SD4 - Fourth Annual Executive Summary Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of the Women of Virginia
Executive Summary: Creation and Charge of the Commission In 2010, the Virginia General Assembly established a commemorative Commission to honor the contributions of the women of Virginia with a monument on the grounds of Capitol Square. The charge of the Commission, as stated in the Joint Resolution was as follows: The Commission shall determine and recommend to the General Assembly an appropriate monument in Capitol Square to commemorate the contributions of the women of Virginia. The Commission shall seek private funding for the operation and support of the Commission and the erection of an appropriate monument. The costs of implementation of the Commission, its work, and the compensation and reimbursement of members shall be borne by the Commission from such private funds as it may acquire to cover the costs of its operation and work. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the Commission, upon request. Members of the Commission As designated in the Joint Resolution, the commemorative Commission shall consist of a total of 19 members as follows: the Governor of Virginia who shall serve as Chairman thereof, the Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Rules, one member of the Senate appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules, the Clerk of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Delegates, one member of the House of Delegates at large appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates, the Clerk of the House of Delegates; eight nonlegislative citizen members of whom three members shall be appointed by the Governor, two of whom shall be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules, and three of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates. The Secretary of Administration or his designee, the Librarian of Virginia or her designee, the Executive Director of the Capitol Square Preservation Council, and the Executive Director of the Virginia Capitol Foundation shall serve ex officio with nonvoting privileges. Following the gubernatorial and legislative appointments, the members of the Commission are: Governor Robert F. McDonnell, Speaker of the House Bill Howell, Delegate Jimmie Massie, Clerk of the House G. Paul Nardo, Chair of Senate Rules Ryan McDougle, Senator Jill Holtzman Vogel, Clerk of the Senate Susan Clarke Schaar, Secretary of Administration Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas (ex officio), the Librarian of Virginia Sandra Treadway (ex officio), Executive Director of Virginia Capitol Foundation Alice Lynch (ex officio), gubernatorial appointees Mary Blanton Easterly, Jacqueline Cook Hedblom, and Rita D. McClenny, Speaker of the House of Delegates appointees, Mary Abel-Smith, Kitty Claiborne, and Mary Margaret Whipple; and Senate Joint Rules appointees, Lissy S. Bryan and Em Bowles Locker Alsop. In 2014 Governor McAuliffe appointed two new members, Krysta Jones of Arlington, and E.J. Scott of Manassas, to the Commission. They replace Rita D. McClenny and Mary Blanton Easterly. Meetings and Significant Actions The Women’s Monument Commission (full Commission or Executive Board) met on the following dates in 2014: February 17, March 14 (Special Ad Hoc Subcommittee Meeting), March 25 (Executive Board), April 28, and December 8. Significant actions include receipt and publication of the Schematic Design Report, the signing of an agreement with the Virginia Capitol Foundation for fundraising for the Monument as part of the Virginia Capitol Campaign, and the beginning of the process to select names to be engraved on the glass wall of the monument. Fundraising is now in its early stages with a major effort expected in 2015. ____________________________________________________________ Minutes Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of Virginia’s Women February 17, 2014, 2 PM Senate Room 1, Virginia State Capitol Richmond, Virginia Members in Attendance: Mary Easterly Em Bowles Alsop Alice Lynch Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple Secretary Nancy Rodrigues Dr. Sandra Treadway Delegate Jimmie Massie G. Paul Nardo Susan C. Schaar Senator Jill H. Vogel Senator John S. Edwards Kathleen S. Kilpatrick Jacqueline C. Hedblom The Honorable Nancy Rodrigues read a letter from Governor Terry McAuliffe dated February 17, 2014, which designated Secretary Rodrigues as his proxy and named Senator Mary Margaret Whipple as Vice Chairwoman of the Commission. Copies of this letter were distributed to the Commission. Senator Whipple then thanked everyone for attending the meeting. The first item on the agenda was to approve the contract by adopting a resolution. Steve Owens, Chief of Real Estate Land Use from the Attorney General’s office spoke to the contract. He mainly discussed Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the contract. Phase 1 of the contract (the status the project is in now) provides the design for the plaza, the different figures and the history behind the monument. According to the contract preamble, Phase 1 “is a pre-implementation discovery and documentation phase to develop and define the details of the winning design for the project.” Mr. Owens explained that from Phase 1 the Commission will be able to use the blueprints to fundraise because they are demonstrative. He discussed the ownership issues in the contract and explained that the Commission owns the design and in the case of a disagreement there is an option to buy out. Transfer of ownership to the Commonwealth occurs in 14 days should there be a buy out or something else unforeseen occur (incapacitation of