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FEBRUARY 2021

Contents
Acknowledgements..........................................................................................................3
Introduction...........................................................................................................................5— Purpose of The Plan.................................................................................................................6— Why lead with racial equity?....................................................................................................6— A Message From the City’s Racial Equity Guiding Coalition....................................................7
Racial Equity Plan In The City of Boulder Context.......................................8— Advancing Existing Goals........................................................................................................8— Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan........................................................................................8— Human Rights and Human Services.......................................................................................8— City Vision and Values.............................................................................................................9— Sustainability and Resilience Framework................................................................................9
The Journey Here: Racial History of The City of Boulder ......................10
Timeline of Work To Date...........................................................................14
Racial Equity Engagement Working Group............................................18
Community Feedback On Racial Equity Plan Outline........................ 19
Planning Timeframe and Tracking Progress......................................... 20
Goals and Strategies...................................................................................................... 21— Goal 1: Everybody gets it........................................................................................................ 21— Goal 2: Justly do it..................................................................................................................22— Goal 3: Community commitment..........................................................................................22— Goal 4: Power to all people................................................................................................... 23— Goal 5: Representation matters............................................................................................ 23
Logic Model.............................................................................................................................24— Short Term Outcomes: Logic Model Visual Guide.................................................................24— Full Logic Model.................................................................................................................... 26
Resources............................................................................................................................... 30— Definitions............................................................................................................................ 30— Racial Inequity Data...............................................................................................................32— Racial History........................................................................................................................ 422

Acknowledgements
City Manager’s Office— Tanya Ange, former Deputy City Manager— Jane Brautigam, former City Manager— Pam Davis, Assistant City Manager— Aimee Kane, Equity Program Manager— Chris Meschuk, Interim City Manager— Taylor Reiman, Council Assistant

Racial Equity Guiding Coalition

2019 to Present— Aaron Brockett, City Council Member— Kurt Firnhaber, Director of Housing and Human Services— Rachel Friend, City Council Member— Maris Herold, Police Chief— Junie Joseph, City Council Member— Jacob Lindsey, Director of Planning and Development Services— Chris Meschuk, Interim City Manager— Jen Sprinkle, Director of Human Resources— Adam Swetlik, City Council Member— Mary Young, City Council Member

Racial Equity Engagement Working Group— Ingrid Castro-Campos— Dr. Sheila Davis— Ken Iha
— Magnolia Landa-Posas, Facilitator— Marina La Grave— Nikhil Mankekar— Maria Murillo— Julie Schoenfeld

Community Feedback Partners— Ana Karina Casas Ibarra, Community Connector— Dinesh Kumar Karki, Community Connector— City of Boulder Human Relations Commission— City of Boulder Youth Opportunities Advisory Board— Leadership Fellows Boulder County— NAACP, Boulder County— Nepal America Sociocultural Exchange Society— Recovery Equity Connectors— Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal— Sabrina Sideris’ CU Class— SUMA Cultural Brokers, Boulder County— Diversity and Inclusion Summit, University of Colorado Boulder

3

Acknowledgements
Racial Equity Core Team and Equity Ambassadors
City Attorney’s Office— David Gehr
— Jessica Pault-Atiase
City Manager’s Office— Carl Castillo— Pam Davis— Elesha Johnson— Joseph Lipari— Amy McMahon— Chris Meschuk
Communication and Engagement— Shannon Aulabaugh— Shelby Condit— Ryan Hanschen— Brenda Ritenour— Emily Sandoval— Manuela Sifuentes
Climate Initiatives— Elizabeth Vasatka
Fire-Rescue— David Garcia— Jeff Long
Finance— Juciene Azevedo-Wilk— Joel Wagner
Housing and Human Services— Ana Silvia Avendaño-Curiel— Elizabeth Crowe— Clay Fong
— Renee Gallegos— Wanda Pelegrina Caldas— German Velasco— Eli Urken
Human Resources— Jasmine Berginc— Hope Stevens
Innovation and Technology— Katie Bridges— Benjamin Edelen— Leslie Labrecque— Bill Skerpan

Library and Arts
— Matt Chasansky— Krissy Jenkins— Jaime Kopke— Ann Ledford— Jennifer Lord
— Jennifer Phares

