The Cupertino Courier

Photograph by Skye Dunlap

Laura Domondon Lee shares a word with Shawn Spano at the first meeting of the Collaborative.

Interagency group strives to build unity

By Steve Enders

With the aim of adopting a cutting-edge, model approach to handling race relations, the city's leaders came together last Tuesday in the first meeting of the Cupertino Multicultural Collaborative.

The 5-hour marathon session included what Mayor Michael Chang calls the "city's CEOs"--leaders from the Cupertino Union School District, the Fremont Union High School District, De Anza College, the City of Cupertino, the Asian American Parents Association (AAPA) and the City of Cupertino Cross-Cultural Consortium (5 C's).

The Collaborative's goal is to develop a common, interagency strategy to manage the impacts of the city's quickly changing population.

Group members began this daunting task by establishing a common ground. Each displayed the programs their agencies currently have in place to foster racial harmony.

In the end, the Collaborative expects to mesh such programs into one working model--a model that will serve citizens involved in each agency, from the school children of CUSD to the college students at De Anza.

At last week's meeting, members sought to create a single definition of "multiculturalism" to ensure each group was working with the same task in mind.

The concept of the Collaborative and its definition of multiculturalism is based on a paper created by Dr. Derald Wing Sue, who spoke at an AAPA meeting in February. Sue is a nationally recognized psychology scholar who has worked with President Clinton's Dialogue on Race.

In the paper, Sue outlines his views on multiculturalism, and how it can affect people in a community. He also suggests implementing programs and diversity trainings that will strengthen bonds between students, administrators and the city, which will make the entire community stronger.

The details on how the Collaborative will accomplish its goals were absent from Tuesday's session, moderated by the Public Dialogue Consortium, a city-hired non-profit group of mediators and communications experts.

The group plans to meet again in March of 1999 and may develop a concrete action plan at that point.

Cupertino Mayor Michael Chang said most at the meeting were on the "same wavelength" in terms of their priorities and the meaning of "multiculturalism."

During the lunch break, CUSD superintendent Bill Bragg and De Anza president Martha Kanter drafted a lengthy definition of the word--which will also likely be used as a sort of mission statement for the group.

With the two education leaders at a keyboard, circling onlookers tried to catch a glimpse as they typed:

"Cupertino is committed to becoming a model multicultural community for the 21st century. Multiculturalism includes, appreciates and respects the complexity and richness of our community, and the various lived experiences and perceptions of our residents.

"Multiculturalism is a dynamic, evolving and complex process which is based on a powerful set of core values. These are: Understanding differences in ways that promote unity, not separateness; Promotes inclusion, cooperation and movement toward mutually shared goals."

The definition went on to describe how individuals are unique, how they are similar, and how an open and honest dialogue will be beneficial for the community at large.

"The final definition was a mature view," Chang said. "It was very well put and succinct. It also opens itself for future input and improvement."

Chang added that he expects the City Council to draft a formal resolution backing the Collaborative and its statements.

Some talk at the meeting also centered around how the group will include the "disenfranchised"--those who aren't as receptive to the multicultural ideals being spread from the top down.

"We're a pretty homogeneous group," CUSD board president Roberta Pabst said. "We're educated, we're involved and we're leaders. We need to make sure we've got all people in mind. It's easy to be virtuous and say all the right words."

Councilmember Sandra James agreed with Pabst, but added that people need direction "from those who will stand out and make the change." She said the Collaborative members should be recognized as risk-takers who can lead the city and be held accountable for taking the city in new directions.

Group members were encouraged to take what they had learned back to the organizations they serve.

Macy Armstrong, a student representative from Cupertino High School, said he plans on reporting back to the Associated Student Body, and the high schools' Interdistrict Council to find ways of creating more cross-cultural dialogue.

Bringing multicultural clubs on his campus together for discussions or events would be good for the students and their understanding of one another, he said.

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