Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Open Board of Directors Meeting
San Bernardino Community College District
114 S. Del Rosa Drive
San Bernardino, CA 92408
Minutes
Present: Don Averill, Carole Beswick, Tom Brickley, Rachelle Bussell, Ken Coate, Bill Easley, Ron Fremont, Ron Griffin, Scott Hofferber, Matthew Isaac, Mark Kaenel, Bill Lemann, Sue McKee, John Mirau, Tom Nightingale, Beverly Powell, John Prentice, Kristine Scott, Paul Shimoff, Steve von Rajcs, Janet Weder, A.J. Wilson and Ray Wolfe.
Guests: Chris Lee, Sheriff John McMahon and Hassan Webb.
Announcements: 1) The University of Redlands Banta Center for Business, Ethics and Society will hold a panel discussion, The Pros and Cons of Hydraulic Fracking: What We Should Know on Monday, March 24, 2014 from 6:00p.m. to 7:45p.m. Contact Vanessa Siliezar at 909-748-8769 to make a reservation for this free event.2) A workshop for Southern California (Inland Area) will be held on the new California Competes Tax Credit on Wednesday, March 26, 2014 from 10a.m. to 11 a.m. The workshop will be held in a conference room at the Ontario Police Department. Sales tax exemption and the Employee Hiring Tax Credit will also be discussed. 3) The 2014 State of the Region Conference will be held on Thursday, April 17, 2014 at 11:30 a.m. at the Ontario Double Tree Inn. For more information use the link provided https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2014-state-of-the-region-tickets-9868482898 4) The Investiture of Kim Wilcox will take place on Thursday, April 24, 2014 at 2:00p.m. at the Student Recreation Center, University of California, Riverside. For more information please go call (951) 827-3144.
M/S/P: Minutes from March 11, 2014.
Steve von Rajcs introduced Mike Ramos, District Attorney, San Bernardino County.
District Attorney Mike Ramos expressed appreciation to Inland Action for their advocacy which he stated is very important to our County.
San Bernardino County is diverse and has many issues on which he is focused. He aggressively supported and was pleased to see Proposition 35 (ban on human trafficking and sex slavery) pass with overwhelming public support. The law strengthens the penalties for perpetrators in this area and sends a clear message to others. Gang activity has branched out from drugs and guns to human trafficking. Focusing on luring underage girls (often runaways) with clothes, jewelry and attention, these vulnerable girls are marketed by them as prostitutes and/or slaves. He has worked with the Sheriff’s Department to create a task force and coordinate with federal agencies to address this growing crime. He supports Rachel’s House, an organization that provides residential housing and conducts awareness and workshops for young ladies who have been trafficked into prostitution.
He will continue to use the Gang Injunction Unit, launched in 2007, as another form of gang suppression in the county. Civil injunctions and restraining orders on gang members create gang free safety zones in gang infested communities. It seeks to restrict certain activities of the gang, and subject its members to arrest if they engage in certain conduct within an area called the Safety Zone. The unit has been successful in suppressing gangs like the Cucamonga Kings, the Colton City Crips and others.
Prevention and intervention are equally important to fight gang activity. Concentration is given to elementary schools where kids are the most vulnerable and impressionable. District Attorney Ramos is fighting truancy as it is often the gateway to delinquency and a life of crime and poverty. Estimates of prisoners today indicate that 82% are high school dropouts.
Programs like the Gang Reduction Intervention Team (GRIT) strive to intervene in the lives of “at risk” youth who have demonstrated the most extreme forms of delinquency. GRIT’s mission is to provide job training and placement, mentoring, life skills, and classes that provoke behavior modification and empowers youth to make better decisions.
The D.A.’s office partnering with Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital has created Camp Good Grief: Special Victims Program. This program is a three day grief camp for children and teens that have been devastated by an act of murder or suicide. They work with professionals to share their feelings and learn new ways to cope and interact.
His office is fighting corruption and has created their Public Integrity Unit. They will continue to fight for justice in the Colonies case as people need to be held accountable and there is $102 million dollars that belongs to the people of our county.
D.A. Ramos stressed that he is focused on the quality of life in San Bernardino County by keeping integrity for our businesses and our streets safe.
A Q & A period followed.
Meeting adjourned at 8:30a.m.