HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - November 14, 2024, AHRC MinutesMinutes
AMES HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION
Conference Room 235
City Hall, 515 Clark Avenue
Thursday, November 14, 2024
Call to Order: Chair Chunhui Chen called the meeting to order at 5:53 p.m. Commissioners
Annabella Marquez, Pablo Suarez Beltran, and Shawn Kenny and Diversity, Equity, and
Inclusion (DEI) Coordinator Casandra Eames were also present. Commissioners Wayne Clinton
and Marty Martinez were absent.
Public Forum: Chair Chen opened the Public Forum. Richard Deyo shared his thoughts on the
recent presidential election and the state of the Ames community. Chair Chen thanked him for
sharing. Chair Chen closed the Public Forum when no one else came to speak.
Approval of Minutes: Moved by Marquez, seconded by Beltran, to approve the minutes of the
September 26, 2024, and October 24, 2024, meetings. Motion carried unanimously.
Feedback from Kate Mitchell Multicultural Night: Commissioner Beltran reported on a
successful event with slightly less attendance than the previous time. Commissioner Kenny noted
that the audience at Pridefest had more adults, while the audience at this event had more kids.
Humanitarian Award Advertising: Staff shared that the email drafted by Chair Chen had been
sent out to 84 email addresses for local organizations. Commissioner Marquez requested that the
City include an Instagram post in its advertising so it could be shared on that platform.
Commissioner Beltran suggested promoting it in Ames Community School District’s Digital
Backpack. The commissioners each shared how they planned to promote the award.
AHRC Mission Statement: The commissioners shared their individual drafts of a possible
mission statement, discussing recurring themes and whether the mission statement should be a
phrase/tagline or a standalone sentence. There was discussion about developing a phrase with
several keywords that could have multiple meanings. Commissioner Beltran spoke in favor of a
specific, standalone mission statement, proposing “Communicating awareness and promoting
inclusion through public relations and community involvement in Ames.”
Moved by Marquez, seconded by Kenny, to move forward with the phrase “Connecting and
supporting all communities in Ames” for further discussion. Motion carried, Beltran dissenting.
Upcoming Events
• Symposium on Building Inclusive Organizations – Coordinator Eames reiterated that the
event would be changing to an inclusive breakfast format, and Friday, December 13 had
been selected as the target date for the event. She planned to share further details as they
became available.
• MLK Celebration – Coordinator Eames reviewed that the event will be held on Monday,
January 20, 2025, in the City Hall Auditorium. Staff will send out a calendar invite.
Commissioner Announcements: Coordinator Eames informed the commissioners about
upcoming community conversations about homelessness organized by the Analysis of Social
Services Evaluation Team (ASSET). She also reminded commissioners to take the boards and
commissioners member survey emailed out by Assistant City Manager Pa Vang Goldbeck.
Lastly, Coordinator Eames noted that the commission received an email from Ames resident
Terry Lowman with the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa requesting commission support for an “All
Are Welcome in Iowa” resolution. Legal is reviewing the request, which will take several weeks.
The commissioners agreed to wait until after legal review is complete to consider the request.
Next Meeting: Thursday, December 12, 2024
Adjournment: Chair Chen adjourned the meeting at 7:24 p.m.