Burlington Inclusivity Advisory Committee Meeting

Minutes

Meeting #:
Date:
Time:
-
Location:
3800 Constable Henshaw Blvd. (Halton Regional Police Services)

1.
Members Present:

Brian Wrixon (Chair), Kumkum Bhandari (Burlington Public Library), Maroun Naser, Ron Baliko (BAAC), Doug Martin, Girish Parekh, Rana Al Semaani, Roy La Chappelle

2.
Others Present:

Councillor Blair Lancaster, Mary Lou Tanner (Deputy City Manager), Donna Kell (Manager of Communications), Jeff Crowder (Communications Advisor), Jim Young (Burlington Seniors' Advisory Committee), Mary Marshall (System Principal - Equity and Student Health, Halton District School Board), Rob Eatough (Superintendent, Halton District School Board)

3.
Regrets:

Kate Dunn, Eric Schwab, Stephen Siomra (Halton Police), Farah Butt

4.
Declarations of Interest:

None.

5.
Approval of Minutes:

6.
Delegation(s):

6.1
Mary Marshall and Rob Eatough, Halton District School Board

Mary and Rob shared the work of the Halton District School Board's Equity and Inclusive Education Team:

  • the HDSB Multi-Year Plan (2016-20) guides the work they do.
  • the two main items under Equity & Well-Being are sense of belonging and personal wellbeing/feeling safe at school
  • equity secretariat was set up by the province and they created Ontario's Education Equity Action Plan. It's a 3-year plan and guides the work for school boards across the province.
  • there is also a regional advisory committee that works together
  • English learning has doubled in Halton in the last few years
  • there are several staff learning initiatives around equity and inclusion with a large part of recent learning related to responses to the truth and reconciliation calls to action
  • starting next year grades 4-8 and grade 10 classes will include an indigenous learning component
  • program set up for newcomers to Canada, including a welcome centre and mentoring
  • supporting students who identify as LGBTQ and allies
  • Dec. 4 will be first annual human right's conference sponsored by HDSB. The focus this year is on indigenous perspectives

7.
Regular Items:

7.1
Communication Plan

Georgie reviewed BIAC's mandate, shared 2018 successes and provided an overview of the committee's 2018 budget.

Donna outlined member's responsibilities when attending community events or other public forums:

  • members represent the City of Burlington when they are out in the public on behalf of the committee
  • important to uphold the corporate reputation, the brand of Burlington and ethical behaviour
  • videos and photos require an objective and purpose
  • release forms must be signed prior to taking photos or videos. If photos or videos are used without permission, could be legal repercussions
  • shelf life on photos/videos - should destroy after 5 years

Donna facilitated a discussion about what BIAC would like to achieve over the next year. Jeff shared a draft tactic plan to assist the committee in carrying out it's work plan initiatives.

ACTION: Committee members to review the tactic plan and advise Georgie of any changes or additions.

7.2
Events

a.
Kite Festival - June 3

Roy, Maroun and Rana shared that BIAC's table was well attended. Maroun volunteered to transcribe the post-it notes residents completed to answer the question "What makes Burlington a welcoming city?". The committee discussed what the question should be for future events and agreed to have a different question at each event.

b.
Canada Day - July 1, Noon-10 p.m., Spencer Smith Park

  • Maroun, Doug and Kumkum will attend, Roy is tentative.
  • Maroun will pick up supplies from city hall.

c.
Other events to consider

BIAC to research costs and requirements for any future events the committee wishes to attend. Costs must be brought forward for approval by the committee.

  • June 22 - Multiculturalism Day. Welcome to Burlington Mohawk Leadership Team will use BIAC's banner and question board at the event
  • Aug 4, 11am-9pm, Spencer Smith Park: Halton Freedom Celebration Festival
  • Aug 6: OneBurlington Festival - Steve offered to share Halton Police's table with BIAC
    ACTION: Committee members to let Georgie know if they will attend and pick up the supplies from city hall 
  • Aug 19, 10am-5pm, Spencer Smith Park: Children's Festival
  • Aug 31 - Sept 3, Spencer Smith Park: Ribfest
  • Sept 28-30: Culture Days: this event takes place at all different locations in the city - not sure if the committee would have a role

7.3
Staff Training

a.
June 21 facilitation with the Burlington Leadership Team and Managers

Brian shared that he will be facilitating a session with the city's leadership team and managers on unconscious bias and will incorporate the city's Inclusion Lens into the discussion. There will also be discussion around staff training needs and how BIAC's training manual could be rolled out. Rana will also be attending the session.

7.4
Roundtable Updates

a.
Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee

Ron shared a suggestion that came up at the Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee about a joint resource fair with BSAC, BAAC and BIAC. It would be held at a large venue in Burlington and focused on accessibility, inclusivity and seniors. Related organizations could be brought in to share information and sponsor the event. The anticipated date of the event is next spring.

b.
Burlington Seniors' Advisory Committee

No report.

c.
Halton Police

No report.

d.
Burlington Public Library

Kumkum shared that Burlington Public Library could partner with BIAC for events and include BIAC's logo in the promotional material. BIAC would be required to suggest speakers or panelists. This will be added to the communication plan.

e.
Taskforce on Anti-Bullying/Harassment

Brian said the first meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 18 and will provide an update at the next meeting.

f.
Other events/updates

  • Doug shared information about two upcoming events that will be emailed out to the committee
  • Brian advised that HEDR's train the trainer session has been postponed to September
  • Rana has signed up for a webinar on unconscious bias and will share the information with the committee

8.
Other Business:

None.

9.
Adjournment: 11:25 a.m.

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