Municipal Court— James Cho— DeVon KissickKelly— Maryvel Molina
Open Space and Mountain Parks— Casey Bries— Juliet Bonnell— Maki Boyle— Mark Davison— Lauren Kilcoyne— Emily Paulson— Natasha Steinmann
Parks and Recreation— Stephanie Munro— Lisa Nieman— Ali Rhodes— Christy Spielman
Planning and Development Services— Charles Ferro— Val Matheson— Dwayne Sullivan
Police— Michael Everett— Diane Herzberg— Curtis Johnson— Tom Trujillo— Carey Weinheimer
Public Works— Kate Gregory— Amy Lewin— Katie Knapp— Natalie Stiffler— Holly Valenta

Graphic Design: Shelby Condit, Maye Cordero

4

Introduction
Respect is one of five of the city of Boulder’s organizational values. It states:“We champion diversity and welcome individual
perspectives, backgrounds and opinions. We are open-minded
and treat all individuals with respect and dignity.”
While the city created a diversity policy over two decades ago, an inclusivity assessment conducted
in 2017 demonstrated the organization’s impact has been limited. Input from community members ofcolor who have bravely shared their perspectives and lived experiences have made it clear we havesignificant work to do.
As partner members of the Government Alliance on Race and Equity and through shared learningwith communities across the nation, employees and leadership at the City of Boulder have beenworking to understand the role institutional racism has played in perpetuating current racialinequities and develop a vision to advance racial equity through education, programs, policies andbudget decisions.

Purpose of the plan
Since 2018, the city has been building organizational capacity and partnering with institutions andcommunities to adapt internal infrastructure and communication through creation of a Racial Equity
Plan. Much of the plan focuses on steps the city must take to eliminate systemic and institutional
racism in its policies and practices.
There are also several components that will involve partnerships with community groups,
organizations and individuals committed to ending racial inequity in Boulder. The plan was informedby significant and valuable community input, and the city drew from other sources such as: :— Findings of the 2017 Community Perceptions Assessment— From the courageous personal stories shared more recently by community members of color
in sessions hosted by the Human Relations Commission and City Council— Frequent conversations with organizations that work with historically oppressed communities— Participation in the yearly Diversity Summit at the University of Colorado Boulder— Additional feedback was provided through various community feedback sessions as designedby the city’s Racial Equity Engagement Working Group and included in Community Feedback
Summary attachment

5Why lead with racial equity?

R ac e i s of ten t h e greatest p re dic to r ofacc es s to s u ccess in our c urre nt system.
The creation and perpetuation of racial inequities is embedded into
government at all levels. Initially focusing on racial equity provides
the opportunity to introduce a framework, tools and resources that
can also be applied to other marginalized groups based on gender,
sexual orientation, ability, class, and age, among others.
If one of u s su f fers, we a ll su f fer.

6

A Message from the City of Boulder

Racial Equity Guiding Coalition

Modern day Boulder has struggled to face its history. With this document, we put forth ourcommitment to change with actions and measurable outcomes, because, to paraphrase James
Baldwin, nothing can be changed until it is faced.
The following Racial Equity Plan is a result of a collaborative effort among several partners dedicatedto advancing racial equity within the City of Boulder government to transform Boulder into a more
inclusive, safe, and welcoming environment for all who live, work, learn or recreate in our community.
The plan was guided by City of Boulder employees who were members of the city’s first Racial Equity
Core team, a group of over 60 city staff committed to learning from our partners at the Government
Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE), a nationally known non-profit segment of Race Forward.
These employees, from all areas of the organization, representing all levels of leadership, have beencollectively working in community for over two years to bring before all of us this plan of strategies
and actions that, with commitment to measurable outcomes, have the capacity to change ourcommunity and hold us to our values.
We know the work ahead will not be easy. The work of dismantling institutional racism will requirethat some of us give up some comfort and power. Nevertheless, without doing so, we cannot live up
to our stated values.
Sincerely,
The City of Boulder’s Racial Equity Guiding CoalitionCouncil Member
Aaron Brockett

Director of
Housing andHuman Services
Kurt FirnhaberCouncil Member
Rachel Friend

Police Chief
Maris Herold

Council Member
Junie Joseph

Equity Program
Manager
Aimee Kane

Council Member
Adam Swetlik

Planning &Development
Services Director
Jacob Lindsey

Council Member
Mary Young

Director ofInterimCity Manager Human Resources
Chris Meschuk Jennifer Sprinkle

7

Racial Equity Plan in the City of Boulder Context
Advancing existing equity goals
The City of Boulder is guided by the City Charter. The Racial Equity Plan advances and aligns with the Charteras well as established community-wide goals and plans, including the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan, theSustainability and Resilience Framework and other citywide guidance. The city’s plans, goals and policies arealso informed by federal, state, and county guidance, including that of the Government Alliance on Race andEquity (GARE). The following graphic shows the relationship of the current plan and policy documents thatguide the management of the City of Boulder in relation to racial equity.

