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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCompass Kitchener - 09-05-12 COMPASS KITCHENER MINUTES September 5, 2012 – 4:00-6:00 Conestoga Room, KITCHENER CITY HALL Present: Theron Kramer Kim Knowles Holly Duff Tristan Wilkin Sarah Marsh Chris Kopar Chris Hyde Diana Bumstead Sue Morgan James Howe Staff: Mark Hildebrand Jenn Grein Sue Weare Janice Ouellette Guests: Councillor Glenn-Graham Regrets: Hanan Mohamed David Yoon The Compass Kitchener Advisory Committee met on this date, commencing at 4:05 p.m. Theron welcomed all members to the meeting. 1. Approval of Minutes  The minutes from May 2, 2012 were approved by Compass Kitchener. Moved by Sarah Marsh, Second by Sue Morgan. 2. General Business Shelley has left the city. The group considered what they might like to do to recognize Shelley’s  contributions over the years. It was decided to have take Shelley out for dinner. If any member of CK has concerns about the costs involved with this, please connect with Theron personally. Sarah to send Doodle to group for date, and connect with Jenn to reach Shelley. Theron met with Jeff Willmer, CAO, and Rhonda Bunn, Executive Director of the Centre for Excellence in  Integrated and Business Planning. He provided an update to the committee on what was discussed and indicated the city is still fully dedicated to the work Compass Kitchener is doing. Mark Hildebrand will now be the lead for the Compass Kitchener Advisory Committee, and Sue Weare will be attending on a regular basis. Concern was raised around the work the Compass Kitchener has been doing related to Council’s Strategic Planning process and Theron emphasized that Jeff and Rhonda said that the city is fully behind that process of getting feedback and input from citizens. In the past there has been a line item in the budget that supports this work and there is at this point no reason to assume that this will not continue. 3. Update from Subcommittee Civics101: The committee met with the Rotary club and members of the Mayor’s office in August and  considered a model that has worked well in the US. This pilot program starting in January consists of several days worth of education and focus’ on a small group of students initially as a pilot program. Teachers will also be represented in development of this program to ensure buy-in and thorough coverage. Rotary will also be able to assist with some of the costs associated with this pilot program for focusing on grade 10 students. James and Chris met during the summer to further discuss the program for grade 5’s. At this level of education, they explained, it’s difficult to adjust teachers programing unless you provide a turnkey package for them to work with, or it’s something that is mandated from senior officials. A letter has been developed to provide to schools, which includes information on what the Civics101 group and Compass Kitchener as a whole is focusing on, and asks them to get connect if they are interested in participating. It was suggested that the letter be directed to ‘Grade 5 teachers at XXX school’ as to put the information into the hands of the people who can actually make the decision to proceed. Chris added another angle, Civics starts at home, and it may be beneficial to focus some efforts in this area. Additionally, it would be beneficial to include some information and suggestions on what this education might look like so teachers can consider further ie. field trip, mock council etc. Members of Compass Kitchener suggested moving the information about the committee to the beginning of the letter. Reportcard: Group has not met since Report Card was released – have taken a well deserved break.  The group’s main focus in now how to move forward without Shelley’s assistance. To clarify, the Report Card compared all of what the city was doing to the information, research and input received through the Environics Survey and the Who Are You, Kitchener? process. The report card is an annual process, with the exception of the year council is voted in. The happiness piece is also something the subcommittee would like to consider further. Shayne Turner is now the cities representative on the Crime Prevention Council. Mark would like to meet with this group soon to better understand the process. Jenn to set up a meeting. Tristan updated the group on how the presentation to Council went and the feedback received September 5, 2012 CITY OF KITCHENER - 2 - during the meeting. This process may need to be shifted to a two year process as it takes quite a long time to gather, analyse and report back on data. Theron confirmed Jeff, Rhonda and staff are dedicated to the work that Compass Kitchener is doing.  They have indicated the importance and significance of this work and its value to the organization. Theron also confirmed that Compass Kitchener will have access to the business plans that come out of the strategic planning process to ensure there are no significant gaps in consideration of the organizations strategic plan. Mark clarified that much of the core business of the city is not included in the business plans, instead they focus on projects departments and divisions are taking on. Mark provided further clarification on business planning in the organization and budgets associated, and will facilitate getting this info to Compass Kitchener for consideration. Theron brought up the Strategic Plan roll out subcommittee, will be discussed further next meeting.  Voter Turn Out: not much to report at this time. It’s necessary to address the broader issues of  community engagement to effectively consider voter turnout. Dianna provided the subcommittee with several different examples of cities trying to engage citizens in voting and participating in community. The subcommittee will continue looking at this into the fall. Dianna to chair subcommittee moving forward. LEAF: Theron outlined the process undertaken by this subcommittee. The survey was extended and  near the end Communications was able to significantly increase the number of responses and participation. The subcommittee is pleased with the numbers relating to participation. The report was th reviewed by the subcommittee on September 4, and the group will be working on recommendations at th their next meeting on September 13. Presentation of the report to Council will be on October 15. CK members are encouraged to attend Council meeting. Advisory Committee Gathering: it was suggested to not do a gathering in Fall 2012, but instead focus on  a coaching/training session for chairs/vice chairs very early in the new year. Social Planning Council submitted a report to the city analyzing the Community Engagement Strategy  developed by the city, including many suggestions on how to better the outlined process. Councillor Glenn-Graham provided further clarification that the intent was not to be critical, however to consider with a broader lens and consider if this document can be used in a broader sense than just within the organization. This will be discussed further at the next meeting. Janice to provide Theron with next steps developed by she and Shelley after we received the revised critique from the Social Planning Council. 4. Appointment Process Jenn to forward link to application to committee when available. MACKS & KYAC are not committees of  Council, so committee members can be on one of these two committees and another committee of council. The group also discussed the process used for selecting chair and vice chair when the new committee is formed. This will be discussed further at the October or November meeting. http://www.kitchener.ca/en/insidecityhall/cmtee_brd_recruitment.asp The Nominating Committee for Advisory Committees has received fewer applications than expected. If  any Compass Kitchener members know of community members who would be a good fit for this committee and who do not sit on an advisory committee currently, please connect with them to see if they have interest. The term is fairly short, and members would be expected to participate approximately 6-8 hours between now and the end of December. Jenn to forward e-mail to committee with all pertinent info and application form. Theron, Kim and Sarah’s term with Compass Kitchener comes to a close this November. On a  suggestion from Jeff Wilmer, Theron asked the group if they support the idea of an extension for these three individuals for continuity purposes in absence of Shelley Adams. All members of the committee agreed and supported this suggestion. Councillor Glenn-Graham offered to bring forth a motion when the time is appropriate. Mark will follow up on this. Meeting adjourned at 6:00 pm. Next meeting: October 3, 2012 Location: Conestoga Room Attendance: Compass Kitchener Attendance 11-12.xls