March 23, 2022 Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission IL Racial Justice & Equity Committee Meeting

Audience

Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission IL Racial Justice & Equity Committee Members and Staff. The public is welcome to attend.

Date/Time

March 23, 2022

2:30pm to 4:00pm

Location

Virtual/401 S Clinton

Join Zoom Meeting:  https://zoom.us/j/94126531534?pwd=anhkOVdpZlZKaDh5NFRzMWRycGNOUT09 

Agenda

1. Welcome, Roll Call 
   1. Icebreaker
2. Approval of February 23, 2022 meeting minutes
3. Review Group Norms
4. Presentation: Kane County Juvenile Justice Council
5. Overview of OJJDP R/ED Model, Moises Prospero
6. Presentation: Racial Equity Impact Assessment (REIA), Era Laudermilk & Tamela Meehan
7. New Business
8. Public Comment
9. Adjourn

Minutes

1. Welcome, Roll Call & Icebreaker
   Icebreaker: Executive Director Andrea Hall called the meeting to order at 2:30 p.m. Co-chair Julia Schick led the icebreaker and called roll.
   Roll Call: Jacqueline Bullard, Ebonie Epinger, Jessica Gingold, Andrea Hall, Haley Hopkins, Era Laudermilk, Karen Levi, Korynna Lopez, Jourdan Martinez, Michelle Mbekeani, Tamela Meehan, Peg Robertson, Julia Schick, Samuel Smith, Tamara Vaugh-Walker.
   Staff: Maribel Gonzalez, Esther Kaplan.
   Guests: Colton Currah, Moises Prospero, Aditi Singh.
2. Approval of February 23, 2022 meeting minutes
   This agenda item was not acted on due to the quorum not being met. The minutes from February 23, 2022 will be voted on at the next committee meeting on April 27, 2022.
3. Review Group Norms
   Andrea Hall reviewed the group norms with committee members. No updates were made.
4. Presentation: Kane County Juvenile Justice Council
   Andrea Hall introduced the Kane County Juvenile Justice Council presentation and invited Julia Schick to share more. The council was restored in 2014 and in February 2015, Julia Schick took over as the council coordinator and worked with a consultant to help with the strategic planning process. Stakeholders involved in the council align with the statute requirements and include the Regional Office of Education, Juvenile Officer Association, Juvenile Bar Association, Chief Judges Office, and Juvenile Delinquency. The council is working on creating interagency agreements to formalize the larger membership of stakeholders from the surrounding community. The Board of Directors meets monthly, and the entire membership meets quarterly. Among the committees that have been established are the Racial and Ethnic Disparities committee, the Restorative Practices workgroup, and the Adolescent Domestic Battery workgroup. The council supports local law enforcement by providing training, including 'Policing the Teen Brain'. Barriers for the council that were identified include managing differing perspectives of stakeholders, the differing regulations for a council coming from a government entity, and the coordination of efforts throughout the community. The council has seen success in providing a forum to discuss juvenile justice with the community, in recognizing students who have faced adversity through award opportunities, and in revising an expungement packet to provide to families throughout the county.
   Andrea Hall thanked Julia Schick for her presentation on Kane County and announced that the committee will hear from the Lake County Juvenile Justice Council at a later meeting.
5. Overview of OJJDP R/ED Model, Moises Prospero
   Andrea Hall explained that both working groups need to examine more data. Andrea Hall invited Moises Prospero to share an overview of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) Racial and Ethnic Disparities Model.
   The Racial and Ethnic Disparities approach is made up of three stages. First, the problem must be identified through speaking with stakeholders and looking at data through the five decision points. Second, an action plan must be developed where strategies are identified. Finally, outcomes must be evaluated. Systems take years to change, and this process is intended to take place over a long period of time. When examining 2019 data, Moises Prospero decided to look at juvenile arrests by race, juvenile secure detention data, and juvenile prison data. In examining these data points, he found that black youth were overrepresented in all three. Moises Prospero explained that the committee can decide to use data to focus on addressing specific issues.
6. Presentation: Racial Equity Impact Assessment (REIA), Era Laudermilk & Tamela Meehan
   Julia Schick introduced the Racial Equity Impact Assessment (REIA) presentation and invited Era Laudermilk, Tamela Meehan, and Andrea Hall to share more about the partnership with Chicago United for Equity (CUE).
   Andrea Hall began with an overview of the REIA. CUE works to build a Chicago where race can no longer predict life outcomes. Andrea Hall, Era Laudermilk, and Tamela Meehan are alumni of CUE's fellowship program and have committed to continue building, learning, and sharing strategies for Racial and Ethnic Disparities work. This work requires everyday people, connecting and amplifying the movement for racial equity. Andrea Hall invited Era Laudermilk to continue sharing about the REIA.
   Era Laudermilk asked the committee to think about what equality, equity, and diversity mean and shared a related infographic. If justice is measured by impact versus intent, equality does not achieve much impact. Equity requires a tailored approach, where everyone receives what they need in order to meet a shared goal. In examining discriminatory practices that have been in place throughout history, there are groups of people who have a major deficit compared to others. Equity requires taking a close look at this history of harm perpetuated through narratives, money, and policy and accounting for it. History is a necessary consideration when trying to make a long-lasting impact. In equity work, it is necessary to discuss racism at all levels; internalized racism, interpersonal racism, institutional racism, and structural racism.
   Andrea Hall invited Tamela Meehan to share more information about the REIA. The REIA is a set of questions that is used to investigate the benefits and burdens of a policy or practice. Using this tool will help the committee develop a stronger equity lens in decision and solution-making. The REIA assists in revealing the unintended consequences of a proposal or policy, who benefits most, who bears the most burden, and new ways to get to the same intent without reiterating harm on the same groups that are historically burdened. The REIA serves as a tool to counteract implicit bias and make decisions that actually reduce harm. This process will force the committee to look at history, context, and lived experiences. Tamela Meehan invited Andrea Hall to share the next steps for the REIA.
   Andrea Hall explained that the next steps include planning a full REIA training, which the committee will coordinate with interested members. Interested committee members should submit a short proposal on how they plan to use the REIA to committee co-chairs.
7. New Business
   The committee did not act on this item.
8. Public Comment
   There was no public comment.
9. Adjourn
   Motion: Andrea Hall called for a motion to adjourn at 4:04 p.m. Michelle Mbekiani moved approval. Julia Schick seconded the motion. No abstentions. No opposition. Motion carried.