Federal, state andcounty context(e.g. GARE)

Sustainability
and Resilience
Framework

City of Boulder
Charter

Racial Equity Plan

Boulder Valley
Comprehensive
Plan

Department
Master Plans
Existing andFuture Projects
and Programs

Existing andFuture Plans andPolicies

B o u l d e r Va l l e y C o m p r e h e n s i v e P l a n
The Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan (BVCP) is developed and jointly adopted by the City of Boulder and
Boulder County to guide land use decisions in the Boulder Valley. Intended to integrate a range of community
service areas, the BVCP provides high-level policies and goals that stem from long-standing community values.
These represent our commitment to:— A welcoming, inclusive and diverse community— Physical health, safety and well-being— An all-mode transportation system to make getting around easy and accessible to everyone— A diversity of housing types of price ranges— Great neighborhoods and public spaces— Sustainability and more

8Adopted in 1977, the City of Boulder and Boulder County update the plan periodically. The BVCP supports
the community’s vision for balancing development and preservation of the Boulder Valley. The BVCP reflects
the city’s sustainability and resilience framework, described below. In turn, master plans and the city’s annual
capital and operation budget outline the strategies designed to achieve BVCP’s goals.

Human Rights and Human Services
Many other city policies and programs provide context for, and are in alignment with, the Racial Equity Plan.
For example, the city’s Human Rights Ordinance, overseen by the city’s Office of Human Rights and the
Human Relations Commission, affords protection against discrimination in housing, employment and public
accommodation.
The city’s inclusionary housing goals and funding programs, including but not limited to those outlined in theregional HOME Consortium Consolidated Plan; direct services to low-income and Latino families and older
adults; Community Mediation program and investment programs like the Health Equity Fund and Human
Services Fund are designed to address socio-economic inequities that often disproportionately impact
people of color.

City vision and values
City of Boulder Vision

Service excellence for an inspired future

City of Boulder Values
Customer Service
Respect
Integrity
Collaboration
Innovation

All city departments
and staff follow citymanager guidance inthe form of following
a shared vision andset of values.

Building on this foundation, the Racial Equity Plan provides citywide goals and strategies that align withexisting guidance, as well as guidance to thoroughly inventory and review existing policies.
This will be done using the racial equity instrument to identify and begin to remove bias and any unintended
resulting inequities. The racial equity instrument will also be used to develop new departmental andcitywide policies to advance racial equity and change citywide habits, processes and decision-making.
For a more in-depth description of the city’s vision and values, please refer to the city culture webpage.

Sustainability and Resilience Framework
The City of Boulder is continuously working to fulfill its vision. The Sustainability and Resilience Framework
helps provide a common language for all city departments, the local community and the Boulder City Council
about what makes a great community. The Sustainability and Resilience Framework aligns city government
with a wide range of community priorities to evaluate whether expectations are being met and to adjust, if
necessary.
To realize the city’s vision of “service excellence for an inspired future,” the Sustainability and Resilience
Framework establishes seven broad outcome categories which also align with the Racial Equity Plan. The
annual budget, as well as strategic plans and master plans, develop strategies to achieve those outcomes.
Elements of the Sustainability and Resilience Framework are:— Safe Community— Environmentally Sustainable Community— Healthy and Socially Thriving Community— Economically Vital Community— Livable Community— Good Governance— Accessible and Connected Community

