Item 1. ESB-MACC_Minutes_3.5.25_Draft — original pdf

Backup

EMMA S. BARRIENROS MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER REGULAR MEETING MINUTES WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2025 The Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center convened in a Regular meeting on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at City Hall – Board and Commissions Room located at 301 West Second Street in Austin, Texas 78701. (Some members of the ESB-MACC Advisory Board participated via videoconference.) Vice Chair Zamarripa-Saenz called the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center Meeting to order at 6:10pm. Board Members in Attendance: Board Members Absent: Lillian “Lily” Zamarripa-Saenz, Vice Chair Angelica Navarro, Chair Hilario “Larry” Amaro, Member Noemi Castro, Member John Estrada, Member Cynthia “Cy” Herrera, Member (Arrived at 6:13pm) Raul “Roy” Reyna, Member Board Members in Attendance Remotely: Gerardo Gandy, Member (Left at 7:23pm) Anthony Martinez, Member Mónica Siañez, Member (Left at 9:28pm) Staff in Attendance: Michelle Rojas, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Manager Marie Ortiz, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Supervisor Tina Davila, ESB-MACC Administrative Specialist PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Speaker 1, Item 5: Martha Cotera, Academia Cuauhtli Co-founder thanked the board for their consideration and support on the budget that would be submitted to request additional funding for the operation of Academia Cuauhtli. She also recommended that the MACC incorporate more history and informative symposiums into the MACC’s programming to continue to get public intellectuals engaged. Speaker 2, Item 5: Emilio Zamora, Professor of History at the University of Texas was in attendance to support the budget request for Academia Cuauhtli. He mentioned Academia Cuauhtli was working with Michelle Rojas, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Manager on a memorandum of understanding to solidify their relationship with the MACC. He also expressed his appreciation for allowing Cuauhtli the opportunity to extend what they had to offer the community, which was education and cultural services. 1 Speaker 3, Item 5: Jessica Silva shared that her family had been part of Academia Cuauhtli’s Saturday and Summer programs since 2022. She expressed her support for the program as she was a parent of two students. She stated Academia Cuauhtli played a vital role in enriching the community and encouraging the personal growth of their children by offering opportunities to connect with multiple generations at once. Commenting that the kids find joy in connecting with their peers, college student mentors, and other adults who care about their education and well-being. Speaker 4, Item 5: Janay Silva-Soto let the board know that she was a student of Academia Cuauhtli for the last 3 years. While in the program she stated they help you reconnect with your indigenous roots, teach you their prayers, dances, art and how to make their food. Her closing remark was, “It feels good to see people who look like you, and know they are there for you. It feels good to graduate knowing that all your hard work paid off. It is sad to leave but it feels good to know you are always welcome to come back.” Speaker 5, Item 5: Joaquin Silva-Soto, Academia Cuauhtli Student expressed his love and favorite things about the program like getting to see his sister, friends, teachers, abuelo/abuela(s), learn about dances from his roots, do fun activities like painting and writing while spending time with their families. He stated he gets to see people who care about him and have the same interest as him and thanked the board for spending their time with him. Speaker 6, Item 5: Denise Martinez stated she was a proud parent of an Academia Cuauhtli student and as a parent one of her greatest concerns had always been making sure her child would receive a well-rounded education. An education that would not only prepare her child academically but would also allow for fostering a strong sense of cultural pride. She shared her experiences and expressed that the program had been a blessing, voicing it was a space where children were able to embrace and celebrate their Mexican Heritage. She went on to say the cultural richness of the program was unique and an invaluable aspect, learning about Mexican history, art, and music to participate in traditional celebrations like Dia de Los Muertos. She talked about the children growing a deep connection of their roots and how it allowed them to feel a sense of pride in who they were which was something she believed was vital for building self-esteem and confidence. She touched on the academic and cultural benefits that made the program special and the positive impact it had on the children and how they were more eager to gain knowledge and became more engaged in their learning. She made it known that she was grateful for the way the program brought their community together, fostering an understanding of unity among people of all backgrounds. She was confident that with the boards support, an investment in the future of the children was an investment in the future of the community, and together they could ensure every child, regardless of their background, had the opportunity to embrace their culture and become proud confident leaders. Speaker 7, Item 5: Patricia Nunez, Citizen discussed the importance of funding Academia Cuauhtli programming in collaboration with the MACC. Nunez provided her point of view on what her experience with being a part of the organization was like and commented that she would appreciate the boards consideration of funding. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. The minutes from the Regular meeting of February 5, 2025, were approved on Member Reyna’s motion. Member Amaro seconded. Unanimous vote (9.0). Motion passed. Chair Navarro absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. Staff briefing on the new Office of Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment, February Education and Holistic Wellness programs, marketing and outreach efforts, and updates on La Mujer: A Celebration of Women event planning. Marjorie Flanagan, Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) Division Manager of Museums and Cultural Programs announced the Museums and Cultural Programs (MCP) Division would be moving to the City of Austin’s (COA) new department of Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment (ACME). Lorie Martinez, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Coordinator gave a brief overview of the new & annual events for their 2025 Holistic Wellness programs. 