Revere Human Rights Commission to pursue Mass Cultural Council grant, votes to partner with school department

The Revere Human Rights Commission voted unanimously to collaborate with the Revere Public Schools on a school‑based community event as it develops a grant proposal to the Massachusetts Cultural Council, commissioners said at a meeting in the City Council Chambers.

The vote follows an extended discussion about which community projects the commission should propose to the Mass Cultural Council. Commissioners and staff recommended several possibilities — a ward‑by‑ward listening tour, community film-and-dialogue nights, a youth poster or essay contest, pop‑up public art and combined resource fairs — and agreed to use a city grant writer to shape the application.

“Applications opened up on September 2 and [they] close on October 16,” said Steve Morbido, director of diversity, equity and inclusion for Revere City. Morbido told commissioners the Mass Cultural Council program operates on a reimbursement basis: “You would gather all the costs of the project … itemize it” and request funding for the documented expenses. He also noted an informational session scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 9 on the Mass Cultural website and said award notifications typically arrive near the end of the year.

Commissioners emphasized low‑burden, high‑impact options that a small volunteer commission could manage. Commissioner Pitch proposed a listening tour that pairs public listening sessions with other cultural activities. “That data is not numerical, but it’s based on what people are feeling on the day to day,” said Dr. Garcia, who urged storytelling and local‑history events as ways to surface community needs and ideas. Commissioners suggested co‑locating a focused program (for example, housing access information) with informational resource tables so multiple needs can be addressed in a single gathering.

City staff said Revere now has a full‑time grant writer who can draft the application if commissioners supply a clear project description and budget. Morbido urged commissioners to prepare concrete wording and estimates promptly because the grant writer supports multiple city departments: “She’s the grant writer for the entire city… we want some concrete plan, an idea, some kind of wording, finalized by next week,” he said.

Commissioners also discussed internal logistics: the commission has $1,000 in its city allocation for initial expenses; the Mass Cultural Council program reimburses project costs rather than fronting them; and the grant writer will need detailed cost estimates (venue, speakers, outreach, childcare, transportation, printed materials) to make an application competitive. Commissioners suggested including childcare and transportation in budgets to improve accessibility, and exploring donated food or community partnerships to stretch the $1,000 allocation.

To avoid open‑meeting‑law conflicts while working with the grant writer, Morbido recommended that two or three commissioners attend a planning meeting and relay the commission’s collective ideas rather than that the entire commission meet privately for drafting.

Decision and next steps: Chair Shane Husseini moved that the commission collaborate with the Revere Public Schools on one of the schools’ upcoming events and maintain a commission table at that event; the motion was seconded and approved by all active members present. Commissioners asked school staff to provide tentative event dates within the next week so the commission can finalize logistics and inform the grant writer.

Votes at a glance: - Approval of May 1 meeting minutes — motion approved (mover/second not specified); all active members said “aye.” - Motion to collaborate with the school department on a school event and host an HRC table — motion approved (mover/second not specified); vote recorded as unanimous among active members.

The commission agreed to continue refining a grant proposal and to report progress at its October meeting. If the Mass Cultural Council awards funding, the reimbursement schedule and scope of approved activities will determine final event plans.