Focus the community's attention on diversity

1. Improve coordination of diversity efforts.

• Recognize the county-wide Diversity Council to include major employers and other community leaders.
• Recommended Responsible Party: Diversity Council (accomplished 2/5/99)
• Encourage the collaboration of independent citizen's groups to promote diversity efforts.
• Recommended Responsible Party: Existing diversity organizations, faith communities and citizen. 

2. Establish a comprehensive diversity action plan.

A.  Develop a community consensus committing the community to a series of concrete steps to eliminate racism, to create a welcoming community environment, and to promote the positive values of diversity.

Recommended Responsible Party:  21st Century Partnership Steering Committee

B. Develop a valid instrument to measure community attitudes and perceptions regarding diversity.

Recommended Responsible Party:  21st Century Partnership Steering Committee with the assistance of the Rochester Olmsted Planning Department

C. Track changes annually in the community's response to diversity.

Recommended Responsible Party:  21st Century Partnership Steering Committee with the assistance of the Rochester Olmsted Planning Department

• Measures: Develop a diversity measure component that ties to other 21st Century Partnership key issues.
• Crime - hate crimes, victim/criminal demographics, survey data
• Education and Workforce Readiness - high school graduation rate, employer feedback, survey data
• Jobs and the Economy - employment, demographics, survey data
• Neighborhoods - Human rights complains, voting records, survey data
• Youth, Families and the Elderly -school data (i.e. graduation rates, exceptional students demographics, etc), family services data (elderly, runawasy, sucidese, etc).
• Rural and Small City Vitality -economic indicators and survey data.

D. Develop strategies to respond to survey findings

Recommended Responsible Party:  21st Century Partnership Steering Committee 

• Measures: Surveys demonstrating improved perceptions of opportunity, safety, and openness.

 

 

Eliminate the suspicion and fear resulting from negative stereotypes and promote positive interracial awareness.

1. Increase the level of diversity awareness among community members.

a. Encourage the long-term commitment of media to provide accurate information, knowledge, understanding and appreciation of others.

Recommended Responsible Party: Print and broadcast media

b. Establish training programs for management and employees at all levels.

Recommended Responsible Party: Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with area employers and Diversity Council

c. Establish mutual learning partnerships and memberships among diverse individual and groups.

Recommended Responsible Party: Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with area employers

d. Develop classes to orient newcomers to the resources and customers of the community.

Recommended Responsible Party: ISD 535 Community Education in cooperation with the Inter-cultural Mutual Assistance Association and Private Industry Council

e. Continue to celebrate the variety of cultures in our community.

Recommended Responsible Party: Rochester International Association, RochesterFest, Diversity Council, and faith community

2. Enforce laws in an equitable and culturally sensitive manner.

a. Mandate annual diversity training for law enforce officers and other criminal justice system personnel.

Recommended Responsible Party: Area governing bodies

Measures: Detention, arrest, conviction and sentencing records, survey data

3. Educate parents to communicate positive images about other groups of people.

Encourage partnerships with employers, PTSA's religious institutions, neighborhood groups and social and service clubs, to support parents in teaching acceptance of others.

Recommended Responsible Party: Diversity Council, in cooperation with PTSA's, religious institutions, media, schools and neighborhood groups

4. Educate teachers and students about stereotyping

Establish regular workshops to understand the negative impact of stereotyping on student learning and to build positive images with the educational environment.

Recommended Responsible Party: Schools - daycare through adult education

Provide increased opportunities for everyone, and enable all people in full participate in the social, educational, economic and civic life of the community.

1. Incorporate diverse populations into neighborhoods.

a. Ensure that the governmental development review process incorporates diversity standards.

Recommended Responsible Party: Zoning authorities

b. Increase the supply and distribution of affordable, decent, safe and sanitary housing for all groups in the community.

Recommended Responsible Party: Private builders and housing assistance providers

c. Encourage neighborhoods to include lower income housing into their neighborhoods

Recommended Responsible Party: Diversity Council, Neighborhood Council, and United Way

2. Facilitate the economic participation of minorities in the community.

a. Eliminate discrimination and encourage inclusive hiring polices

Recommended Responsible Party: Area employers and Human Rights Commission

Measures: Rates of unemployment, underemployment and business ownership

b. Increase the accessibility and convenience of transportation to those with limited mobility.

Recommended Responsible Party: Area employers and transportation providers

c. Increase the availability and convenience of affordable, decent, safe, sanitary and culturally appropriate child care.

Recommended Responsible Party: Child Care Resource and Referral, area employers, child care providers and Family Action Collaborative (FACES)

3. Enforce human rights in accordance with Minnesota Statutes

a. Create a county-wide Human Rights Commission

Recommended Responsible Party: County Board (accomplished 1998)

b. Adopt a county-wide Human Rights Ordinance to include all protected classes covered by Minnesota Statutes

Recommended Responsible Party: County Board (accomplished Summer 1998)

c. Provide staff to assist the County Human Rights Commission in mediating diversity conflicts

Recommended Responsible Party: County Board (accomplished 1998)

d. Monetary restitution for human rights offense awarded by Administrative Law Judge

Recommended Responsible Party: County Board

e. Empower the County Human Rights Commission to refer human rights cases to the County Attorney

Recommended Responsible Party: County Board

4. Improve the internal diversity performance of community institutions.

a. Ensure that institutions in the community include diversity as a priority in their own planning and programming.

Recommended Responsible Party: Private, non-profit and government institutions

5. Ensure equal access to services on the part of minority clients and customers.

a. Implement actions (as funding requirements) to ensure that services, activities and programs are reaching minority populations.