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Minutes 05-23-07 MINUTES OF THE YOUTH VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROJECT MEETING HELD ON MAY 23, 2007, AT 4:30 P.M. AT THE MADSEN CENTER. BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ATTENDEES: Jose Rodriguez, Vice Mayor, Boynton Beach City Commission Addie Greene, Chair, Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners Retha Lowe, Vice Mayor, Lake Worth Worth City Commission Ashley Buckley, Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Melvin Brown, President, Ridgewood Hills Neighborhood Association Chief Matt Immler, Boynton Beach Police Chief Beverly Johnson, Executive Director, Vas Blum YMCA of Palm Beach County Beverly Jordon, Coordinator, Lake Worth Youth Empowerment Jim Kidd, President, South Tech Academy Kathleen Perry, Principal, Boynton Beach Community High School Regenia Scott, Manager, Boynton Beach Neighborhood Services Elivio Serrano, Executive Director, United Way of Palm Beach County Gladys Whigham, Administrative Assistant to Chair Greene I. Welcome and Introductions Vice Mayor Rodriguez opened the meeting at 4:43 p.m. and welcomed all. He explained this was to be the Executive Committee for the Youth Violence Prevention Project, (YVPP), which was promulgated to address the ongoing issue of youth violence. He explained this committee had the opportunity to make a difference in the community, by putting together a program to improve the quality of life for area youths. The attendees introduced themselves. II. Announcements Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained he was appointed to be on the committee and he had a passion for this effort; he grew up in the local area. Assistant City Manager, Wilfred Hawkins, and Ms. Scott started organizing the project and developed the structure for it, which was intended to encompass leaders in the community. The project would be a long-term effort and the goal was to be self-funded. They wanted a team involved that could add value to the program. He expressed his regrets about the passing of Wilfred Hawkins and recognized him for his vision and work on the project. Vice Mayor Rodriguez provided information on upcoming services being held for Mr. Hawkins. 1 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 The project was being funded through the Palm Beach County Criminal Justice Commission. The Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency offered to match the County dollars and the City was offering in-kind dollars. Since this was the organizational meeting and the group would comprise the Executive Committee, Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained a Steering Committee would be formed which would be the working group who would review what programs mayor may not be in place. A Teen Advisory Council would also be formed to provide input on programs that their peers would find of interest. He stressed the goal would be to determine where the gaps were and then to plug or tweak them. At the end of the program, the programs would be reviewed to see what had changed and what the results were. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained he was not in favor of continuously funding programs that were not effective. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained Mike Rodriguez, Criminal Justice Commission Director, would arrive later in the meeting and turned the meeting over to Regenia Scott as Project Manager. She explained the program was a comprehensive project and she emphasized they wanted to evaluate where the programs fit in, what was still needed and how to improve those programs and make them stronger. She explained another program the committee would oversee would be a Weed and Seed Grant. On May 15th, the Boynton Beach City Commission approved an application for Weed and Seed, which had to do with youth violence. The Weed and Seed services were geared more towards the Womb to Tomb population. The YVPP, however, was focused on teens alone. Ms. Scott explained they wanted to mirror the same concepts and parameters for the YVPP as used in the Weed and Seed effort. With the Weed and Seed program, they would be assembling data on the target area, crime data, program demographics, housing, senior information, and all economic and other data needed to help determine the gaps. They would use map overlays to see where they had vacant land to be creative or where services were located and could be used or tapped into. If awarded, the Weed and Seed Grant would fund $lM over a five-year period. Additionally it opened the door to partnerships and opportunities for additional dollars. Ms. Scott explained the grant deadline was August 30, 2007 for next year. Ms. Scott reviewed the YVPP proposal, which provided a framework of how they wanted to operate the program. The group would further identify the specific tasks and would implement policies, partnerships, infrastructure, and other services. It was anticipated the effort would go beyond the 3-year funding term. Ms. Scott provided an update to the committee, which was included with the meeting backup. She reviewed she spoke to about 40 youths and distributed applications for the Teen Council. She met with different Heart of Boynton (HOB) Neighborhood Associations and about five of them were willing to work with the committee. They 2 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 would provide for outreach, improving the community and helping share programs and initiatives that were developed. The community would be organizing a community outreach project, tentatively set for July 29th; however, that effort would be discussed in greater detail at the next meeting. They wanted to present information about what was available to the public. Three organizations were identified in the proposal as partners. These were the Juvenile Transition Center, MAD DADS and the Community Foundation, Inc. She elaborated there were other organizations available but she selected those to meet the application submission deadline. Ms. Scott requested the members review the list of potential Steering committee members and other listings. The listing encompassed a broad spectrum of organizations. Ms. Scott explained they needed to create a network of faith based, community organizations, individuals and service providers to share information about the programs. The list would be representative of a cross section of individuals to advise them of what works and what does not. This could serve as a potential database of organizations to serve Boynton Beach. This way, all would know who was doing what and as they learn of other organizations or providers, they could be added. