Title
Equity Training for City Leadership (Ordinance S-45485)
Description
This report requests the City Council to authorize the City Manager to accept Equity training provided by the Government Alliance for Race and Equity (GARE) for City leadership. Councilwoman Laura Pastor is raising private funds for the training; no General Fund dollars will be used.
Report
Summary
At the request of Councilwoman Pastor, staff presented information at the Feb. 5, 2019 Planning and Economic Development (PED) Subcommittee meeting on equity best practices across the nation, reviewed City of Phoenix internal and external equity efforts, and introduced the PED Subcommittee to GARE and the types of equity training the organization provides. Staff returned to the March 13, 2019 PED Subcommittee to seek authorization for GARE to provide training to 200 City leaders. The goal of the training is to introduce City leaders to equity practices and principals, and teach staff how they can incorporate these strategies into their daily work in the community.
The equity training will include City Manager Ed Zuercher and his management team and 200 executives and middle managers throughout the City organization. Departments that have direct contact and involvement with the community, such as Public Transit, Parks and Recreation, Street Transportation, Neighborhood Services, Police and Fire, Housing, and Community and Economic Development, will all benefit from this training and learning new strategies and ideas to implement when working with the community on programs and projects.
Financial Impact
Councilwoman Pastor is leading the effort to raise private funding of approximately $155,000 for the proposed GARE training. No General Fund dollars will be used. A portion of the funding totaling $55,000 has been secured from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and Vitalyst. LISC, Vitalyst and Councilwoman Pastor are working together to secure the additional $100,000.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
This item was recommended for approval at the PED Subcommittee meeting on March 13, 2019, by a vote of 4-0.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Acting Deputy City Manager Toni Maccarone and the Equal Opportunity and Human Resources departments.