Thank you, Jim and Adam, for taking the time to respond. On Mon, Mar 21, 2022 at 9:37 PM Jim Hutchinson <[email protected]> wrote:
> Dear Lincoln Wide and fellow residents, > > > > I’ll start by admitting that I don’t know all the answers to the important > questions of how we can make people feel like they belong and how do we > make sure we reach desired outcomes. As a member of the ARPA Working Group, > I voted in favor of proposals from Lincoln Schools to fund a faculty > residency to coach fellow teachers about AIDE issues and deeper learning, > and from the Select Board to fund an IDEA consultant to help build our > diversity program. I did this both because I agree these are important > issues, but also because I believe we all need help in finding ways we > should consider changing our processes and mindsets to accomplish these > goals. I certainly do, and I look forward to hearing from these experts and > on helping to find our path forward, regardless of whether I am elected or > not. > > > > I can also say that I personally believe that being welcoming is a key > ingredient of any solution. I strive to make committees that I serve on be > as welcoming as possible to new members and ideas, and especially as Chair, > I try to make them be places where everyone feels comfortable > participating, and everyone’s voice will be heard. Not only does this make > them as inclusive and diverse as possible, but it also leads us as a group > towards the best ideas possible for our community as a whole. I’d be happy > to champion this approach on other committees in Town as appropriate, not > to mention encouraging other community groups in Town to do likewise. > > > > I am also in favor of doing our best to achieve more diversity in our > staff hiring and committee recruiting processes. Under my tenure on the > Finance Committee our recruiting team convinced a number of women to join > the Committee so that we would have more of a gender balance there. Of > course there are an abundance of talented women in Town, so this was not a > heavy lift. However, with the recent tightness in the job markets and the > busy nature of our lives these days, it can be a challenge to get ANY > qualified candidates, not to mention diverse ones, so more generally this > is not an easy challenge to manage, particularly regarding racial > diversity. But we must try. We must welcome the talented and diverse > potential candidates already residing in Lincoln to participate, and do our > best to cultivate and encourage others outside out town. Such candidates > won’t apply, or move here, or join Town committees without our Town > becoming a place where people of various identities feel welcome, valued, > and included. > > > > I am also personally supportive of doing what we can to help improve the > housing situation in our state. I served as a liaison to the Housing > Commission for a year, and I am proud that Lincoln has a higher fraction of > affordable housing than many of our peer towns. I would support further > effort in this area, not simply to avoid undesirable Chapter 40B > developments in Town, but to create more housing options for a diverse set > of potential residents. But I completely agree with WIDE this is not just > about creating more housing options. > > > > A few years back one of my previous employees, of Serbian descent, and his > wife, who is Black, were considering moving to Lincoln. I encouraged them > enthusiastically, since they are vibrant, personable and intelligent people > with three charming children, who would make a great addition to our > community. They are also very successful in business and could afford to > live in Lincoln. Sadly they ended up picking Newton instead, informing me > that although they loved our trails and open spaces, they did not see > enough faces that resembled their own while visiting the Town to make them > comfortable that their children would feel normal and accepted. > > > > I really would like to figure out how in some future scenario we could get > those two to pick Lincoln instead. > > > > Sincerely, > > Jim Hutchinson > > > > > > *From:* Lincoln <[email protected]> *On Behalf Of *Adam M > Hogue > *Sent:* Sunday, March 20, 2022 1:08 PM > *To:* Lincoln WIDE <[email protected]> > *Cc:* Lincoln Talk <[email protected]> > *Subject:* Re: [LincolnTalk] Statement from WIDE on Increasing Housing > Options in Lincoln > > > > Dear WIDE and the Residents of Lincoln, > > > > First, I want to publicly state that I fully support WIDE and its current > work. Whether I win this election or not, I look forward to this group’s > reports and recommendations to help make Lincoln a more welcoming town. I > believe that it is important to have groups and commissions with different > stakeholders in town to advise and make recommendations to the Board of > Selects to update the policies and rules that need to be updated. > > > > By now, I think everyone knows my stance on housing: we need more and > diverse housing so people can afford to live in our great town. In > addition, I agree with WIDE that building more housing isn’t the only > solution and that more work needs to be done. > > > > If I am elected as the next member of the Board of Selects, one of my > proposals is to advocate for more community events in town and to make > these events free so that they are accessible to all. I believe building > community through a wide variety of events would be beneficial for the > town. I would also advocate to work with community partners like LincFam, > the Schools, Churches, Lincoln Veterans Association, Council on Aging, and > other organizations to