9The Journey Here
Racial History of the City of Boulder
Before endeavoring to advance racial equity, it is importantto understand some of the City of Boulder’s racial past.
of
Fo r th o u sa n ds of years generations
Indigenous Peoples

lived in and traversed the Boulder Valley – enriching countless oral and tribal
traditions that shaped a special connection to the land.1 However, miners during the
beginning of the Gold Rush and a steady influx of white occupiers violated treaties
and forcibly removed tribes from the Boulder area, severing their connection withthe land. For thousands of Indigenous Peoples who live in reservations outside ofColorado – and for those who live in Boulder today – traditions, stories and languages
passed down over the generations still connect them with Boulder lands.
In 1858, the first non-native community in Boulder County was established in thearea now known as Settler’s Park, in violation of the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie. Manyof the Indigenous inhabitants were killed or forced to relocate as a result of thesewhite occupiers. In addition, white residents of Boulder played a key role in the Sand
Creek Massacre, which set off a long series of conflicts leading to the Battle of Little
Bighorn and concluding with the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre.2
In later decades, the local and state governments continued deliberate
discrimination against Indigenous Peoples and immigrant people of color, including
Asian railroad workers, African Americans and Mexicans. In the 1920s, the Ku Klux
Klan (KKK) developed a strong presence in the state, and many members held various
positions in elected office and in government administration. The rise of the Klan
in Boulder and Colorado paralleled the nationwide ascendancy of the Second Ku
Klux Klan. This began in the mid-1910s, as the belief that the cause of the former
Confederacy was justified — known as the “Lost Cause” mythos — gained traction.3
The KKK eventually became a powerful organization in Boulder County and at
the state level, and many of the attacks in Boulder County were targeted at Latino
individuals. Their exclusion from the community was exemplified in signs saying “No
Mexicans Allowed” posted in front of shops and restaurants across Colorado. In 1922,
the Klan organized four parades through the town of Boulder. One included nearly 300
Klansmen, 63 cars and a float covered in white.4

1 City of Boulder Tribal Nations and Indigenous Peoples Collaborations. Retrieved from: https://cityofboulder.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/CMO/RECT/_

10layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7B933f44b9-df29-4266-9420-008fa47c2266%7D&action=edit&wdPid=7f4cbeaa
2 Two key Boulder leaders of the Sand Creek Massacre were David Nichols and John Chivington. In 1863, Nichols was elected Boulder Sheriff, but left thatpost the following year to join the Third Colorado Volunteer Cavalry as a captain. Governor John Evans tasked this unit with the suppression of indigenous
peoples. As a military officer, Nichols participated in the Sand Creek Massacre on November 29, 1864. After, Nichols left the sheriff ’s office having been
elected to the Territorial Legislature. In this capacity, he played a key role in the formation of the University of Colorado at Boulder. Retreived from: https://www.cpr.org/show-segment/when-to-stop-honoring-a-questionable-historical-figure-cus-had-that-debate/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_H._
Nichols
Colonel John Chivington commanded the US Army forces at Sand Creek, and organized a Masonic Lodge in Gold Hill. Retrieved from: https://www.nps.
gov/sand/learn/historyculture/john-chivington-biography.htm, https://www.dailycamera.com/2014/11/15/boulder-county-shares-in-sand-creek-massacreinfamy/, http://www.coloradofreemasons.org/pdfDocuments/chivington.pdf
Historical legacy of Sand Creek and continued conflict with indigenous peoples. Retrieved from: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/horrific-sandcreek-massacre-will-be-forgotten-no-more-180953403/, https://www.nps.gov/articles/sandcreek.htm
3 “When Bigotry Paraded Through the Streets” (2016). Retrieved from: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/12/second-klan/509468/
4 Bowley, Nicoli R., “Ten Dollars to Hate Somebody”: Hispanic Communities and the Ku Klux Klan in Colorado, 1917-1925 (2017)Retrieved from: https://scholar.colorado.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2497&context=honr_theses

Continued on next pageR a c i a l H i s t o r y o f t h e C i t y o f B o u l d e r, c o n t i n u e d

