin has also conducted many needs assessments over the years that have provided organizations with critical information to make effective decisions about administrative and program strategies. She has previously worked with the Women’s Foundation of California and conducted a needs assessment for Sonoma County.
The expected outcome of the needs assessment is to assess comprehensive data and provide a final report that will guide the Commission in policy and program decisions, including decisions for the next Violence Against Women Prevention & Intervention Grants (VAW) award cycle. The needs assessment will consist of three phrases:
Phase One: Pre-Assessment
· Reviewing relevant materials.
· Obtaining Commission-funded agencies’ participation.
· Convene Needs Assessment Design Team.
Phase Two: Data Gathering and Analysis
· Convene Client /Resident Focus Groups.
· Conduct client interviews.
· Conduct staff interviews.
· Conduct staff focus groups.
Phase Three: Reporting and Discussion of Findings
· Draft Final Report.
· Present and discuss findings with Department funded agencies.
· Present and discuss findings with Commission.
Commissioner Shorter requested that the Commission be updated as the process moves along and inquired about a timeline. Ms. Korwin hopes to have the assessment completed by September 2007; however this will be largely determined by the availability of the agencies and clients.
VI. NEW BUSINESS
A. “Women Breaking Barriers” Exhibit by the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society
Denise Belloti, Co-Chair of the Board of Directors of the GLBT Historical Society Galley, informed the Commission that the exhibit “Women Breaking Barriers: Women’s Music from 1964-1984” would open on Thursday, May 17, from 6-8 pm. This exhibit focuses on imagery of women artist for 1964 through 1984. The show highlights women’s music album covers, concert posters, and photos showcasing vital parts of lesbian culture and community buildings.
Commissioner Shorter thanked Denise for the presentation and encouraged Commissioners to view the exhibit.
No public comment.
B. Family Violence Council Legislation
Commissioner Evans referred Commissioners to the legislation in their packets. The purpose of the Family Violence Council is to bring together child abuse, elder abuse, and domestic violence advocates to share expertise and exchange information. The Council will be composed of members from city departments, community-based organizations, and local universities and hospitals. Commissioner Evans acknowledged Beverly Upton, Kathy Baxter and Mary Twomey for co-chairing the council and their continued work. Commissioner Evans reported that the Mayor and Supervisor Sophie Maxwell are in support of the legislation and they hope to submit the legislation to the Board of Supervisors with the legislation in June.
Public comment: Beverly Upton thanked the Commission for their continued support and emphasized the significance of the fact that the Council has the Mayor and Supervisor Maxwell’s support. Ms. Upton expressed appreciation to the Department for leading the process of the reconstitution of the Council and stated that the San Francisco Family Violence Council could become a model for the rest of the country. Vice President Munter thanked Commissioner Evans for her leadership with the legislation and advancing it to this point.
Action: Approved the Family Council legislation as written. m/s/c (Marks/Evans/Unanimous)
VII. REPORTS
A. Health
Commissioner Marks continues to work with the Health Access Plan Advisory Committee (HAP). The next meeting will be on Friday, April 27. In the latter part of May, there will be representative from all over the state to discuss legislation on health access for all, with the goal to get the Governor to sign a universal healthcare bill. UCSF will be holding the San Francisco Women’s Health Summit on universal healthcare on May 10 at the First Unitarian Universalist Church. Commissioner Marks and Policy Analyst Kim-Shree Maufas have both played active roles in the development of this event.
Commissioner Marks and Ms. Maufas continue to work with the African American Breast Cancer Advocacy Group in coordinating a Town Hall community meeting in September. The group is looking for an effective keynote speaker and requested suggestions from the Commission.
No public comment.
B. Justice & Courage
Commissioner Keehn reported that the Department met with Lenore Anderson, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, to discuss the findings of the Domestic Violence Victim Safety and Accountability Audit. Commissioner Keehn, Dr. Trish Erwin, and Department staff met with the Mayor to brief him on the Safety Audit.
There will be a Justice and Courage Community meeting on Wednesday, May 30 from 3-6 pm at the Women’s building to discuss the Safety Audit and solicit input from the community. On June 26, there will be a Justice and Courage strategic planning meeting to develop a 3-year plan.
Commissioner Keehn was pleased to announce that Tari Ramirez was extradited and arraigned in San Francisco, representing a victory not only for the family of Claire Joyce Tempongko, but for all San Franciscans.
No pubic comment.
C. Violence Against Women Prevention and Intervention (VAW) Grants Program
Executive Director Murase was pleased to announce that the Mayor restored budget cuts to the VAW Grants Program that would have affected Department-funded agencies. Acting Grants Administrator Carol Sacco will be working with agencies to renew their contracts in the next month.
Commissioner Shorter thanked Dr. Murase and Beverly Upton for their efforts in securing the funding for the VAW Grants Program. Commissioner Shorter also stated that she hopes that there will come a point where the Commission does not have to worry about losing such critical funding.
No public comment.
D. Girls Committee
Commissioner Shorter reported that the Girls Committee is now fully seated and had a successful meeting this past Monday. The Committee is currently working on GiRLFEST Bay Area and discussed what their role would be with GiRLFEST. This year UCSF will not be holding their annual Health Conference and, instead, will collaborate with GiRLFEST organizers to hold a smaller fair at GiRLFEST. Commissioner Shorter is hopeful that this event will become institutionalized rather than dependent on a sponsorship by an elected official. The Girls Committee is also reviewing the Department's Girls Report and hopes to assist with updating the report. A major project of the Girls Committee is to create a social service directory for girls.
No public comment.
E. CEDAWCommittee
The next CEDAW meeting will take place once the Department has received the report from the Women’s Institute for Leadership Development for Human Rights (WILD) on San Francisco’s implementation of CEDAW. A job announcement for the CEDAW Policy analyst will be posted in May.
No public comment.
VIII. PUBLIC COMMENT
Daisy Anarchy, a survivor of domestic violence, thanked Beverly Upton and Executive Director Emily Murase in assuring that funds would not be cut from the agencies providing such critical and valuable services to victims of domestic violence.
Beverly Upton, Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Consortium, thanked the Commission and the efforts of Executive Director Emily Murase in securing the VAW Grants Funds. Ms. Upton stated that this is the time to work on some baseline legislation to guarantee on-going funding for programs that help victims of Domestic Violence.
Commissioner Shorter expressed support for developing legislation to ensure services and believes that this is a crucial time since it is an election year. Commissioner Shorter referenced the Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families (DCYF) as an example. DCYF has a baseline which has now been adopted as a part of the City Charter. Executive Director Murase suggested that a violence prevention fund can be discussed further under the new Family Violence Council.
IX. ADJOURNMENT
Commissioner Shorter requested to adjourn the meeting in honor of the late Congresswomen Juanita McDonald.
Action: Motion to adjourn in memory of Congresswomen of Juanita McDonald. m/s/c (Shorter/Munter/ Unanimous)
The meeting was 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.
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