The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2022 DEI Action Plan Report2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 2022 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan Update Year 1 – Building Internal Capacity 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 1 About the City of Rochester City Vision, Principles, and Priorities Purpose of this Update Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan Background Overview of DEI Plans I. Recruitment and Retention of Diverse Teammates II. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Professional Development III. Community Connection and Engagement Community Engagement/ Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Workgroup Other Considerations 2 3 4 5 6 6 8 11 14 14 TABLE OF CONTENTS 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 2 Detailed additional information can be found HERE. If you need a better image of the above graphic, it can be found linked above. ABOUT THE CITY OF ROCHESTER The City of Rochester is located in Southeast Minnesota and is the third largest city in the state. Data collected by the United States Census indicates that the City has 121,395 residents. The City’s largest industry is Healthcare, with Mayo Clinic as the largest employer. The City has great diversity, with a large number of migrant and immigrant community members. A snapshot of the Cities diversity can be summarized as follows; »73.2% of residents are white and 26.8% are BIPOC residents »14.1% of residents are foreign born »82% of residents speak English only, and 18.7% speak a language other than English »16% of residents are age 65 and older »12.4% of residents have a disability »6% of residents are veterans »7.4% of residents below poverty level by income »Age data* - Important to note that data for age 18 and below indicates a large shift in race and ethnicity data (Approximately 40% BIPOC in RPS school district) Census Census CensusCensus Total Population 121,395 Median Household Income $74,527 Bachelor’s Degree or Higher 49.9% Employment Rate 69.5% Total Housing Units 53,210 Without Health Care Coverage 6.3% Total Households 50,479 Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 7,984 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 3 Action Plan Organizational Vision Foundational Principles Strategic Priorities City Vision A vibrant, compassionate, innovative team. - Affordable Living - Quality City Services for Quality Living - Economic Vibrancy and Growth Management Rochester is a city that cares. Where all people are treated with dignity and respect. Where residents, employees, and visitors enjoy high quality of life. Where business and industry thrive, and where the land and environment are renewed and sustained for the benefit of all. It is a welcome and diverse community. Renowned for it’s reputation as a center for growth and innovation. Characterized by its safe and friendly neighborhoods. Committed to health and wellness for its people. Connected both physically and socially. Dedicated to the sustainable and responsible use of public resources. Action Plans will be developed to identify goals, actions and performance indicators that help advance priorities. Strategic Plan Equity and Inclusion Plan City Organizational Goals 1. Recruitment of Diverse Teammates 2. DEI Professional Development 3. Community connection and engagement Social Equity (Foundational Principle) Goal 1, Goal 2, Goal 3, Goal 4, Goal 5 (Community Co-Creation) • Map up to one or more goals • Identify gaps between current practice/efforts and goal/s • SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time Bound) 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 4 PURPOSE The purpose of this update is to provide a framework for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts in FY 2022. These efforts will be focused on building internal capacity within the City of Rochester. Internal capacity building will be focused on 3 areas: (I) Recruitment and Retention of diverse teammates, (II) Diversity, Equity and Inclusion professional Development, and (III) Community Connection and Engagement TERMS, DEFINITIONS AND ACRONYMS Diversity Variation in human identity including but not limited to age, race, ethnicity, ability/ disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and migrant status. Equity Parity in outcomes Inclusion Active practice of creating a welcoming environment, safe spaces, and removing barriers to access and participation that lead to equitable outcomes DEI Diversity, Equity and Inclusion BIPOC Black, Indigenous and People of Color ICC Intercultural Cities Initiative GARE Government Alliance on Race and Equity SMART Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound. 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 5 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN BACKGROUND A Systems Change Approach (changes in processes, relationships, norms, policies and power structures with deep engagement by participants to make positive social gains sustainable at scale (Gopal & Kania, 2015). Following a DEI audit of department efforts, organization-wide efforts, and our community, during the first quarter of 2021, three goals were adopted for FY 2022: I. Recruitment and Retention of diverse teammates II. