Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Equity And Inclusion topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Lake Oswego reviews DEI task force progress; staff to return with implementation ideas
Summary
City staff presented a status report on the 2020 DEI task force recommendations, reporting that about two-thirds of recommendations are complete or in progress and that staff will work with the DEI advisory board to return with proposals later this year.
City equity staff on June 3 presented a multi-year status report on the 2020 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Task Force recommendations and told the council the city has completed many of the task force’s actions while several items remain in progress or exceed current capacity.
Gillian Del Rio, the city’s equity program manager, reported the task force’s final report contained roughly 40 recommendations: Del Rio said 26 have been completed, seven remain in progress and six are beyond current capacity. The report documents four overarching recommendations; three have been completed (including hiring a full-time equity program manager and establishing a permanent DEI advisory board) and one—creating a recurring comprehensive training and development program—remains in progress.
Del Rio and DEI Advisory Board Chair Karen Thiemann reviewed the five focus areas from the task force report (boards and commissions; community engagement; human resources; facilities and programs; youth engagement) and highlighted specific accomplishments. Examples cited by staff and the advisory board include:
- Boards and commissions: recruitment and application processes were overhauled; the city now collects more demographic information (89% completion in the most recent cycle). Del Rio noted board membership remains skewed toward homeowners (about 85% of members) while renters make up roughly 30% of the city population; 77% of board members are white and some boards remain all-white. The city has made youth membership on boards a permanent practice; youth absenteeism fell from 48% to 8%, and there are 10 youth members across five boards.
- Community engagement: staff reported expanded language access — signage, translation services and a notice on public meeting materials prompting requests for language access — and strengthened partnerships with organizations including the school district. Staff said cultural events have been successful; Del Rio said the city’s recent Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month celebration drew more than 600 attendees.
- Human resources and onboarding: Assistant City Manager and HR Director Megan Phelan described a cohort-based onboarding program (three segments including a citywide all-day tour) and a staff training program tied to DEI, ADA and sustainability training. Phelan said five cohorts have completed onboarding and more than 200 staff had participated in the training program.
- Facilities and programs: staff highlighted the ADA transition plan and a COVID certification outreach program (the state Certification Office for Business Inclusion and Diversity, “COBID”), noting the city has sent more than 100 solicitations to COBID-certified firms since 2022 but received limited responses.
- Youth engagement: staff described an expanded youth and teen services program and a formally launched Youth Leadership Council for high school students.
Del Rio acknowledged challenges: limited demographic data infrastructure, department-specific operational differences that make a one-size-fits-all equity plan infeasible, and some recommendations that exceed current resources. The council and staff discussed next steps; councilors praised the work and asked staff to continue building data systems and consider strategic priorities.
Council consensus: Councilors agreed staff should work with the DEI advisory committee and return to council with a recommended process and proposals near the end of the year (staff to report back in December). The council did not take a formal recorded roll-call vote on that direction; instead members signaled general agreement at the meeting.
Why it matters: The status report shows sustained institutional work to implement DEI recommendations across city operations, employment practices and public engagement. The staff direction to return with a scoped proposal by year’s end sets the next milestone for prioritizing future DEI actions and resource requests.
What’s next: Staff and the DEI advisory board will develop options for council consideration and return to the council near the end of 2025 to inform the 2026 goal-setting process.
