Board Meeting, Minutes - May 15th, 2016
Meeting Minutes from 5/15/16
Law Office of Hart and Herrick
Present: Ann Heywood, Dr. David Shih, David Rice, Paul Wagner, Mildred Larson, Lindsey Brandrup (recording)
Absent: Marni Kaiser, Sara Thielen, Myron Buchholz
Call to Order at 6:32 pm.
Minutes from 4-3-16 were approved as sent.
Treasurer’s Report—Included expenses for Local Store. Approved by Board.
State Board Report—There had not been a State Board meeting since our last local meeting, and therefore there was no update to provide.
Senior American’s Day—Held on June 7th. There was an error on the parking pass, which stated the date as June 6th. David will request a new one, though parking at Mildred’s is available. The registration fee was $45. The event runs from 8:30—3:30 at Davie’s Center with breakout sessions. Our table will be staffed by David Rice from 8:30 to 12:00 and Paul Wagner from 12:00-3:30. Mildred will deliver the banner used at the last event.
(b) Ann asked about old ACLU videos; it was suggested they be donated to the Friends of the Library Book Sale.
University Students and Our Role—David Shih provided an update on the situation regarding free speech and a safe space for students of color at UWEC. A decision was made to move the Blugold Beginnings office to a separate space from the Office of Multicultural Affairs. This decision was a controversial one, but in this case the institution responded in favor of the students who need a safe space to discuss issues of race and racism. The student involved in this matter has expressed some interest in help from the CVCLU, given this response from the institution and her graduation, it isn’t clear whether that still remains true. David will email Ann with an update regarding this, and this topic will stay on the agenda until further decision.
Outreach to Lapsed Members—David, Ann, and Mildred are working on the list of lapsed members with varying degrees of progress.
Transgender Policy—The ECASD School Board Minutes provide a description of the vote, as does Ann’s email summarizing the event. The School Board stood against vocal opponents to make transgender students a protected class. Ann and Myron were present, several board members sent emails. One question posed by the Board was whether the policy supported the federal guidelines for Title IX.
David’s Presentation—A smashing success! It was very well-attended (approximately 65-70 people). The Board discussed how we were able to gather such a great turnout. David’s connection to the university certainly played a large role. There didn’t appear to be one effort that resulted in an obvious payout, but perhaps the combined efforts worked best. David was asked to present this topic again for the CVLR.
CV Post Publicity—This would be a good option for future programs. All present approved the motion to buy a one-year membership for $50 which would allow us to be listed as a donor. Ann wrote an article about David’s presentation and posted at CVPost.org.
Facebook Page—The page is currently a private/closed group. Ann will talk with Beverly, one of the original creators about who has administrator rights and Paul will conduct some research on the options for changing this from a closed group.
Dr. Taman’s Passing—The 10th member position doesn’t need to be filled. The Board decided to send a donation to the State in honor of Dr. Taman. Members should send donations to David Rice. Mildred will get the address for Dr. Taman’s family and deliver that to David, too, who will ensure that they are made aware of this action.
Appeal for Help—Ann provided a synopsis of a phone call asking for help. Given the complexity of the issue and the lack of clarity of how the CVCLU could assist, the Board decided that we would not be able to assist this person, unless there was clear evidence that the person’s race was a factor in the issue brought forth.
Announcements—Lindsey provided an update of her case. She spoke with both the ACLU Women’s Rights Fellow, Conor Ahern, and his supervising attorney, Gillian Thomas, in a conference call. The ACLU believes the ECASD is in direct violation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1976. Lindsey will be signing a retainer agreement and a demand letter will be sent to the ECASD outlining the ACLU’s position and urging them to change their policy to allow women on maternity leave to access the Sick-Leave Donation Bank. In exchange, Lindsey will be writing a blog post on this event for the ACLU. Should the district refuse to make a change, then lawyers would need to revisit the case before determining if litigation were to be feasible.
Next Meeting Date is set for July 10th at 6:30 at the Law Office of Hart and Herrick.
The meeting adjourned at around 7:50 pm.