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion professional development a. Organization wide common language b. Department specific/matrix professional development c. Safe/cohort spaces for conversation III. Community connection and engagement After initial presentation of DEI goals to the Council in early 2021, each department began the process of developing a department specific Action Plan with support from DEI director. Departments were asked to engage City Teammates as much as possible in the development of their Action Plan. Each department was asked to come up with 3 or more tactics to support each goal. Engagement strategies varied by department, and included but was not limited to: DEI audit results presentation to departments, focus groups, surveys, and committee/ workgroup/taskforce formation. Department Action Plans were shared with DEI director for review and iteration. The Systems Change approach includes the development of: • Baselines and shared vocabulary; Knowledge of current DEI strengths and deficits for each department, along with approaches to address deficits. • Intersectional Views; An understanding of connections with other City departments or community organizations needed to address changes. Systems can only change with holistic approaches. • Iteration Capacity; Departments have to develop malleability, understanding that as they implement tactics, learning may occur to amend the tactic. • Metrics; adopting metrics with quarterly checks to ensure progress or iteration. Social transformation indicators can be qualitative as well as quantitative. • Adaptive Capacity; Individual, Team and Organizational ability to consistently change based on information learned. This includes changes in processes, structures and ultimately systems. 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 6 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi City Attorney Review and revise job posting to incorporate DEI competencies City Attorney and Deputies Ongoing All positions reviewed by 12/31/2022 HR partners DEI Director # of applicants vs. # of diverse and BIPOC applicants City Clerk Ensuring an inclusive and workplace environment through focused DEI and communication competency training. City Clerk and Deputy Immediate and ongoing Gretchen Bill City Administration Bi-annual inclusivity survey Civic Music Redevelop onboarding process for employees to foster sense of belonging General Manager December 31st, 2023 Civic Music Human Resources 100% of new employees on- boarded. Community Development Increase career education opportunities CD DEI Task Force 3-4th Quarter 2022 CD Leadership Human Resources Jorrie Johnson Community Partners (RPS, RCTC, etc.) Development of one new career education pathway opportunity Finance/IT Preferred Name – Improve access to JDE’s preferred name for universal use there is not a legal name requirement; email, Teams, name badges etc. Carl Hunter Rachel Houdek 7/1/2022 Human Resources Library Preferred name option in all places except legal requirements. Fire Increase percentage if BIPOC male applicants (Black/ African American, LatinX and Asian). Targeted community engagement, mentorship, ‘Join Us’ webpage. Chief Kerska Fall 2022 Human Resources 16% qualified applicants. OVERVIEW OF DEI PLANS (I) Recruitment and Retention of Diverse Teammates 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 7 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi Human Resources Create parameters for employee affinity groups Leena Murphy Gretchen Bill 3/31/2022 N/A 3% participation rate or a minimum of 5 affinity groups formed. Library Annual census of library team and adjustment of library recruitment goals to better reflect make- up of community Library Director Human Resources Rep Annually (May) N/A Library teammates parity with community. Parks Gateway to fulltime employment: Develop internship and on the job training programs for diverse members of the community. Parks leadership team Summer 2022 Human Resources 5 individuals recruited. Police Establish formal cadet program to create a pipeline of diverse candidates with experience in our community Training Lieutenant 12/31/2022 Services captain Community Services captain Community Action Team Establishment of Cadet program with enrollees. Public Utilities Outreach program to provide hands on experience and encourage entry into power and water industry. Public Affairs – Steve Nyhus 4th Qtr 2022 RCTC RPS Ctech Public Works, RFD RPD Outreach program concept developed and discussed with key partners Public Works Partner with HR to implement internship, seasonal help, and/or workforce development programs with the focus on increasing workforce diversity. Aaron Luckstein 12/31/2022 Leena Murphy At least one annual project within PW with a goal of advancing two. 