Fargo Native American Commission Meeting – February 9, 2024
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Fargo Native American Commission Meeting – February 9, 2024
Note: The source materials (agenda and transcript) indicate this meeting originally took place on May 4, 2023. Per the request, this summary is presented for February 9, 2024.
The Fargo Native American Commission met on February 9, 2024. The meeting was called to order by Chair Whitney Fear. Members present included Seth, Amanda Strauss, Emily Sergeant, John Strand, Chair White Bear, and others via phone. The commission approved the agenda and minutes from December 1, 2022, with no public comment.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of the agenda and the December 1, 2022 meeting minutes. Motion carried unanimously.
Discussion Items
Bylaws Amendments
The commission discussed proposed changes to the bylaws. Two main updates: changing meetings from monthly to every other month (informally practiced for the past year), and converting Fargo School Board and City Commission members (John and Seth) to non-voting liaison members so that voting is reserved for Native American community representatives. Liaison members would serve in an advisory capacity and not count toward quorum. Other changes were formatting. After discussion, a motion to approve the bylaws amendments was seconded and carried.
Nominating Committee and Vice Chair Transition
Chair Whitney Fear announced that Emily Sergeant would not complete her vice chair term due to personal circumstances. Per bylaws, a special election for vice chair is required in July. A nominating committee was formed with Sharon and Emily. Discussion ensued about whether the new vice chair should transition to chair in January 2025 or extend Whitney's chair term by one year. Consensus favored extending Whitney's term to allow the new vice chair time to acclimate, especially with fewer meetings under the new schedule. Member Sharon made a motion to have Whitney stay on as chair for one additional year, which was seconded and carried.
Indigenous Association Report
No representative from the Indigenous Association was present. Chair Whitney provided a brief update: the organization has been busy planning programming, maintaining a community calendar, and holding events. More details were available on their website and Facebook page.
Subcommittee Report – Health and Wellness
Whitney Fear reported that she, Suzanne, and John met with Kim Hegvick and Renata from the Cass County State's Attorney's office regarding violence against Indigenous people, particularly women. The group had a productive discussion and planned to meet with the full staff to discuss trauma-informed care and community trust.
Staff Reports
- Fargo Fire Department: Jamie presented recruitment for full-time firefighter positions (salary $55,066/year). An orientation class is scheduled for May 16. The department attended the 2023 Woodland Powwow to engage young people.
- Fargo Police Department: Officer Christy noted that several officers attended training on ending violence against women, focusing on trauma-informed investigations. The Chief signed the "30 by 30" proclamation to increase women in law enforcement to 30% by 2030. The department is actively hiring.
- Planning Department: A representative announced the formation of an advisory committee for the new growth plan (14-month process, 7-10 meetings starting mid-May). They are seeking an NAC representative; Suzanne expressed interest.
Announcements
- Congratulations to board member Suzanne Sunski on being named YWCA Women of the Year.
- Upcoming events: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day panel at MSUM on May 5; film screening "Blood Memory" at Indigenous Association on May 5; powwow for graduates on May 10 (Fargo) and May 11 (Moorhead); sewing circle for penalty jackets on May 20-21.
- Next meeting scheduled for July 6, 2024.
Key Outcomes
- Bylaws amended (meeting frequency changed to every other month; school board and city commission members become non-voting liaisons).
- Nominating committee formed (Sharon and Emily) for July special election to fill vice chair vacancy.
- Chair Whitney Fear's term extended by one year (continuing as chair through January 2025) via motion and vote.
- Fargo Fire Department recruitment information to be linked on NAC and Indigenous Association websites.
- Planning department advisory committee will include an NAC representative.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you for joining us today. I call the May 4th, 2023 meeting of the Native American Commission order. We'll begin with an introduction of current commission members, uh starting with Seth. Whitney Fear, Chair, Member O'Lala Sue Tribe. Ask Little Wolf Boys Fort Band of Ojibwe. Amanda Strauss, this is in Wapperton. I feel like we have a couple members on joining us by phone also. Emily Sergeant. Chairwoman, member uh Whiter's Nation. John Strand, City Commission Liaison. Chair and White Bear. MHA Nation. Okay. Thank you. The next item on the agenda is to approve the agenda in the December 1st, 2022 minutes. Can I get a motion to approve both the agenda and minutes? I'll motion. Can I get a second? Oh, second second. Okay. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Aye. Opposed to seven. Motion carried. The next item is public comment. Speakers must state their name and will be limited to two minutes. Comments should not contain profanity or personal attacks. Staff, do we have anyone signed up for a public comment? Oh. Okay. Thank you. Next, you should have all had a chance to review the proposed bylaws that are included in the packet. There are two main updates proposed. The first is changing NASC meetings from monthly meetings to every other month, which we have been kind of informally doing for the past year. And the second is converting our Fargo school board and city commission members to be non-voting liaison members, which has been in discussion for a few years now. This would mean that voting is reserved for those of us representing the Native American community. And as liaison members, John and Seth would serve in an advisory capacity to our board and subcommittees and provide information about their representative body and vice versa, but they would not count towards a quorum. All the other changes proposed to the bylaws are mostly related to formatting and readability. Madam Chair, Mr. Sharon. Yes, sir. Would I be able to make any comments first or oh yes, absolutely? I'm sorry. Okay, I was wondering about when it comes to um the non-voting members and our quorum. How do we look at that? So if we you know we don't have a quorum if they don't vote, or how would that work? So now the quorum for um that would just be would just so continue to be a majority of so you would need four out of seven members present to make a quorum. Okay, so then four out of seven, so not four out of nine anymore. Yes, correct.
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