help reach out to the various communities in our > town. When planning these events, it is important to welcome people onto > the planning committees so that we can have new and diverse ideas for these > events. Growing up in Lowell, MA, the wide variety of community events > helped bring various community stakeholders together and I think increasing > these types of events in Lincoln would be beneficial. > > > > Also, I would look to invest in our town website and allow our town > organizations to be on the website so people can seek out organizations > they might be interested in so they can get involved. For new members of > our community, I would support a welcome packet to new residents to > showcase our town organizations and events, so newcomers feel welcomed to > the community. > > > > Lastly, we must have great schools that serve all families. As a member > of the School Committee, I have advocated for language in the school’s AIDE > policy to address the huge achievement gap between various subgroups in our > district, as well as the hiring of an HR Director to recruit and retain > diverse staff. I have also advocated for expanded preschool so every child > has access to a quality education from the start. > > > > While housing, in my opinion, is the number 1 issue facing us currently, > the work doesn’t stop there, and we must continuously work to make everyone > feel connected in Lincoln. While these conversations may be difficult at > times, we can’t shy away from them. Anyone that knows me knows that I will > not shy away from having these difficult conversations. > > > > Please reach out to me if anyone would like further details. > > > > Adam M Hogue > > Candidate for Select Board > > > > *Adam M Hogue* > > *Cell: (978) 828-6184* > > > > > > On Sat, Mar 19, 2022 at 2:21 PM Lincoln WIDE <[email protected]> > wrote: > > We are intrigued to hear conversations in town about the need for housing > diversity. We would like to contribute to this very important conversation > by expanding the focus. Rather than narrow the question to: “How will we > create access?” we are suggesting that we broaden our thinking and shift > the question. We would like to ask: “How will we ensure that Lincoln > becomes a place that diverse groups of people not only consider moving to, > but where they ultimately feel part of the community and want to stay?” In > other words, the focus should not only be on increasing housing options, > but also on plans to shift the climate and culture of Lincoln in order to > ensure that diverse populations (both new and current residents) feel > valued in the community. > > > > For the candidates who are running for the Select Board we would like to > hear: > > > > If you were to move into this role how do you plan to ensure that we not > only attract and create access for diverse individuals (meaning a breadth > of people who represent diverse races, genders, sexualites, abilities, > ethnicities, nationalities, religions, socioeconomic statuses, ages and > immigration statuses) but also to ensure that Lincoln shifts its culture to > become a community where all residents feel a true sense of belonging? What > tools and strategies will you use to be sure that the desired outcomes of > your plan are met and that the needs of residents from historically > marginalized populations are met? > > > > For everyone in LIncoln, if you would like to support this work: > > 1. Contact your Select Candidate of choice to ensure they have a plan > and encourage them to communicate that plan more broadly. > > 2. Contact neighbors and discuss these ideas. > > 3. Contact friends to get the word out. > > > If you would like to connect with us or want to talk about joining WIDE, > please email us at [email protected] or visit our website > www.widelincoln.org > <https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.widelincoln.org%2F&data=04%7C01%7C%7Cc91a570741c94dcf460408da0a942f6e%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637833928851834696%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=87uE%2FjpVqj295pKdsdIDp3sBhcCXb45BWh5NbulTsNg%3D&reserved=0>. > > > > *Welcome, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity (WIDE) In Lincoln* > > [email protected] > > WIDELincoln.org > > -- > The LincolnTalk mailing list. > To post, send mail to [email protected]. > Search the archives at http://lincoln.2330058.n4.nabble.com/ > <https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Flincoln.2330058.n4.nabble.com%2F&data=04%7C01%7C%7Cc91a570741c94dcf460408da0a942f6e%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637833928851834696%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=g32m3MLlnqVks9QG5YcA7wlQ60UG%2FejGBIbNVb%2FNJJs%3D&reserved=0> > . > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > <https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpairlist9.pair.net%2Fmailman%2Fprivate%2Flincoln%2F&data=04%7C01%7C%7Cc91a570741c94dcf460408da0a942f6e%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637833928851834696%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=O%2FTZqSIkduLkYmMYvun4vWBHdgWQhuanHtJf8myb78U%3D&reserved=0> > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln > <https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpairlist9.pair.net%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Flincoln&data=04%7C01%7C%7Cc91a570741c94dcf460408da0a942f6e%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637833928851834696%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=5jf8LxSvu8ssX5sawF%2BcWlvKw5wMTxr%2B%2BhbT6MBfjFY%3D&reserved=0> > . > >
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