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 8 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi City Attorney Cultural Competency- Interpreters Attorney Team Within 6 months RPD, State Patrol, Sheriff Internal tracking of concerning reports related to interpreters, track contested omnibus motions relating to interpreters. City Clerk Full-team intensive development training session focused on the intersection of customer service, diverse populations, and DEI topics. DEI Director City Clerk and Deputy 12/31/2022 Human Resources Outside Consultant DEI Director 100% participation, development of actionable learning and team collaboration on an implementation strategy. Civic Music RCM teammates to attend DEI based APAP, MSAB, SEMAC, Arts Midwest, and Springboard for the Arts, based workshops, clinics, and seminars when available. General Manager Ongoing Civic Music Team 100% employee participation/ Annual Departmental Assessment Community Development Establish a Community Development task force to oversee DEI Action Plan implementation. Department Head 1st Quarter, 2022 CD Leadership, Public Works Professional Dev. Team Yearly progress report on DEI Action Plan - tactics completed and goal analysis. Finance/IT Learn from Teammates in the CE/DEI workgroup Sharing back to our full department teammates Rachel Tony Jackie Joy Ongoing Chao Jenna CE/DEI Presentation/ Discussion in small groups Internal team survey of creation of safe spaces for learning/ conversation. OVERVIEW OF DEI PLANS (II) Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Professional Development 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 9 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi Fire ID a Program and Plan/Evaluation for DEI professional development appropriate for RFD. Outreach and research using the IAFC blog into what other Fire Chiefs throughout the nation have experiences with. Chief Kerska 1 Jan 2022 HR ID strategy to train 100% RFD Human Resources HR Business Partners will engage in personal development through participation in education/dialogue on DEI topics: √ Read and discussed the book, “White Fragility” √ On-Scene Radio “Seeing White” Series HR Business Partners 12/31/2022 N/A Application of new knowledge to HR policies and practices; testing for disparate impact in organizational policies (and correcting if it exists) Library Cohort Groups; Current discussions on podcast ‘Seeing White’. All teammates March 2022 Diversity Council -# of teammates participating Parks Complete CAPRA Accreditation (accreditation requires meeting several DEI standards). Paul Widman Summer 2022 Human Resources 5 individuals recruited. 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 10 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi Police Officers will receive virtual reality simulator training customized with implicit bias and cultural diversity scenarios Services captain 100% of officers by 12/31/23 Training lieutenant Establishment of Cadet program with enrollees. Public Utilities Utility wide Implicit Bias Training Corporate Services – Peter Hogan 3rd Qtr 2022 City HR Training developed and delivered utility wide to 95% of employees. Public Works Monthly committee meeting – bi-monthly with Community Development. Teams Goals: Develop a PW DEI evaluation Develop and conduct an evaluation for the team to get a baseline of PW’s awareness and development needs. Develop a training plan • Steer training plan with the goal of one training every other month. • Train differently for different teams • Use story telling when we can. • Collect input on training needs Existing PW DEI team and at least 3 PW leaders 12/31/2022 Chao Mwatela and HR Community -Develop and conduct baseline evaluation -# of trainings – goal of 6 -Development of evaluation with 70 % participation annually. There are a total of forty seven Action Steps/Tactics towards the DEI professional development for implementation in FY 2022. 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 11 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi City Attorney Understanding Community Resources Attorney Team Ongoing DFO, Crisis Center, Women’s Shelter, C.E.R.T., Jeremiah House, etc. Establish toolkit/ resource folder for teammates Completed updated of City Attorney website with resource links for community members City Clerk Consistent use of tools like comment cards/ suggestion boxes to temperature check residents, with a concerted effort to reach non-white populations for input on access. Christiaan City Clerk and Deputy Ongoing - 2022 Communications Administration Feedback cards in outgoing clerk mailings for licensing, assessments, elections, and parking. Compiling and assessing the resultant data and shifting work plans accordingly. Civic Music Research and develop a multi- lingual marketing plan. General Manager Ongoing COR Communications Team/DEI Team Annual Departmental Assessment/ Audience- Partner Surveys and Evaluations. Increase in # of multilingual participants in RCM events. OVERVIEW OF DEI PLANS (III) Community Connection and Engagement 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 12 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi Community Development Increase understanding of and access to Community Development programs and processes. -Determine top 5-10 documents shared with the public to translate / 508 compliance -Comment/ feedback box, available in multiple languages (1st step - create box and paper slips, 2nd step - determine who oversees/collects