The Northborough Diversity & Inclusion Committee met on Jan. 7 and are working on their next steps as they narrow down their scope of ideas, which will ultimately be presented in the spring to the Board of Selectmen to consider for implementation.
The Committee agreed that it is not just about color, race or gender, it’s about equity and that everyone has the same access.
It’s also important that what the Committee is doing is communicated well.
Here are some discussion highlights:
- The main questions were “how can we make Northborough more diverse and inclusive” and “what are we not doing that we should be doing?” More diverse staff recruitment in general was discussed – teachers, Town Hall employees, police department and the fire department.
- Offer opportunities for training, seminars, and workshops to help with the understanding of issues that a community faces on diversity and inclusion.
- Reach out to other communities, which have established guidelines for diversity and inclusion, to help with generating ideas and learn what is working for them.
- Another question was “what can attract people to visit and do business in Northborough that makes all feel welcomed?” Ideas shared were getting business owners involved, including holiday celebrations and events for more backgrounds, and visibility of signage/flags to recognize different groups (i.e. black history month, gay pride month).
- Events like craft fairs, Culturefest, Applefest and Farmers Markets are great community and interactive opportunities for all.
- Reach out to residents to gather information and hear different perspectives on what they see as important.
- Possibly involve students in a creative contest to bring awareness to issues.
- Involve other town groups, like Community Affairs Committee to help initiate ideas.
Assistant Town Manager Becca Meekins said that the group should consider that little changes that can be made have a big impact.