REDWOODS COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT
Meeting of the Multicultural and Diversity Committee of the Academic Senate
7351 Tompkins Hill Road, BOARD ROOM SS 204
Meeting Minutes for Friday, May 1, 2015, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Present: Deanna Herrera-Thomas, Jacqui Cain, Kristy Carlson, Sean Herrera-Thomas.
Absent: Tami Bighead, Dana Maher, Dave Bazard, , Tracey Thomas
Public Comments: There were no comments.
Approval of the April 17, 2015 Meeting Minutes: A motion to approve the minutes by Jacqui Cain was
seconded by Kristy Carlson. Minutes were approved without objection.
Action Items: The single action item on the agenda concerned selecting the Multicultural and Diversity
Award recipient. Taking alternate turns, each committee member read aloud one of the nomination
forms for each of the five nominees, Dave Bazard, Paul Reed Elmore, Michele Haggerty, Vinnie Peloso,
and Tina Vaughan. Then the committee members discussed the individual nomination and agreed that
all nominees would be recognized at a ceremony to be held in fall 2015 and the single recipient would
be announced at Convocation. The committee voted and unanimously selected the recipient.
Discussion Items:
Schedule for next year:
Chair Herrera-Thomas stated that she was considering changing the Committee’s scheduled meeting
time for the 2015/2016 academic year. Although various options for changing the meeting time were
discussed, the members who were present agreed that the meeting time should remain the same, at
least until the Committee meets again in the fall when the Committee can revisit that idea with a clearer
understanding of each member’s scheduling limitations.
Events to plan for the fall:
Goals for fall semester events were discussed. There was agreement that the dialog sessions on race
should continue. The committee expressed interest in coordinating a screening of the film The Hunting
Ground in October to coincide with National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Chair HerreraThomas stated that she would attempt to determine the status of the approval of CR’s Relationship
Assault Manual in case that might be released for college-wide circulation around that same time. Sean
Herrera-Thomas noted that the Committee should also inquire about CR’s response to SB 967,
California’s new “yes means yes” legislation.
Chair Herrera-Thomas commented that she had been asked to provide additional diversity trainings for
CR managers that would be similar to the trainings she provided in the fall of 2014. She also noted that
the EEO committee will be requesting the MDC to provide trainings in fall 2015, possibly as part of
Convocation, which might add to the training sessions provided by the MDC during the fall 2014
Convocation.
Jacqui Cain recommended that the MDC consider supporting activities that would recognize the
importance of international students at CR. She also stated that the committee should begin planning
early for events during African American History month. Kristy Carlson stated that the committee should
consider hosting events during Hispanic Heritage Month, especially screening The Harvest (La Cosecha)
or a similar documentary.
Reports:
Diversity poster:
Kristy Carlson asked the Committee’s opinions about the poster, specifically concerning suggestions
made by Dave Bazard to streamline the poster and provide more detailed information on the MDC web
page. Chair Herrera-Thomas concurred with that suggestion.
EEO Committee meeting:
Chair Herrera-Thomas reported that all of the MDC’s recommendations are being addressed by the EEO
Committee. She also noted that the EEO Committee discussed the need to attract as many individuals as
possible from different equity groups for staff and faculty positions at CR, as well as the need for training
in EEO law for all employees. She also noted that a new WASC initiative may require CR to develop
ethical standards guidelines for the workplace.
Announcements/Open Forum:
There were no announcements.
Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned at 4:48.