the designers at Studio EIS or the 1717 Design Group). He then touched briefly on the other boilerplate terms in the contract, including the allowance of written modifications, hourly rates, overtime, confidentiality and anti-discrimination. Mr. Owens also explained Phase 2, concerning the final design and its implementation as the next step for this project. His presentation was followed by questions. Senator Edwards asked once the installation was complete does the Commission have ownership to which Mr. Owens replied “Yes.” Jacqueline Hedblom asked about termination privileges and their mutuality and Mr. Owens responded that they cannot terminate the contact. Senator Whipple then announced that there are copies of the contract available for members of the Commission who wish to look it over. Kathleen S. Kilpatrick raised the concern that much has been completed under Phase 1 but not the schematic design. She asked Mr. Owens if the Commission still had the ability to approve this part of the contract, which he said it does. Delegate Massie then moved to adopt the resolution approving the contact. It was seconded and approved by voice vote of the Commission. Fundraising was the next item on the agenda. Senator Whipple asked for volunteers who would like to be on a smaller fundraising committee of which the makeup will be Commission and non-Commission members. This committee will work closely with the Virginia Capitol Foundation on the fundraising aspect of this project. Alice Lynch then suggested using the Monument Group for fundraising. Senator Whipple then suggested that the next meeting of the Commission would ideally be an Executive Committee Meeting in March 2014, followed by a meeting of the full Commission in April 2014. She recommended this be the consistent meeting pattern in the future to keep progressing. Senator Whipple added that some potential dates for availability would be floated by Clerks in the future. Susan Schaar then introduced Senator John Edwards as the Chairman of the Rules Committee and Kathleen S. Kilpatrick as the new Executive Director of the Virginia Capitol Square Preservation Council to the Commission. They are new members of the Commission. Senator Whipple then opened up the floor for comments from the public, which there were none. The meeting was then adjourned at 2:35 PM. ____________________________________________________________ Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of Virginia’s Women Subcommittee Meeting March 14, 2014, 9:30 AM – 3rd Floor East Conference Room General Assembly Building Richmond, Virginia Minutes Members in attendance: Senator Mary Margaret Whipple Secretary Nancy Rodrigues Susan Schaar Dr. Sandra Treadway Kathleen Kilpatrick The meeting was called to order by Vice- Chair Senator Mary Margaret Whipple. Those in attendance introduced themselves. Senator Whipple clarified that this meeting was for working purposes only, and no official action would be taken. Susan Schaar pointed out that Lisa Hicks-Thomas, former Secretary of Administration and former acting Chair of the Commission, was appointed to the Commission and would soon be returning to the membership. Other guests to the meeting that day included Richard A. Arenstein, Chairman of the Virginia Capitol Foundation Board, John Crank from the 1717 Design Group, Julie Whitlock from the Department of General Services, and Steve Owens from the Office of the Attorney General. Mr. Crank brought the schematic design booklet that he and his team compiled as part of Phase I of the contract. He presented the book to the group and allowed comment and edits from the members. Senator Whipple suggested that the main cover photo of the proposed monument should feature more women and children, as currently there are more men than anyone else in the picture. There was discussion on the “Acknowledgements” page that Lisa Hicks-Thomas should be titled as “Acting Chair” and the former Governor Robert F. McDonnell should be listed as chair (to include dates coinciding with their terms). There was a question of whether there should be a listing of current and past membership. The “Table of Contents” page provoked the question of whether or not an “in progress” disclaimer should be added for fundraising purposes. On page 50 of the booklet, it was noted that the phrase “possibly Asian or Hispanic” needed to be revised as it refers to the proposed “Preteen girl” (Figure 13) bronze figure. The desired model should be one that is inclusive to all ethnicities. Page 3 displays the legislation from where the Commission and subsequent monument was established. It was discussed whether or not the amendment that passed the 2014 General Assembly Session to include Former Secretary Hicks-Thomas be added to indicate her (re)appointment. Page 7 should include the phrase “Original Monument as Submitted,” because the design shows the original boxwoods which were removed as a request of the Commission. On the next page (pg. 8), there should be concept drawings instead of the photo seen on page 7. These pictures need to send the message that this was the original concept, not the design as agreed upon by the Commission. Page 22 is an overview of the ADA standards and accessibility issues the design team is facing, and Julie Whitlock and John Crank discussed how DGS and the team are working together to address these matters. Some parts of Capitol Square (mainly sidewalks) are not currently up to the ADA standard, but it was explained that historical context of the Square can lend an exception to the accessibility requirements, per DGS and the Director of DGS, Richard Sliwoski (who has the authority to grant these exemptions). The monument itself