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained this would be the base for setting the benchmark. Ms. Scott announced she would issue a Notice of Availability for the funds so organizations could apply. She elaborated different commitments could be attached to a program funding award, such as counseling or mentoring, which would be used to determine the program's effectiveness. The service providers would have to go through an evaluation process and would be held accountable. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained the role of the Executive Committee would be to determine what programs would be funded and why. Ms. Scott explained four positions could service the program, but she was looking at two positions at this time. The Teen Specialist would work directly with the schools, the City Recreation and Parks Department and the Teen Advisory Council. The Coordinator would do the administrative and promotional work. Those interviews were to be conducted in the next week. III. Overview of Youth Violence Prevention Project Summer activities at the Hester Center was being reviewed. Ms. Scott explained she was working with Mary DeGraffenreidt at the Hester Center, which would be the initial site for the Youth Violence Prevention Center. The Center would have a teen wing, with updated equipment, programs and information to attract youth. It was recognized the youth needed to be drawn to the site and as part of the draw, they wanted a 3 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 commitment to participate in other services. The committee needed to be creative in how it implements the programs to bring more of them to the forefront of the community. Commissioner Greene reviewed the Public Relations (PR) Plan for the Youth Empowerment Zones and explained the concept was not well known in the community. To address this, she approached the County Public Relations Department to provide public relations for all empowerment zones, not each municipality. This would require an open line of communication between the parties. She informed the board, Mark Esterly, of the County Public Relations Department, was the contact for that effort and he would develop a brochure. The Public Relations Plan was comprehensive and included brochures, success stories, public service announcements, youth empowerment web sites and grand openings. A copy of the plan detailing exactly how the services would be administered is available in the Office of the City Clerk. The Cities would adapt a general brochure using their specific centers, photos and success stories. The OC would work with Public Affairs to produce a brochure or series of brochures describing youth empowerment programs and would pay for the printing. Public Affairs, Community Relations and Marketing would assist OC in writing, photography and layout of the Youth Empowerment brochures. They would have access to the County's television station, Channel 20. Commissioner Greene emphasized the importance of keeping the OC apprised of success stories. They would assist in writing the stories and submitting them to Channel 20. Each municipality would produce their own Public Service Announcements (PSA's) for distribution to the Cable Networks. When they are received, Channel 20 will review and approve the City PSA's for distribution to cable networks or the Criminal Justice Commission will contact Channel 20 to produce the PSA. Each City would produce their own Youth Empowerment Website with their own Center's photos, stories and successes. The OC would feature a link to the Youth Empowerment Center on the Criminal Justice Home page. They would work with Public Affairs and the County's web staff, to develop a link from the site to lead Cities to Empowerment sites. The web staff would assist the OC to develop a feature website for empowerment programs. The Community Relations Marketing Staff would assist with writing material and photos for the website. There would be a link on the www.pbcgov.com homepage that would lead the public directly to the City's empowerment site. The center manager would draft a press release announcing the Grand Opening of their respective Empowerment Zones and Channel 20 would be there. The Community Relations and Management would assist with editing City releases and blast faxes to the media. They would use one week of drive time to announce a grand openings 4 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 Commissioner Greene explained each Empowerment Zone would not be the same. She provided a copy of Riviera Beach's proposal. She elaborated their program had the Justice Service Center, which serviced youth, ages 13-18 and individuals 21 and older. Jay's Ministry offered opportunities for recovering alcohol and drug abuse persons. They had a beautiful center and the Justice Service Center was located there, which offered a variety of services to a variety of clientele. Ms. Scott thought it could offer a good way to address reentry. Ms. Scott thought the issues could be approached on the teen level as opposed to just the adult level. She explained they had children who had parents who were incarcerated and had their own set of issues. She stressed it was important to look at the big picture and prioritize. Commissioner Greene praised the City of Boynton Beach for the package it put together. She explained she was so impressed with it, it had prompted her to approach Michael Rodriguez, the Director of the OC that it gave new meaning to the phrase, " A village raising a child". She advised it was the only proposal she received that had anything comprehensive. Vice Mayor Rodriguez also advised the City could leverage the new Boynton Beach TV station to put announcements out and solicit teens. IV. Executive Committee's Role Ms. Scott spoke about the by-laws, which outlined the role of the group, who would participate, the membership, duties, who the officers and Steering Committee would be and the roles. She explained the document that was emailed was a draft and she asked the members to review it and at the next meeting offer comments. Ms. Scott reviewed an organizational chart she provided. She explained it would be more manageable to have a small Executive Committee. The Steering Committee would be the working group. The chair could appoint someone to sit on gang task forces to review different aspects of a gang lifestyle such as prison re-entry, human services, other juvenile type programs, with an eye on not duplicating services. Two mandates of the program would be to oversee this program, and the Weed and Seed Program, if awarded the funds. V. Action Items There would be a Strategic Planning Committee. