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Home My WebLink AboutA035 - Engagement Coordinator Annual UpdateTo:Mayor and City Council From:Casandra Eames, Engagement Coordinator Date:November 18, 2025 Subject:Engagement Coordinator Annual Update Item No. 35 MEMO Attached please find the annual update from the Engagement Coordinator. ATTACHMENT(S): Engagement Update 24-25.pptx City Clerk's Office 515.239.5105 main 515.239.5142 fax 515 Clark Ave. P.O. Box 811 Ames, IA 50010 www.CityofAmes.org 1 Community Engagement 2024-2025 Annual Update Casandra Eames 2 AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (1) Completed credits to become a certified ADA Coordinator •Anticipated testing in Winter 2025 Completed ADA walkthrough of the City’s public buildings •Developing the Transition Plan is the next step Continue addressing complaints from the public ADA training conducted by an external facilitator for staff on new digital requirements New website created and continuing to work on accessibility •Reached out to community organizations for feedback 2 3 AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (2) The City of Ames will need to meet new digital accessibility requirements from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) by April 2026. An internal staff Task Force has been created, with representation from all departments, to provide feedback and assist with compliance. A training for City staff on this new rule will be rolled out to management in January 2026. 3 4 FEDERAL REPORTING Affirmative Action Reviewing the Affirmative Action reports from City contractors. Equal Employment Opportunity Reporting 4 5 STAYING CONNECTED IN THE COMMUNITY Assisted in organizing the Building Inclusion Breakfast and Roundtable Discussion Participates in the Iowa Equity & Inclusion Officers virtual meetings Attends Story County Immigrant and Refugee Coalition meetings Assists with Spanish translation to departments Hosted Leadership Ames in a day of local government Assisted with the HOST Exhibit at the Library Participate on the Discover Ames Grant Committee Completed the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) 6 STAFF LIAISON TO AHRC The AHRC continues to host Meet and Greet events to connect and support all communities in Ames Annual events the commission sponsors: MLK Jr. Celebration Fair Housing Month AAPI Celebration National Night Out Ames Pridefest Building Inclusion Breakfast 6 7 AHRC CONTINUED Coloring Book- free for the community 700 coloring books printed and given away at community events Currently working on Volume II Take phone calls regarding discrimination complaints from the community 8 AHRC CONTINUED Celebrated the AHRC 50th Anniversary Tree planting Community Event New T-shirt design revealed AHRC hosted Iowa Commissions for a gathering to network and share goals and activities Annual Report Iowa Civil Rights Commission AHRC participated in local bus tour of Civil War/Civil Rights AHRC participated and sponsored the Fair Housing screening of the movie “Divisible” 9 MUNICIPAL EQUALITY INDEX HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN The MEI examines how inclusive municipal laws, policies, and services are of LGBTQ+ people who live and work there. Cities are rated based on non- discrimination laws, the municipality as an employer, municipal services, law enforcement and leadership on LGBTQ+ equality Coordinate the City’s response which is used to assign us a score November 2024 the City of Ames final MEI score was 96 In October 2025, the City submitted its response and is awaiting our score 9 10 BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS Friendship Ark Veterans Affairs Elks Lodge Dog Eared Books Ames School District ISU Multicultural Student Services YSS Mental Health & Education The Arc of Story County Food Insecurity Task Force HOST Library Board Hope in Christ Vocational Rehab Iowa Board of Realtors SBDC Sleep in Heavenly Peace The Well 10 11 TRAINING FOR EMPLOYEES De-escalation methods Neurodiversity in the workplace How to emotionally support employees in Public Service Working on a partnership with AHM to present the History of Ames ADA Digital Standards 11 12 “BELONGING IN AMES” Highlilghted organizations and programs through this video series Belonging in Ames is on season two, with a total of 20 episodes recorded Find the episodes here Belonging in Ames 13 “UP CLOSE” The purpose of this podcast is to listen to stories of Ames’ residents, and discover more about our friends, neighbors and community members. Three individual podcasts each week The fourth week we bring back all three guests to have a conversation together and make connections Find the podcast here Up Close Up to now 30 Ames residents have participated and made new connections 13 14 CAREER PATHWAYS ACADEMY An Iowa 4-H program offered in Story County for the first time to students from 6-11 grade Students participated in six Spark Workshops exploring careers while developing skills Students also participated in six career exploration experiences with local businesses to recognize opportunities Mayor, Council, Ames Police, and Fire participated and presented on their roles 14 15 ISU AND THE CITY The goal is to connect ISU students, faculty, staff, and parents to the City, so everyone has a sense of connection and belonging Have met with : ISU IDEA Committee ISU Student Clubs ISU Extension and Outreach ISU Dean of Students Office Sloss Center International Students and Scholars Office Extension and Outreach ISU Business ISU Student Affairs ISU Daily ISU Learning Communities 16 ISU STUDENT CLUBS 16 17 “CONNECTING WITH ISU” Participated in the ISU joint meeting with the Council Attended student club meetings Participated in Business Communication 302 class Creating opportunities to collaborate with learning communities Presented to the Business in Organizations class LAS students at City Hall to meet with Council and staff WelcomeFest Volunteer Fest Presented at "We Lead" Conference 17 18 BELONGING IN AMES SURVEY A survey was created to ask students if they feel they belong in Ames and to gather their thoughts on what they like best about Ames, what their biggest challenges are in Ames, and whether they think Ames is welcoming. Overall, the answers show that students Feel they belong and the City of Ames is welcoming Want more cultural events Want to be connected beyond ISU Are happy CYride is free for student to use and accessible Love all the parks and would like more information on trails 18 19 WHAT’S NEXT? LOOKING AHEAD FY26 Building relationships and partnerships with faith- based organizations Collaborate with Cyclone Civics and Gerdin Leaders Academy Assist with staff outreach efforts on major projects and create new ways to engage with the public Continue to serve as a resource for City departments, organizations, and the community Continue training employees to meet digital ADA guidelines 19 20 WHAT’S NEXT? LOOKING AHEAD FY26 Promote and manage the Neighborhood Improvement Grant Program Host "Meet your neighbors" City-sponsored events Reinvigorate new ways to establish neighborhood connections Serve as a neighborhood laision promoting communication and connections between Ames residents and city government Educating community members about key intitatives 20 21 QUESTIONS? 21 22