must meet these requirements, however. John Crank briefly went over the bronze figures, and asked that the Commission decide that for those women who have known visual representations throughout their lifetimes which age they should be depicted on the monument. He also asked that the Commission decide what props (if any) the women should be holding (i.e. Adèle Goodman Clark and a paint brush, etc.), and from there any text concerning said figure should explain those accessories. Phase II (Implementation) of the process was discussed, as the booklet explains in detail each sub-phase. Page 51 in particular details each sub-phase. On page 53 and 68, the Department of Historic Resources and the Capitol Square Preservation Council should be added to the list of agencies that should see the final presentation. John Crank detailed the process of sculpting and casting the bronzes and constructing the plaza. On page 66, the client deliverables are detailed, and Mr. Crank pointed the members to said deliverables and the schedule of implementation. From there, a fundraising discussion formed based on the amount of money needed for each sub-phase of implementation. It was decided that the conversation should continue into the next Executive Committee meeting that staff would poll members for dates in the coming days. ____________________________________________________________ Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of Virginia’s Women Executive Committee Meeting March 25, 2014, 1 PM – 3rd Floor East Conference Room General Assembly Building Richmond, Virginia Minutes Members in attendance: Senator Mary Margaret Whipple Secretary Nancy Rodrigues Susan C. Schaar Em Bowles Locker Alsop Jacqueline C. Hedblom The meeting was called to order by Vice- Chair Senator Mary Margaret Whipple. Alice Lynch, Dr. Sandra Treadway, and Kathleen Kilpatrick, members of the Commission, joined the Committee to offer guidance and consultation. Also present was Julie Whitlock who represents the Department of General Services. The minutes from the Ad Hoc Subcommittee meeting were approved by the Executive Committee, as it was noted that that particular subcommittee probably will not meet again in order to approve the minutes. Senator Whipple then gave the report from the previous subcommittee, taking up a few “household” items first. Firstly, Julie Whitlock was charged with helping clarify language pertaining to the implementation of the budget since some of the materials in the schematic design report were unclear. A brief discussion of the women featured on the monument ensued, Alice Lynch heading the discussion by clarifying Clementina Rind’s achievement of winning a business contract with the House of Burgesses over several men in her career field. Em Bowles Alsop then brought up her dissatisfaction with a couple of the women selected and hoped the names could be reconsidered, while Senator Whipple explained that the names would not be reconsidered since the Commission had voted on all of the women and they had been selected by an overwhelming majority. Once this conversation subsided, the report that reviewed the edits to the schematic design book John Crank from the 1717 Design Group presented from the last meeting was given. Staff was asked to compile the lists of edits and minutes from the last meeting to send to John Crank. Susan Schaar wanted to highlight that Senate Joint Resolution 76 from the 2014 Virginia General Assembly session adds the previous Secretary of Administration as a voting Ex Officio member, effective immediately. As the former Secretary of Administration under Governor McDonnell, Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas will be rejoining the Commission, and this change needs to be reflected in the book. The next item on the agenda turned to approving the fundraising agreement with the Virginia Capitol Foundation. Alice Lynch presented the agreement for the Executive Committee members to review. She explained that with all the “goings-on” with monuments and fundraising for projects on Capitol Square, it is best for the Monument Group to approach corporate donors for gifts to the Capitol Square plan as a whole, with private donors being approached for individual monuments based on interest. The Joint Rules Committee has reviewed and accepted this idea. She elaborated, stating that there had been some consideration over dedicating a plaque listing the names of all major donors ($100k and up) and having it placed somewhere on Capitol Square. Em Bowles Alsop asked if she had received any money for a “kiosk.” Alice said that she was not aware of any plans for a “kiosk” and that any education component would be communicated through a virtual experience. The fundraising discussion continued, Alice detailing the fundraising plan with the Monument Group, sharing that a 4% fee of total amount raised would need to be paid to the Monument Group for administrative costs and that they would be under a 15 month contract with them. She also explained that a steering committee has been put together for recruiting others from around the state to head up fundraising in their corners of the Commonwealth. This “recruitment process” will begin in May so the Monument Group can begin presenting to corporations in June. As a side note, Senator Whipple mentioned that Delegate Massie wants to have the Monument Group present their fundraising plan at the next Full Commission meeting because he wants to become more involved in helping the fundraising aspect of the project. On that note, other business of setting the next meeting began, deciding that staff would poll members for the best date to meet. Secretary Rodrigues mentioned the