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HRC Monthly Meeting

Orange County · Human Relations Commission
Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Regular meeting Appointments and personnelBudget and appropriationsCivil rights and nondiscriminationDEI programsElections and districtsHistoric preservation

Agenda document Minutes Watch Meeting recap

What was decided

  1. Approved IV.dExecutive Committee Report: Funds for Member Name Tags Approved, all present commissioners in favor

Read from the agenda's recorded outcomes. Where the board published minutes, those are the record — this is a pointer to them.

What's on this agenda

Orange County's Human Relations Commission runs subcommittees on policies and procedures, outreach and engagement, and community events, and oversees the county's One Orange equity policy and the Pauli Murray Awards. Its October meeting covered commission vacancies, subcommittee structure, meeting format and the timing of next year's Pauli Murray Awards.

Summarized from the published agenda. Read the agenda itself before acting on it.

Meeting recap

What happened, drawn from the records published after the meeting. Minutes

Commissioners voted to move future meetings in person with a virtual option, renamed the Policies and Procedures Subcommittee the Nominations and Governance Subcommittee to handle board recruitment and screening, and set aside $300 for member name tags. All three motions passed with every present commissioner in favor.

The commission also sent three names -- Alexander Fowler, James Hogan and Shane Lucas -- to the Board of County Commissioners for open seats, and reported two new vacancies. It asked its Community Events subcommittee to propose a new date for the Pauli Murray Awards, moved from February for more outreach time, and heard that staff held three listening sessions in Chapel Hill and Hillsborough on access to government information.

How the votes went

Three motions -- moving to in-person meetings with a virtual option, renaming the Policies and Procedures Subcommittee to the Nominations and Governance Subcommittee, and spending $300 on member name tags -- each passed with all present commissioners in favor.

From the published minutes.

Speaking at this meeting

Orange County's own rules for public comment — check them before you rely on anything here.

Agenda items (12)

Procedural · 5Staff or committee report · 3Discussion item · 2Minutes approval · 1Budget action · 1
  1. I Call to Order
    Procedural
    Chair Jemm Merritt called the meeting to order at 6:15 p.m.
  2. II Minutes Approval (September 23, 2024)
    Minutes approval
    The September 23 minutes were on the agenda for approval; the minutes do not record how, or whether, a vote was taken.
  3. III County Updates
    Staff or committee report DEI programs
    Staff updated the commission on the One Orange Racialized Histories initiative, language-access planning following three community listening sessions in Chapel Hill and Hillsborough, reconsideration training tentatively set for October 30, the annual report due to county commissioners in January, and planning for an annual retreat.
  4. IV.a Executive Committee Report: Vacancies
    Staff or committee report Appointments and personnel
    The commission reported two new vacancies and confirmed it has sent the Board of County Commissioners three names -- Alexander Fowler, James Hogan and Shane Lucas -- for three earlier openings.
  5. IV.b Executive Committee Report: In-Person Meetings
    Procedural
    Chair Merritt moved to hold future commission meetings in person with a virtual option, arguing it would make members more accountable for attending.
    Approved, all present commissioners in favor
  6. IV.c Executive Committee Report: Subcommittee Restructuring
    Procedural Appointments and personnel
    Vice Chair Carreker-Ford moved to rename the Policies and Procedures Subcommittee the Nominations and Governance Subcommittee, giving it responsibility for reviewing policies each quarter, reviewing applications for open commission seats and recommending appointees to the full commission.
    Approved, all present commissioners in favor
  7. IV.d Executive Committee Report: Funds for Member Name Tags
    Budget action Budget and appropriations
    The commission allocated $300 from its budget for name tags for members to wear at public events.
    Approved, all present commissioners in favor
  8. IV.e Executive Committee Report: Pauli Murray Awards
    Discussion item Civil rights and nondiscrimination
    Commissioners discussed moving the Pauli Murray Awards from their usual February date to allow more time for community outreach and nominations, and directed the Community Events subcommittee to propose a new date for a full-commission vote.
  9. V HRC Officer Elections
    Procedural Appointments and personnelElections and districts
    The commission did not hold nominations for secretary at this meeting.
  10. VI Sub-Committee Reports
    Staff or committee report
    The Policies and Procedures and Community Events subcommittees had no updates. The Outreach and Engagement subcommittee said it has a proposal to bring to the annual retreat.
  11. VII Other Business/Announcements
    Discussion item Historic preservation
    Vice Chair Carreker-Ford proposed a community walk exploring the history of notable Orange County residents.
  12. VIII Adjourn
    Procedural
    Chair Merritt adjourned the meeting at 6:54 p.m.

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