The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of SIU at Carbondale. Except during vacations and exam weeks,
The Daily Egyptian is published Monday through Friday during the fall and
spring semesters and TWThF during the summer semester."
Lana Bardo and Kathy Lane listen to Yolonda Simon while she discusses the new secret shopper program Monday evening during the Carbondale Human Relations Commission meeting at the Civic Center. The next meeting will be held on Jan 12 at the Civic Center.
The Human Relations Commission discussed Monday the ways in which it could take part in the Carbondale Police Chief selection process that is to begin in January.
While the decision to find a replacement for former Police Chief R.T. Finney is ultimately left to City Manager Jeff Doherty, the HRC will have a representative to advise in the process.
"Advisory group members will meet and talk to the candidates and provide input," said HRC Commissioner Samuel Goldman.
Assistant City Manager Don Monty said Doherty was looking at the possibility for the representative to ask questions during the screening process. Monty said once all the police chief applications have been received and screened, the selection process would be very condensed over quickly.
The HRC will appoint one of its 11 commissioners to be the advisory representative in January. The HRC did appoint a media spokesperson Monday for the newly approved Study Circle groups.
Study Circle Coordinator Lana Bardo will be in charge of the group's media relations. While she did not necessarily want to be the mouthpiece for the group, she did want a consistent message going out to the community when questions about the Study Circles emerged.
"I don't want to see a lot of different people saying a lot of different things that could hinder the recruiting efforts," Bardo said. "We need to have a consistent message."
The Carbondale City Council unanimously approved the creation of the Study Circles Nov. 18. The concept behind the circles is to create a way for a cross section of community members to identify and solve problems within the community.
Human Relations Commissioner Hugh Muldoon said he was encouraged by the council's reception to the Study Circle concept.
"They're getting the idea of the impact of people just talking to each other," Muldoon said.
Commissioner John Holmes said the approval of the new program is an indicator the commission could begin to wield legitimate power in the Carbondale.
Holmes said when the HRC was first created, the issue of power was a concern. Now with the adoption of the circles, he said the role of the commission is changing. He said the HRC is more focused on building relationships instead of finding groups that have done wrong and need to be punished.
The Study Circle Group will meet at 4 p.m. Dec. 10 in the Carbondale Civic Center to form committees and explain the objectives. Anyone interested is encouraged to attend the meeting.
The next HRC meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 12 in the Carbondale Civic Center.