City of Richmond bicycle race that would be taking place in September 2015 and that we need to keep that in mind in future monument plans. Susan Schaar asked what the next step was and if it was topography, Julie Whitlock replying that she would proceed with sub phase 2A – but some of the service fees are a bit inflated and should be worked out first. Alice Lynch asked if there would be DGS charges on top of costs. Julie Whitlock explained that DGS has the authority to charge 20%. She went on to advise hiring a consultant to review the fees associated with each phase as outlined in the schematic design book because she and her colleagues feel that a lot of the costs are high and some seem to be duplicated. With that discussion, the meeting adjourned. ____________________________________________________________ Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of Virginia’s Women April 28, 2014, 10:30 AM Senate Room A, General Assembly Building Richmond, Virginia Minutes Members in attendance: Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple, Vice Chair Secretary Nancy Rodrigues Susan Schaar Paul Nardo Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas Del. Jimmie Massie Lissy Bryan Em Bowles Alsop Alice Lynch Kathleen Kilpatrick The meeting was called to order by the Vice Chair, Senator Whipple. She then welcomed everyone to the meeting and members introduced themselves. Special note was made that former Chair and Secretary of Administration, Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas, was rejoining the Commission as an Ex Officio member. Senator Whipple noted that the meeting was intended to discuss fundraising and to adopt the Virginia Capitol Foundation fundraising agreement, first hearing from Jeffrey Wilt from the Monument Group and the report on fundraising from Lissy Bryan, Fundraising Chair for the Commission. After being introduced by Alice Lynch, Mr. Jeffrey Wilt from the Monument Group gave a report. He explained his background and qualifications and then reviewed the process by which he plans to help in fundraising. This process will begin with a “testing” phase, where he will gauge the willingness of possible givers to donate based on the overall plan of the Capitol Square Campaign project. After the “testing” phase, a solicitation plan will be implemented. Members of the Commission should come up with a list of “prospects” in order to cultivate and help solicit gifts. Senator Whipple asked for clarification that the Capitol Square Project was what the Monument Group would be raising funds for as whole, with the Women’s Monument being part of that project. Delegate Massie asked Mr. Wilt what all was involved with the Capitol Square Campaign Project. Ric Arenstein, Chair of the VCF Board, explained that all projects on Capitol Square are included in the campaign, with the Women’s Monument being a third of the total dollar amount needed to be raised (the whole project is expected to cost about $10 million, but hopes the price can be lower than that eventually – Senator Whipple explained that we hope to negotiate with the artist for the Women’s Monument as well). Ms. Alsop suggested that some people would be hesitant to give based on their feelings about certain individuals being excluded from the bronze figures, and Senator Whipple responded that she knew some would feel that way but those she has talked to have not expressed that opinion. Lissy Bryan, Chair of Fundraising for the Commission, followed up on Mr. Wilt’s presentation. She also responded to Ms. Alsop’s statement, saying that she felt like the educational component of the Monument will inspire everyone tremendously and trump any negative feelings about those selected to be cast in bronze. She said that this monument is a springboard for learning more about these women who might not be so widely known, and will tell their story. Senator Whipple added to Ms. Bryan’s presentation, saying that she had been working with the Northern Virginia Technology Council, who is willing to help publicize and work with the Commission on the educational side of things technology related (help create an “app,” etc.). Alice Lynch added that the Parsons Foundation has offered a 1 to 1 matching grant of $100,000 – of which there is $10,000 already. Next, the Memorandum of Understanding with the Virginia Capitol Foundation was discussed. The Attorney General’s office made clarifications to the MOU, as did the Department of General Services. DGS’ comments and suggestions to the document were approved by the Attorney General’s office as well. Some aspects of the contract were unclear to the members and these items were clarified by Ms. Lynch and Senator Whipple. Lisa Hicks-Thomas moved that the Memorandum of Understanding be adopted, Del. Massie seconding the motion. All members except for Ms. Alsop voted for the adoption of the MOU. In closing as part of the time allotted for public comments, Dr. Lauranett Lee from the Virginia Historical Society introduced herself and offered the Commission her services and knowledge if needed. The meeting adjourned at 11:53 PM, with no date set for the next meeting. As usual, members will be polled for availability. ____________________________________________________________ Commemorative Commission to Honor the Contributions of Virginia’s Women December 8, 2014, 10:30 AM Senate Room 1, Virginia State Capitol Richmond, Virginia Minutes Members in Attendance: Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas Senator Mary Margaret Whipple Senator Ryan T. McDougle Krysta N. Jones Susan C. Schaar Kathleen S. Kilpatrick Lissy S. Bryan Alice Lynch G. Paul Nardo EJ Scott Em Bowles Locker Alsop Secretary Nancy Rodrigues