San Francisco Youth Commission
Housing, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning, and Transitional Age Youth Issues Committee
Minutes
Monday, March 25, 2013
5:00-7:00pm
City Hall, Room 345A
1. Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Pl.
San Francisco, CA 94102

There will be public comment on each item.

Members:Mia Tu Mutch, Alex Guzman-Ramos, Lily Marshall-Fricker, Vee Taumoepeau, Eric Wu

1. Call to Order and Roll Call

The meeting was called to order at 5:11 p.m.

Commissioners present: Tu Mutch, Marshall-Fricker, Wu. Commissioners Guzman-Ramos and Taumoepeau were absent.

Staff present: Allen Lu and Adele Carpenter

2. Approval of Agenda (Action Item)

Commissioner Wu, seconded by Commissioner Tu Mutch, moved to approve the agenda. This was approved by acclamation.

3. Approval of Minutes

A. February 11, 2013
B. February 25, 2013

Commissioner Wu, seconded by Commissioner Tu Mutch, moved to approve the minutes from February 11, 2013. This was approved by acclamation. Commissioner Marshall-Fricker, seconded by Commissioner Tu Mutch, moved to approve the minutes from February 25, 2013. This was approved by acclamation.

4. Staff Report

Adele Carpenter read an email from the Police Chief’s LGBT forum inviting the committee to participate in a press conference announcing the establishment of LGBT Safe Zones at SF Police Stations, as well as to collaborate and help sponsor a youth hate-crime prevention symposium in Spring. Commissioners did not express interest in participating in the press conference, but Commissioner Tu Mutch agreed to follow up directly with forum members to learn more about the hate crimes symposium.

Adele Carpenter also introduced commissioners to the 12N best practice archive binder, for use during their ongoing research.

5. Public Comment on Items not on Agenda (Discussion Only)

There was none.

6. Business (All Items to Follow Discussion and Possible Action)

A. Plan for a hearing on the sensitivity training required for city employees and contractors under Chapter 12N of the San Francisco Administrative Code

Commissioner Tu Mutch invited updates from staff about recent meetings staff had with the 12N work group, members of the Human Rights Commission and Dept. of Public Health, a meeting with the director of LYRIC, and feedback received from the clerk of the board during supervision. David Miree, of the Human Rights Commission, was in attendance and provided comments and feedback about the upcoming hearing.

The committee discussed having a first hearing in April or May that could be continued until after budget season. David Miree and Commissioner Tu Mutch discussed that this would be an opportunity to put departments on notice, complete a compliance check, do some fact-finding, and set goals for future hearings and work. Adele Carpenter shared that this first hearing could also be an opportunity to bring up the issues of intake forms, make recommendations, and ask that draft intake forms for the future fiscal term be brought forward in subsequent hearing. She shared feedback from Jodi Schwartz that completing the change in intake forms could be a reverse way to raise the issue for competency training and motivate departments.

Some goals of the first hearing would be:
• Find out what city departments are already doing and how they accomplished
• Find out what the barriers to implementation are: What would they need to implement 12N?
• Identify funding needs and elevate issue of city resourcing efforts to implement 12N
• Identify elements of the current admin code that are unclear or that complicate implementation for possible future edits and additions
• Identify practices and platforms for mass-training for city staff (such as in DHR)
• Begin to identify departments/bodies in which the training requirements could be grounded, to eventually determine who is responsible for the enforcement of 12N.
• Begin to find out what departments are impacted/implicated by admin code
• Hear from city departments undertaking model practices and what kind of resources and support it took to accomplish these changes. (SFDPH)
• Raise the issue of intake forms: Ask about how LGBTQ youth are tracked and then what kinds of follow up departments do. Make recommendations.
• Identify departmental leadership to be in touch between the first and ensuing hearings
Some possible goals for second/continued hearings would be:
• Following up on the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity in city dept. intake forms
• Outlining 12N staff training learning objectives
• Outlining goals for additional work addressing administrative and structural barriers
• Addressing necessary changes to the admin code to carry forward these recommendations and general compliance.

David Miree suggested the first hearing could act as an assessment opportunity, rather than a sharing of objectives. The committee discussed the only recommendations or objectives shared would be regarding intake forms, but that the first hearing would inform objectives to be shared in a future/second hearing.