2 Olivia Tamzarian, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Marketing & Outreach Representative provided updates on Education, Academia Cuauhtli, Caminos Teen Leadership programming, and current and upcoming marketing and outreach events. She also gave an update on their signature events, sharing the names of the music & dance performers, and workshops that would take place during their La Mujer event. Additionally, she reminded the board to encourage their friends and family to send in their nominations for the Awards of Excellence event by the March 23rd deadline. (Please see the Board and Commissions Website for backup material.) DISCUSSION ITEMS 3. Update on Phase 2 Construction Project. Michelle Rojas, ESB-MACC Culture and Arts Education Manager provided a brief overview of the current project timeline, announcements, scheduled milestones, as well as photos showing the construction progress. - Rojas reminded the board that COA invited them to attend an onsite construction tour on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, beginning at 4:00 pm to witness the progress firsthand. Rojas requested that all members confirm their attendance with her so they could guarantee there was enough PPE equipment for all members. - Rojas also shared a response from Heidi Tse, Capital Delivery Project Manager on additional enhancements to the Phase 2 project. She read aloud, “In response to the MACC Advisory Board’s question on returning the value engineered items from Phase 2 as referenced in the memo from PARD to the MACC Advisory Board dated 1/5/24, the City believes many of the these construction related items should be grouped into a new capital improvement project. The current goal is to complete the existing construction requirements and transitioning the center back to the City within budget and the target delivery of Fall 2025. Items which can be installed after construction such as acoustical panels, TV monitors, and displays could be added if new funding is available. Alternate No. 1, major appliances in Teaching Kitchen is included in the project.” - Rojas commented that she let Tse know the board agreed with completing the project, so it wouldn’t disrupt the MACC’s opening date. Noting that any items that would be recommended to City Council to fund, would be items that could be put into the project when the MACC opens. (Please see the Board and Commissions Website for backup material.) 4. Update by Laura Esparza, Executive Director of A3 Art Alliance Austin, on efforts to provide a donation to the ESB-MACC Caminos program and an upcoming collaboration with the ESB- MACC called Fiesta Reclamada, May 4th at the Cathedral. Laura Esparza, Executive Director of A3 explained they were a non-profit Local Arts Agency devoted to supporting artists, musicians, performers and art contractors who make Austin a vibrant city by raising money and raising awareness. She provided information on what a Local Arts Agency was and shared the history of A3 from 1911 to present. She went on to explain how the non-profit could fund city facilities and what they had funded to date. She made it clear where the money came from and how others could help. Esparza also announced they would be hosting an event in collaboration with the MACC called Fiesta Reclamada on May 4, 2025, from 12pm-6pm and invited the board to attend. (Please see the Board and Commissions Website for backup material.) DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 5. Presentation and recommendation by Dr. Angela Valenzuela requesting financial support for Academia Cuauhtli programming for fiscal year 25-26 budget. Dr. Angela Valenzuela provided a brief overview on Academia Cuauhtli’s programming and shared a breakdown of minimal operational costs, letting the board know they were requesting their support on a recommendation for on-going funding for culturally and linguistically diverse programs with an annual allocation of $105,930.00. (Please see the Board and Commissions Website for backup material.) 3 6. Approve a recommendation and letter to City Council on FY26 Budget. Member Herrera motioned to approve the FY26 budget recommendation as presented. Member Estrada seconded. Unanimous vote (7.0). Motion passed. Chair Navarro and Members Gandy and Siañez absent. Member Martinez motioned to support the request for Academia Cuauhtli programming. Member Estrada seconded. Unanimous vote. (7-0). Motion passed. Chair Navarro and Members Gandy and Siañez absent. (Please see the Board and Commissions Website for backup material.) WORKING GROUP UPDATES 7. Update from Awards of Excellence Working Group on timeline, nomination process, and event planning. Member Reyna let the board know they met February 25th and decided on their meeting frequency, beginning with them taking place in 2-week increments, then once a month, and then as the event got closer, they would go back to meeting in 2-week increments. He communicated that their next meeting would take place March 18th. Estrella deLeon, ESB-MACC Special Events Coordinator informed the board that there was one change to the nomination process and that was giving the public three months to make their nominations. She also proposed, if folks did not have access to a computer, they could call her or MACC staff to provide them with support in entering their nominations on their behalf. In conclusion, it was mentioned that the working group would support the MACC in finding their scoring panel. 8. Update from Music Hub Programming Working Group on identified goals and meeting schedule. Working group had not met. No updates were reported. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Budget Working Group Music Hub Programming Working Group Awards of Excellence Working Group Discussion on MACC Operational Budget and Finances (Sponsors: Zamarripa-Saenz, Castro) ADJOURNMENT Member Herrera motioned to adjourn the meeting at 9:52pm. Member Estrada seconded. Unanimous vote (7.0). Motion passed. Chair Navarro and Members Gandy and Siañez absent. 4