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Minority and Justice Commission
Meeting Minutes
Outreach Subcommittee
Meeting Minutes
Office of the Administrator for the Courts
Room 1606
Two Union Square
Seattle, Washington
December 17, 1999
1:30 p.m.
Call to Order
The Outreach Subcommittee meeting was called to order by Ms. Myrna Contreras at 1:40 o'clock in the afternoon in Room 1606, Two Union Square in Seattle.
Persons attending the meeting were Ms. Myrna I. Contreras, Ms. Mary Alice Theiler, Judge Douglas W. Luna, Brian A. Tsuchida, and Ms. Donna V. McConnell. Persons not attending (with excused absences) were Judge Dennis D. Yule, Judge Philip J. Thompson, Richard F. McDermott, Jr., and Ms. Barbara Selberg.
Equal Justice Coalition
The Outreach Subcommittee discussed an invitation from the Equal Justice Coalition for the Commission to become a member and to assign someone to serve as a Team Captain. Ms. McConnell reported that Commission co-chairperson, Justice Charles Z. Smith, was in favor of accepting the invitation at no cost to the Commission. Commission member Ms. Mary Alice Theiler is on the Coalition Steering Committee and gave a brief history of how and why the organization was formed. The subcommittee also discussed other projects the Workforce Diversity subcommittee plans to sponsor that might coincide with activities the Coalition will offer during its "Summer of Justice 2000" campaign. The subcommittee supports becoming a member of the Equal Justice Coalition and of participating in "Summer of Justice 2000" activities. Ms. McConnell will complete and submit the Coalition registration form and forward a copy to Outreach subcommittee members.
January 2000 Issue of Equal Justice Newsletter
The Outreach Subcommittee reviewed the articles that had been received for the upcoming January Equal Justice Newsletter. In regards to the women judges of color questionnaire, the Outreach Subcommittee established that biographies be included for those judges who did not return a questionnaire.
April 2000 Issue of Equal Justice Newsletter
The Outreach Subcommittee discussed the April 2000 issue of the newsletter, the theme of which will be "Law Schools and Legal Education." Subcommittee members assumed specific responsibility for the following:
- Article on Gonzaga University by Judge Philip J. Thompson (Ms. Mary Alice Theiler)
- Article on Seattle University Law School by Dean Donna Claxton Deming (Ms. Myrna Contreras)
- Effect of Initiative 200 on the University of Washington by Dr. Sandra E. Madrid (Ms. Myrna Contreras)
- Story of Harish Bharti who "articled" into the legal field (Brian Tsuchida)
- Ms. Myrna Contreras will develop a letter of introduction to the issue for the law school deans; Ms. Donna V. McConnell will talk to Commission Co-Chairperson, Justice Charles Z. Smith, about whether the letter should be from him or from Ms. Contreras.
Other related topics discussed for possible inclusion in this issue were:
- Faculty who teach diversity-related classes and ethics curriculums;
- Changes in law school education including types of students being taught;
- Attracting a diverse student body;
- Association reports and articles by student leaders;
- Recruitment and Retention Programs and initiatives;
- Transition issues;
- Support issues; and
- Law school placement.
Themes of Future Equal Justice Newsletters
The Outreach Subcommittee discussed possible themes and topics related to the July 2000 and future issues of the newsletter such as:
- Information on the Equal Justice Coalition/Summer 2000 Program
- Creating a web-site link of upcoming events, projects, etc., and devoting an issue to reports of past, current, and future activities
- Possibly asking each of the consultants certified by the Education Subcommittee of the Commission to write articles for the newsletter
- Brian Tsuchida will contact bar associations and similar organizations to obtain information on professional development seminars, conferences, grants, scholarships and related programs.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 2:45 p.m.
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