Hollywood United Neighborhood Council

HOLLYWOOD UNITED NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL
EDUCATION & YOUTH COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2006
6:00-7:00PM
323-769-6424
Teacher's Lounge - CHEREMOYA AVE. SCHOOL
6017 Franklin Av., Los Angeles, CA

1. Welcome - Meeting called to order at 6:10pm. Stakeholders in attendance: Gary Slossberg (co-chair), Andrew Glazier (co-chair), Susan Polifronio, Jennifer Christie, Lucy Grigorian, Thomas Michaelson

2. Approval of Minutes from 1/10/06 Committee Meeting - Minutes were approved with one correction to fix a typo in the date.

3. New Business

A. Days of Dialogue event at Le Conte Middle School on February 22, 2006:

Gary distributed a flyer with information about the upcoming "Days of Dialogue" event at Le Conte Middle School (1316 N. Bronson Ave, Los Angeles) on Feb. 22, 2006 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm. While the committee determined that it was too late for HUNC to officially sponsor the event, the committee brainstormed a list of possible co-sponsors from the community. This list included the following:
- Councilman Tom LaBonge
- Home Depot
- Hometown Buffet
- The Firefighter's Museum
- Marlene Canter, School Board Member for that district (office number: 213-241-6387)
- Hooters
- Hollywood Studio Neighborhood Council
- Cindy Duhaime
- Ziggy Cruz

Gary will contact Jennifer to follow up on contact information and add to this list. Susan recommended having the information about the event sent out on the HUNC e-mail list. Gary will send a flyer to Susan Swan along with a brief description of the program, for HUNC e-mail distribution.

B. Earth Day Ideas:

The committee discussed what was done last year for Earth Day and decided to follow the same general framework in planning this year's Earth Day Celebration. The plan includes the following:
- Hold a recycled art contest, in which students make artwork out of old cardboard boxes, bags, newspapers, etc. Possible judges of the artwork could be members of the Hollywood Arts Council (Oscar and Nyla)
  - As opposed to last year, the committee decided to allow for both group and individual projects.
  - Projects can be displayed at the Harmony Gallery, anytime after Easter.
- Hold an essay contest on the theme of Earth Day
- Make both contests open to students in all local schools
- Arrange for Heal the Bay to conduct presentations in local schools
- Hold an Earth Day festival to recognize the winners of the art and essay contest. Community environmental groups will be invited to raise awareness about respecting the earth.
Gary offered a proposal to institutionalize Earth Day and other similar school events in HUNC's regular yearly programming. The proposal included an event focused on nonviolence at the beginning of the school year (possibly entitled "Yellow Ribbon Week;" students and staff would get yellow ribbons to wear in exchange for signing a nonviolence pledge), an event focused on cultural tolerance in February or March (following the Days of Dialogue format), and Earth Day. Each event would be accompanied by a service project and essay contest for students. The committee decided to start with two annual events for now, an event focused on nonviolence and Earth Day, and may consider adding more events in the future. Susan suggested rotating which local school hosts the event from year to year.

C. Wishlist for School:

There's been a bit of a delay this year in getting wishlists from teachers and staff and giving the lists to the community to solicit donations. Jennifer agreed to distribute the old wishlist to teachers and staff, so they can add to it. Once that is complete, the committee will review the list and submit it to the community.

D. Essay Contest:

The idea to hold an essay contest in February and March was briefly discussed. The committee decided to instead focus on an essay contest in connection with Earth Day.

E. FOLAR River Clean-up on May 5th and May 6 th :

FOLAR is hosting an LA River Clean-up on May 6. On May 5, as part of FOLAR's "Education Day," students will be invited to a spot along the LA river to learn from experts about the cleanliness of the water and why it is important to keep it clean. The committee will coordinate the students' involvement through Debbi Aldahl, 6 th grade teacher at Cheremoya Elementary.

4. Old Business

A. Service Projects for Youth:

Gary contacted Susan Swan, chair of Neighborhood and Environment committee, regarding setting up a clean-up of the Fern Dell area of Griffith Park with students from local schools. She directed him to Gerry Hans, President of the Oaks Homeowners Association. In the past, the Oaks have arranged clean-ups of the Fern Dell. Gerry proposed a clean-up project on April 8 from 9-12. The committee agreed to support the project and try to get students there to help. Jemima Galiano, Cheremoya's coordinator, will be able to assist in coordinating dates.
The committee also discussed the Mayor's Day of Service which is scheduled for the weekend of May 6. The committee decided to plan a clean-up of Bronson Canyon Park on May 6 and to end the clean-up with a celebration with food to thank the participants. FOLAR's River Clean-up would be occurring at the same time, and in an effort to keep all the students working on the same project, the committee decided to recommend that the 6 th graders (the only grade permitted by Cheremoya Elementary to participate in the River Clean-up) go to FOLAR's Education Day on the 5 th and to Bronson Canyon Park on the 6 th . Susan agreed to contact Rec and Parks to look into the feasibility of a clean-up project at Bronson Canyon Park.
Ideas for service projects as part of the Mayor's Day of Service can be forwarded to Michael Chaffee (Mayor's Hollywood Field Deputy) or send to www.bigsunday.org.
Susan recommended having a committee of students to help brainstorm future project ideas. She also recommended holding another Town Hall Meeting for community members.

B. Update on video to support parents:

This item is on hold for now.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:35pm.