Dr. Sandra G. Treadway The meeting was called to order by the Vice Chair, Senator Mary Margaret Whipple. Two new members to the Commission were introduced: Krysta N. Jones of Arlington and EJ Scott of Manassas. Secretary of Administration Nancy Rodrigues then announced the Governor and First Lady as the Honorary Campaign Chairs. Alice Lynch, Executive Director of the Virginia Capitol Foundation, then gave an update/overview of the Capitol Square Campaign. She handed out materials that explained each bronze statue selection with their respective biographies as well as the overall design of the monument. Jeffrey Wilt from the Monument Group followed up the names of those who are on the fundraising team for the campaign: Patty Lockridge, Delegate Chris Peace, Senator Mary Margaret Whipple, Chief Adams, and Brent Halsey, and Buford Scott. Alice then went on to explain that there is a Steering Committee as a subset of the campaign that is to raise funds exclusively for the women’s monument, headed up by Lissy Bryan. She handed out the job description for the Steering Committee. Lissy Bryan added that they are trying to enlist some of the former First Ladies of Virginia to be Honorary Committee Members, while trying to pull other members from various regions of the Commonwealth. Staff was asked to email members the job description document in addition to asking members to send any Steering Committee candidates to Lissy Bryan. Senator Whipple reminded members to consider recommendations of those outside Richmond or Northern Virginia since there is already such a great representation of those two areas on the Commission. Lissy added that it might be worthwhile to reach out to various professional organizations for participation. Next, Dr. Sandra Treadway, Librarian of Virginia and member of the Commission, headed up the discussion pertaining to name recommendations to be featured on the glass wall. She has been working with several staff historians at the Library but needed the Commission to decide on a few factors. She knew that John Crank had told her there would be four panels that could fit 80-100 names (60 was recommended) and each letter would be about 1 inch tall, according to Susan Schaar. Dr. Treadway and her team needed to know how many on each panel the Commission wanted, how should they be divided, should they be listed chronologically or alphabetically? And how recently deceased should the women be? Senator Whipple opened the floor for discussion. Secretary Rodrigues expressed the benefits of randomizing names, as had been done on the Public Safety Memorial, while leaving space for additional names for the future. She also added that she knew VDOT had special moratoriums on names streets, bridges, etc. after those deceased and said the Commission should consider adopting the same policy. Senator McDougle said that dates should at least be added to names, and that space should be left for future women to be added. Senator Whipple agreed and the Commission decided that listed names should be deceased for at least 10 years prior to consideration to be added to the wall, and that space would be left for those future individuals. Lissy Bryan suggested listing names by century for the educational benefit, and possibly combining earlier centuries since there aren’t as many names. Lisa M. Hicks-Thomas cautioned members against listing by profession, as lots of women who will be listed led multi-faceted lives and could not easily be categorized that way. Kathleen S. Kilpatrick suggested coming up with a set of criteria that needs to be followed in coming up with the names of the individuals, G. Paul Nardo agreeing. A criteria subcommittee of Dr. Treadway, Kathleen S. Kilpatrick, and Susan C. Schaar was established in response to this. Senator Whipple encouraged fewer names than more, so that the print on the wall would not have to be exceedingly small and suggested a ballpark list of about 100 names, Dr. Treadway adding that they already have about 120 names on the radar. Alice Lynch has many submissions that she will share with staff to get to the subcommittee. Paul Nardo suggested establishing the criteria before soliciting names to the public. Susan Schaar added that names should be looked at regionally so each area of the Commonwealth is heartily represented. Senator Whipple decided that the Executive Committee would meet to finalize criteria and then post to the Women’s Monument website to solicit responses from the public, but ask that the submissions be supported with how they fit the criteria. EJ Scott mentioned that this would be a great way to publicize the project as well as reach out to potential donors. Comments from Members of the Commission then followed, starting with reminding everyone that donors will not be recognized on the monument for their gifts. Alice Lynch added that the Joint Rules Committee approved listing names of donors giving $100,000 or more on Capitol Square at a location to be finalized. Senator Whipple suggested having a book somewhere on Capitol Square that lists every donation, to encourage even the smallest gifts be recognized. Senator McDougle suggested a video screen that would scroll through the names of each donor (like a “digital picture frame”). Secretary Rodrigues added that an “app” would be useful to find the names of donors as well as where to find the names on the wall, etc. Em Bowles Alsop ended the discussion with how thrilled she is that her original idea has come this far. There was no public comment. The meeting adjourned with Senator Whipple asking staff to poll Executive Committee members for a meeting in January. |
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