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Education and Human Services Standing Committee

December 12, 2024 ·2:00 PM Final

Council Chamber, 2nd Floor - City Hall

Agenda PDF 📹 Watch video Official record ↗

Agenda — 64 items

  1. 1 Committee and Other Council Members in Attendance
  2. 2 Call to Order
  3. 2 The Honorable Stephanie Lynch - Chair The Honorable Cynthia Newbille - Vice Chair The Honorable Nicole Jones - Member
  4. 3 Chamber Emergency Evacuation Plan Announcement and Public Speaker Guidelines
  5. 3 Staff in Attendance
  6. 4 Public Comment Period
  7. 4 Joyce Davis, Council Policy Analyst Janet Palmer, Deputy City Attorney Kimberly Morris, Assistant City Clerk Candice Reid, City Clerk RJ Warren, Deputy City Clerk
  8. 5 Presentation(s)
  9. 6 Richmond Health Equity Fund Update
  10. 6 Chair Stephanie Lynch called the meeting to order at 2:01 p.m., and presided.
  11. 7 Health Equity Fund Update CD.2024.374
  12. 8 Discussion Item(s)
  13. 8 Upon the Chair's request, Assistant City Clerk Kimberly Morris provided information on the appropriate manner in which the Council Chamber is to be evacuated in the event of an emergency along with public speaker guidelines.
  14. 9 Jason Kamras, RPS Superintendent, provided the committee with an update regarding RPS.
  15. 10 DCAO Traci DeShazor, provided the committee with an update regarding a newly announced opioid abatement authority grant, the ongoing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) EBT scam, and homeless services.
  16. 11 Paper(s) for Consideration
  17. 11 Shaleeta Drawbaugh, Health Equity Fund Program Officer, provided the committee with a presentation regarding the Health Equity Fund.
  18. 12 There were no papers for consideration.
  19. 13 page break
  20. 13 A copy of the material provided has been filed.
  21. 14 Board Vacancies
  22. 14 Kristen Reiser, Director of Development and Community Engagement for REAL LIFE, addressed the committee regarding her organization's partnership with the Health Equity Fund.
  23. 15 There were no board vacancies.
  24. 15 Zenobia Bey, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Community 50/50, addressed the committee about her organization's partnership with the Health Equity Fund.
  25. 16 Approval of Minutes
  26. 16 Rainey Niklanski, Shalom Farms Development Director, addressed the committee about Shalom Farms' partnership with the Health Equity Fund.
  27. 17 November 14, 2024 - Education & Human Services Standing Committee Meeting Minutes CD.2024.380
  28. 17 Vice Chair Cynthia Newbille thanked Ms. Drawbaugh for the work being done in the community. She also stated working with corporate and philanthropic organizations will be a key resource for the Heath Equity Fund.
  29. 18 Staff Report
  30. 18 Chair Stephanie Lynch asked for the funding amount needed to support the Health Equity Fund. She also requested that an ongoing dashboard be implemented for the Education and Human Services Committee to make cases of the work being done.
  31. 19 Vice Chair Newbille stated funding will need to be in place for the new fiscal year and work will be done with the program office to project the funds needed.
  32. 20 Ms. Drawbaugh stated she will assist with the dashboard and will continue to seek out funds to support the Health Equity Fund.
  33. 22 Richmond Public Schools (RPS) and Richmond School Board Updates
  34. 24 Vice Chair Cynthia Newbille stated the Christmas shopping for children program was a success. She also thanked Superintendent Kamras for his support.
  35. 25 Chair Stephanie Lynch asked if there is a priority list for school buildings that need repairs.
  36. 26 Superintendent Kamras stated there is priority list, however, he is reviewing the list to see what school buildings have critical repair needs.
  37. 27 Member Nicole Jones inquired if there can be a discussion to establish a committee to address overpopulated schools and homlessness in Southside. Ms. Jones also stated attendance is affected when students have housing concerns.
  38. 28 Superintendent Kamras stated he has all the facility assessments, and he will outline what is the next set of schools to receive new buildings.
  39. 29 Chair Lynch asked when is the next enrollment projection.
  40. 30 Superintendent Kamras stated demographic projections are publicly available and he can provide those statistics to the committee.
  41. 31 Vice Chair Newbille stated she would like to continue to coordinate the need for affordable and accessible childcare, and to stay informed about partnerships for early childhood education.
  42. 32 Superintendent Kamras thanked Council and Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (DCAO) for Human Services, Traci Deshazor, for prioritizing unhoused RPS students and families.
  43. 33 Member Jones asked for information on the ordinance prioritizing unhoused students and families.
  44. 34 DCAO DeShazor stated the ordinance was adopted at the December 9, 2024, City Council meeting, and that the contract is in the development phase with the organization Housing Families First.
  45. 35 Public Comment Period
  46. 36 Nancy Williams, with Three Gifts to You, addressed the committee regarding services for unhoused families, help for veterans and the placement of unhoused children in dangerous environments.
  47. 37 Cassie Knight, tenant organizer with Richmond Tenants Union, addressed the committee about her concerns with mass evictions in her neighborhood and district.
  48. 38 William Howard, with Richmond Tenants Union and registered nurse, addressed the committee about his concerns for patients that have housing insecurities and how the health care system is under resourced.
  49. 39 Sarah Mattingly addressed the committee about homeless shelters and affordable housing.
  50. 40 Rhonda Snead, Blessing Warriors Executive Director, stated her concerns about food quality at the Salvation Army walk up shelter and families in need of shelter.
  51. 41 Bridgette Whitaker addressed the committee about human services and the management of organizations that provide services to the unhoused community.
  52. 42 Vevlyn Wright addressed the committee about shelters for families and automated messages attached to crisis phone numbers.
  53. 43 Update from the Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (DCAO) for Human Services
  54. 45 Tiffany Ford, Director of Neighborhood & Community Services, provided an update on homelessness and cold weather warming kits, expanding existing partnerships to other jurisdictions and educating the public with literature. She also stated a new food service vendor will be selected for the Salvation Army.
  55. 46 Chair Stephanie Lynch asked if there is any information on expanding capacity for shelters.
  56. 47 DCAO DeShazor stated they are actively engaging with partners and providers for future expansion.
  57. 48 Shunda Giles, Director of Social Services, stated the department has received 500 EBT fraud attestation forms. She also stated that the state has spent $2,000,000 on replenishing funds and that state funding is scheduled to end on December 20, 2024.
  58. 49 DCAO DeShazor stated that the attestation forms citizens are submitting are valid and they are waiting for guidance from the state to see what can be done to replenish funds.
  59. 50 Vice Chair Cynthia Newbille stated the Family Crisis Fund could be an opportunity to help with EBT fraud.
  60. 56 There were no amendments or corrections to the meeting minutes of November 14, 2024, and the committee approved the minutes as presented.
  61. 59 Joyce Davis, Council Policy Analyst, stated coordination is taking place for a requested meeting by Chair Stephanie Lynch with community partners and organizations to be scheduled.
  62. 60 The committee acknowledged Joyce Davis on her retirement and stated its appreciation for her service working with City Council.
  63. 61 Adjournment
  64. 62 There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 3:40 p.m.