COUNTY NEWS
The Los Alamos County Council is seeking letters of interest to appoint up to seven community members who will be chartered with developing and recommending how the County can promote inclusivity and a feeling of belonging to the benefit of all and the betterments of the community. The primary purpose of this new task force is to provide a framework and forum for open and transparent discussions in light of Council’s desire and direction to the County Manager to address racial equity and inclusivity, as recently discussed in the Council’s Strategic Planning session on January 12 and Strategic Plan adopted by Council on January 26.
The charter for this new task force is currently being developed; however, based upon Council’s initial discussions with an interested citizen’s group at the September 8 Council Meeting and follow-up discussions at their December 1 Council Meeting, it is expected to include provisions that address all of the following items, at a minimum:
- Honing an overall perspective of racial equity and inclusivity throughout the community through numerous conversations with key stakeholder groups
- Identifying best practices used by others that might work well in Los Alamos
- Engaging leaders in other places, especially Northern NM neighbors, to examine ways that racial equity and inclusivity might best be incorporated into daily operations within Los Alamos County
- Exploring where the County might be able to strengthen and advance racial equity and inclusivity opportunities through policies, practices, budgets and programs
- Proposing to the Council near-term, immediate and longer-term options to promote sustainable progress that will benefit the community
- Engaging community members and collecting feedback before finalizing recommendations in a report to Council
The deadline for letters of interest is Wednesday, February 24 at 5:00 p.m. and letters may be submitted by any County resident. Letters should be one or two pages and explain background and qualifications, name of company or business (if applicable) and why the resident believes they would be a valuable contributor on the new Task Force. Youth membership is especially encouraged. In appointing members, the Council will be seeking balanced and diversified interests to collaborate on the task force, specifically including individuals reflective of the community regarding race, ethnicity and socioeconomic background. Individuals are asked to address these criteria in their letter of interest. The committee will sunset one year after being established, with their final report and recommendations going to Council at the end of their term. This is a working task force and those appointed can expect to spend time in meetings of the main committee on a regular basis, along with subcommittee work or other assigned work outside of committee meetings to achieve the work plan set forth in the charter over the next 12 months.
E-mail letters of interest to: lacmanager@lacnm.us no later than 5:00 p.m. on Feb. 24. The charter’s adoption, as well as appointment of members, will be items for Council action on its March 2nd Council meeting agenda (6:00 p.m. on Zoom). Individuals do not need to be present at that virtual online meeting to be considered, but are welcome to attend.
To learn more, watch the video on demand of the Sep 8 and Dec. 1, 2020 Council meetings, powerpoint presentations, and citizen presentation on Racial Equity and Inclusivity here: