Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Hispanic Engagement topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee weighs hiring contractor, promotoras and incentives to reach Spanish‑speaking residents
Summary
Members debated targeted outreach to Bellevue’s Hispanic community: hire a part‑time liaison (Herbert Romero), deploy promotoras, hold focus groups, and test incentives — while recognizing cultural barriers and fear of providing identifying information.
Staff reported meeting with Herbert Romero and proposed hiring him part time to coordinate outreach with Spanish-speaking residents. "I am looking for your guys' thoughts on if you think it's a good idea to just hire him to be the outreach coordinator on a very part time level," S3 said.
Members cautioned that a single-hire approach should be paired with broader tactics. S7 and others described reasons Spanish-language materials sometimes fail to gain traction, including preferences for English interfaces and a "fear factor" when identifying information is requested. Suggestions included promotoras, partnering with trusted churches and businesses, and paying modest incentives for focus groups or survey completion. "There's a fear factor… they might get [identified]," S7 said, explaining why paper, in-person, and trusted intermediaries may be necessary.
The committee urged staff to balance hiring a coordinator with additional outreach pilots and to report back with a more detailed plan for how grant funds would be used to increase Spanish‑language participation.