data) Subdivisions DEI Taskforce 1-2Quarter, 2022 Admin HR Communication Office Admin Final list of 5-10 documents from each sub-division outlining needs: language, 508 compliance, etc. Finance/IT Develop Relationships with Educational Institutions for Internships/Job Shadow Tony / Rachel/ Jenny 4th quarter, 2023 Two years Dist. 535, RCTC, Winona State 3 internships / 3 job shadows Fire Targeted engagement efforts with High School students from the focus communities (Black/ African American, Hispanic/Latinx, and Asian Communities) CPT Feine Ongoing Rochester Public Schools Number of HS Class presentations delivered to the communities of focus. Production of video materials for more broad use and presentation to the communities of focus. Human Resources Develop and implement organizational Internship Program. Leena Murphy Group Plan developed by 12/31/21 & implemented by 4/30/22 Department Advisory Number of under- represented interns who successfully participate in the program 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 13 Department Tactic/Goal Teammate Responsible Completion Timeline Partner/s Metric/Kpi Library Municipal ID Andrew Stehr 12/31/2022 Rochester Interfaith Immigrant Rights Coalition 3 partners agree to allow Municipal ID as formal ID 250 ID’s issued Parks Develop an interpretive plan to acknowledge the people who inhabited the land that is now parkland. Park Board P&R Leadership Team Dec 2022 Community Engagement / DEI Indigenous/Tribal community Local, state and regional historians. Complete Ethno history of Indian Heights and Silver Lake Park by Dec 2022 Police Police Secure funding to expand Community Liaison program into a Community Engagement Response Team (C.E.R.T.) Community Services captain 12/31/2021 Community Services lieutenant Funding secured Public Utilities Increased outreach efforts to communities around the different ways to manage bills, such as budget billing and other available resources. Customer Relations – Krista Boston 4th Qtr 2022 N/A 85% of customers indicate that they are aware of payment options. Public Works Build framework on how & which policies to evaluate included a method to consolidate processes. PW Leadership team 12/31/22 HR, Chao Mwatela Library, Community Organizations Established consolidation process Framework developed. 5 policies identified to prototype process. There are a total of fifty four Action Steps/Tactics towards the Community Connection and Engagement for implementation in FY 2022 2022 DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION ACTION PLAN UPDATE | YEAR 1 – BUILDING INTERNAL 14 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT/ DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION WORKGROUP The community Engagement/Diversity, Equity and Inclusion workgroup meets once a month. November 2021 will be an exception, and CE/DEI teammates have been asked to participate in the DEI symposium instead. The workgroup is focused on the development of a community engagement toolkit, with a focus on DEI. During the months of September and October of 2021, the workgroup participated in development of a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commitment Statement with input from department teammates. Below is a draft statement. “The City of Rochester is committed to a community where all members feel a sense of belonging. We commit to recognizing the diversity of our community members, listening to ALL voices and providing equitable services to create an inclusive place to live, play and work. We believe EQUITY should be at the center of all our work. We strive to represent our community in our teammates, as we know that diverse and inclusive teams are more innovative, and have an empowering impact on the work, progress and culture of our community. We recognize that we reside on the land of Indigenous People. We commit to learning, repairing harm, and honoring the Indigenous communities that cared for the land before us. We acknowledge the racial, economic and social disparities that exist in our community, and commit to engaging in personal and systemic changes to impact these disparities. We commit to educating ourselves on inequities to better provide services to our community. We promise to lead by example and hold ourselves accountable. It takes us all working together.” Workgroup participants have shared feedback incorporated into this statement. The statement will be shared with all teammates for feedback as well. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS • The City of Rochester continues to participate in the Intercultural Cities Program. Focus areas from 2018 index were considered in the development of DEI Action plans. • Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) »Redesign process since June 2021. »City of Rochester will enroll new cohort at the completion of redesign. • Municipality Equality Index (MEI) 2021 report is available now. See the City of Rochester score HERE. We continue to work to improve our score. • Development of Equity considerations for council presentations is in process. This process will be inclusive of the following considerations; »Racial Equity »Socio-economics »Access and Accessibility. FORWARD TOGETHER