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained the program was results oriented. Ms. Scott requested each member consider what their commitment to the program would be. She explained each member had access to different resources and had 5 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 different talents. She would put together a draft Memorandum of Agreement that the members would be held to. Commissioner Greene agreed with Ms. Scott. She explained in Lake Worth, they met with the Principal of Inlet Grove, who agreed to let the City use the school after hours to address the educational component of the Youth Empowerment Zone. There were a lot of good resources available. Ms. Scott suggested identifying a Chair and Vice Chair. She requested the members give those positions some consideration for the next meeting. Mr. Serrano discussed it was important to convene a Strategic Planning Committee soon. The role of the committee would be to oversee funding. He thought this should be one of the first things to address. Vice Mayor Rodriguez agreed and thought it should be put on the agenda, to put the Strategic Plan together. He wanted to move quickly, more specifically, within the next 7 to 10 days to get nominations and the effort moving. He anticipated issuing an RFP/Notice of Availability and he explained the Executive Committee could establish an evaluation Committee or assign that task to the Steering Committee. Ms. Scott asked for volunteers to help facilitate the Strategic Planning Committee. Mr. Serrano volunteered, Ms. Perry and Ms. Johnson would serve to facilitate establishing the Strategic Planning Committee. It was explained to Mr. Serrano he could select from the list of potential Steering Committee members to serve on the committee. The consensus was to review the materials, provide feedback to Ms. Scott and a follow up meeting would be scheduled. The comments provided would be followed up with an agenda action item. VI. Establish Regular Meeting Date and Time The committee discussed meeting times for the Executive Committee. Vice Mayor Rodriguez recommended initially meeting more than once a month. The second and the fourth Wednesday was agreed on. June 6, 2007 at 4:30 p.m. was set for the next meeting. An email would be sent with the meeting date and time. VII. Member Comments All the members thought the effort was important. Ms. Johnson explained the initial steps were taken which was the hardest part. She was in support of the effort. Mr. Serrano indicated, with the Strategic Planning Committee, the groundwork would be laid. He thought, and the committee agreed, the Strategic Planning Committee should be in place prior to the Notice of Availability being issued. This would ensure a clear understanding of what was expected of the applicants. The program would operate similar to the way the Community Development Block Grant was operated. It was agreed the process should be streamlined. 6 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 Chief Immler advised when the County determined this would be a bricks and mortar program, they got the ball rolling and made the initial inquiry to the Criminal Justice Commission to see if the program could be turned around to something the City could use. He announced because of Ms. Scott's hard work, they got the program. He explained the Police were at the forefront of juvenile violence all the time, and this program allowed for an intervention and diversionary product, which they supported. He advised the Police have youth initiatives, but this was an organized effort that could bring the community together. He appreciated all the help and announced the effort cannot be successful without community leaders. Vice Mayor Rodriguez explained they would be looking to the Chief to coordinate things among other Police Chiefs. Chief Immler explained the Police Chiefs meet twice a month and issues such as this are always discussed. He reported everyone was on board. It was also noted when the children get to middle school, they get lost in the shuffle. When children seek attention, they do something. Ms. Jordan expressed she hoped Lake Worth and Boynton Beach would work together and looked forward to working with Ms. Scott. Vice Mayor Retha Lowe announced she attended a convention about crime and brought back information. She had wanted to start a Youth Council and explained listening to youth was important. She was impressed with how the program would be structured. She had observed most programs were geared to boys and not girls. She explained this program had a lot of structure to it and could give structure to Lake Worth. She explained if you start it right, it ends right. Vice Mayor Lowe explained she wants to be involved and committed to the effort. She announced she wanted Lake Worth to be committed and get the structure off the ground. She agreed just having sports or having a gym open all night would not do anything. The middle school children fall through the cracks. She was very interested in partnering in the effort. Mr. Brown reserved his comments to the next meeting. All attendees agreed, collectively and individually, that this was a county-wide problem and it needed to be addressed as a shared effort. Mr. Kidd commented they have limited exposure to the children. He thought the effort could create opportunities for children. He explained he was happy to be on board along with Ms. Perry. He reported they could bring diverse opportunities with the school district and the charter school. Ms. Perry thought the effort was long over due. Ms. Buckley thought Ms. Bright would be pleased with the information and would convey it to her. 7 Meeting Minutes Youth Violence Prevention Project Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2007 Vice Mayor Rodriguez closed the meeting at 5:45 p.m. and thanked all for attending. He indicated he was looking forward to hearing the Committee's feedback. (... /!" 11. }.,' () J 1, ., \ . ~~)c)JL{ ~,. 7 \U)JjJJYY(1'Vl Catherine Cherry-Guberman Recording Secretary 053007 8