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Bloomington commissions present 2024 reports, seek partnerships and funding
Summary
The Commission on the Status of Black Males and the Commission on the Status of Children and Youth presented 2024 annual reports to the Bloomington Common Council on April 16, describing community programs, lost grant funding, and plans for 2025 outreach and events.
At the April 16, 2025 Bloomington Common Council meeting, two city advisory commissions presented their 2024 annual reports and asked council members for continued partnership and funding.
James Sanders, chair of the Commission on the Status of Black Males, told the council the seven-member commission focuses on education, health, criminal justice and employment. Sanders listed 2024 activities including the Outstanding Leaders of Tomorrow awards, a Black Barbershop Health Initiative and a Black Male Youth Summit. He said the commission lost a juvenile detention alternatives grant that had helped fund its youth summit and that members are seeking new partnerships and financial support to continue programming.
“We were committed to keeping the summit going and we're already exploring creative new partnerships to make it happen,” Sanders said.
Erin Reynolds Nylund, chair of the Commission on the Status of Children and Youth, described a strategic plan organized into subcommittees for communications, youth advocacy, community relations and signature events. The commission plans to distribute 200 “Hope Packs” this summer—comfort kits for first responders to give children after traumatic events—using ARPA funding and other partners, and will hold Swagger Awards on June 3 at Switchyard Park.
“We are committed to staying grounded with the voices and the experiences of children, family, and service providers,” Reynolds Nylund said, explaining the commission’s plan to gather listening-session data and deliver at least three recommendations to city decisionmakers in 2025.
Council members asked for more fiscal detail on the commissions' budgets. Sanders said the commission collects event surveys and will work with the city liaison to provide specific figures for lost grants and program costs. Several council members encouraged commissioners to keep sharing event schedules and to strengthen cross-commission collaboration.
The presentations closed with a request for volunteers, nominations and donations to sustain programming; the council extended its thanks and moved on to other agenda items.