Mr. Miree and Commissioner Tu Mutch discussed SFDPH’s concerns with release and distribution of the 12N training video made in 2012. Commissioner Tu Mutch indicated that the video ought to be distributed as a template or resource, but that it may not be appropriate for all departments’ training needs or entirely comprehensive. Mr. Miree agreed to follow up with 12N work group members in SFDPH regarding the distribution/release of the 12N training video. The committee would also like to get more information from DPH about the intra-department training plan and use of the video.

The committee discussed outreach for the hearing. Committee members felt that the first hearing would be very technical and might not be as compelling for youth to participate in as a second hearing focused on objectives and outcomes, however, they would like to engage 2-5 particular youth speakers who can speak to this issue and frame the overall need for 12N compliance. The committee will prioritize reaching out for wider youth testimony for a June or post-budget season hearing.

The committee discussed who they would like to reach out to from city departments. This list included: DCYF, DPH, HAS, RPD, OEWD, JPD, Dept. on the Status of Women, Library, DHR, OCA, Comptroller’s office, and whoever is responsible for standards in shelters (HOPE?). As for individuals they would like to reach out to to inform of the hearing and/or invite to speak, they concluded: the Mayor’s Director of Cultural Competence, OCEIA, Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services, LYRIC, The LGBT Center, Dimensions, and Larkin Street Youth Services.

Commissioner Tu Mutch directed staff to update draft hearing objectives and questions for city departments based on the present meeting and seek feedback from committee members and Supervisor Avalos before forwarding to city departments who will be invited to the hearing. Commissioner Tu Mutch will be absent at the upcoming committee meeting, and other commissioners discussed having a 12N Tumblr photo shoot at the next committee meeting.

Commissioner Wu shared an update from his best practice research on shelter facilities seeking to be more trans-inclusive. These practices revolved around establishing safe space, confidentiality, handling of complaints, and bathroom and sleeping facilities. The committee discussed the best practice research that members had agreed to during a previous meeting and agreed this was not within the capacity of committee members to carry forward at this time.

Commissioners’ next steps on 12N included:
• Hosting an info session with youth at LYRIC in April and preparing youth testifiers (Tu Mutch)
• Creating submissions to the 12N Tumblr and sharing the link (all)
• Engaging and editing of the draft hearing outcomes and learning objectives (all)

Staff agreed to follow up by:
• Scheduling a meeting with Supervisor Avalos before the hearing
• Assisting in the re-drafting of the hearing outcomes
• Finalizing the hearing invite list of city departments. Sending out invites and additional resources to contacts in city departments and the testifiers identified.
• Researching how changes in the admin code would occur.

C. Updates on Prop C/TAY Housing Plan

Commissioner Wu updated the committee on his recent meeting with the director of AIDS Housing Alliance, Brian Bassinger. He explained that Mr. Bassinger was concerned that in the bureaucracy and hierarchy of non-profit and policy discussions about TAY housing, the needs and input of youth get lost. He recommended having a forum focused on how to best provide services for youth where the commission can ask youth questions like: Are you healthy and happy in your units and with the services you receive? What works for you and does not work for you?

Commissioner Wu’s next steps are to look more in depth at the focus groups with homeless TAY youth that were conducted by former Commissioner Chan a few years ago, and then think about doing a focus group with members of the Larkin youth advisory board and other youth groups. He is going to seek feedback from the Mayor’s Office on Housing on how to conduct an evaluation. In future meetings, the committee should work on helping frame the TAY housing evaluation.

D. Work on other committee priorities

Commissioner Wu explained that he was not going to ask for the condo/TIC conversion legislation to be referred to the full Youth Commission because the commission’s comments on legislation still under negotiation could have unintended effects. Commissioner Wu explained that there is currently no evidence that TIC owners are in financial distress or at risk of losing their homes, and so it is better for the commission not to place comments on public record to that effect. Commissioner Wu suggested that the Youth Commission is better positioned to take on a wider focus on housing issues faced by youth in the city through surveys, focus groups, and a possible report.

There was no public comment.

7. Items to Report to Executive Committee (Action Item)

Commissioner Tu Mutch will prepare a general update on committee priorities.

8. Executive Committee Report (Discussion Only)

There was none.

9. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 7:07 p.m.

Any materials distributed to the members of the Youth Commission within 72 hours of the meeting or after the agenda packet has been delivered to the members are available for inspection—along with minutes of previous Youth Commission meetings and all supplementary information—at the Youth Commission office during regular office hours (9am to 6pm, Monday—Friday). The Youth Commission office is located at:
City Hall, Room 345
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: (415) 554-6446, Fax: (415) 554-6140
Email: youthcom@sfgov.org
www.sfgov.org/yc

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