Due to a labor shortage, the immigrant work force was somewhat welcomed fora short time throughout the early to mid-twentieth century. However, after demand
subsided and laborers were less needed, people were sent away. On May 18, 1932,
the Boulder County Commissioners passed a resolution funding the deportationof Mexican families to the United States-Mexico border based on “there being noprospect of them finding employment.”5
During the first half of the 20th century, explicit racism gave way to more implicit
forms of racism, legally continuing racial and socio-economic segregation. Earlyzoning maps and regulations were used throughout the U.S. to prevent racial andethnic minorities from moving into middle- and upper-class neighborhoods.6 Federal
policies such as redlining and discriminatory lending practices were common practicethat effectively denied the American dream of homeownership to many people ofcolor.7
Local policies are and have been more nuanced, but often still lead to similardisparate impacts as those of explicitly discriminatory policies. A citywide height
limit on new construction (ca. 55 feet) to maintain scenic views of the foothills and
Flatirons prevented the city from growing upwards. The height limit, the green beltthat limited outward expansion of housing, and the fact that a significant portion of
the city is zoned exclusively for single-family residential development, all indirectly
contribute to the high cost of housing in Boulder.8
The high cost of housing in Boulder creates a growing economic divide within
the community.9 Boulder also places a high value on community engagementin the development process, which increases the time and cost to build homes.
The imposition of affordable housing impact fees and inclusionary housing
requirements that provide permanently affordable housing have the indirect impact
of increasing the cost of all residential development. Anecdotally, Boulder’s highdesign expectations, energy efficiency and climate goals, limited vacant land fordevelopment, high proportion of jobs to homes, and numerous other polices all havean indirect impact on housing costs. Combined with the historic federal policies andthe lack of opportunity to build generational wealth, high housing costs continue toimpact who can afford to live in Boulder.
It is important to recognize the racial disparities in Boulder’s demographics do notrest solely on zoning and housing policies. In 1974, the City of Boulder elected its firstand only Black mayor, Penfield Tate II. He was mayor until 1976. Tate advocated forequality for all and took action to protect the LGBTQ+community and make them feel
more welcome.10

5 Boulder County Commissioners’ Resolution, agreeing to pay train fare for unemployed Mexican families to the border, May 18, 1932. Retrieved from:https://teachbocolatinohistory.colorado.edu

6 Silver, Christopher, The Racial Origins of Zoning in American Cities. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications (1997)
7 Race: The Power of an Illusion Ep. 3 https://www.racepowerofanillusion.org/episodes/three
8 Babcock, Richard; Fred Bosselman, Exclusionary Zoning: Land Use Regulation and Housing in the 1970s. New York: Praeger Publishers (1973)
9 2019 Community Profile. The chart comparing the median sales price of detached and attached homes in Boulder shows a divergence between housing

prices and income starting in 2012. A household needs to earn approximately $200,000 a year to afford the median home price in Boulder (assuming 3.5%
interest rate, typical homeowner expenses and the homeowner pays no more than 1/3 of their income on housing) https://www-static.bouldercolorado.gov/
docs/Middle_Income_Housing_Strategy_October_2016-1-201611221422.pdf

10 Taylor, Carol, Boulder’s LGBT history has many lessons to teach, including that backlash often follows progress (2016). Retrieved from http://getboulder.com/boulders-lgbt-history/11

R a c i a l H i s t o r y o f t h e C i t y o f B o u l d e r, c o n t i n u e d
He attempted to introduce a sexual preference amendment to Boulder’s Human
Rights Ordinance, but it lost adoption by the general public. Residents then sought torecall Tate and all council members who supported the amendment. While the recall of
Tate failed, he did not win in the next election.11Tate is quoted as saying, “The measureof a great city and a great country is not the size of its greenbelt but how it treats its
people.”A 2015 article in Boulder Weekly “Black in Boulder: Boulder racism through the eyesof people of color” sums up the reality for people of color living in Boulder:“I think, generally speaking, people in Boulder pride themselves
on being very liberal, very progressive. On top of that, they’re very
well off overall. I think that idea of liberalism sometimes blinds
to the notion of where people in this community contribute to
the perpetuation of white privilege or white supremacy — even if
they aren’t of mind or heart, a person who thinks that these otherpeople are less than.”From 2012 to 2017, civil rights complaints that pertained to unequal treatment in
employment, housing charges and public accommodations increased in Boulder.
The Community Perception Assessment of Boulder12 and the Human Relations
Commission Speak-out event in 2018 revealed stories of Muslim women afraid towear headscarves, because they were being insulted in the streets; parents driving
their children to Longmont for school, because they were being treated differently
by teachers and school administration in Boulder; and people being followed by
employees in stores because of the color of their skin.
Across the United States, a person’s race remains a key predictor of access,
opportunity, safety, and well-being. Boulder is no exception to this. According to theAmerican Community Survey, in 2017 the overall poverty rate in Boulder County was
12.6% for white individuals but jumped to an average of 23.4% for all other races and23.5% for Latino county residents. Over the years, the City of Boulder has attempted
to examine, as individuals and groups, what diversity, equity and inclusion mean to ourorganization and community. Despite these efforts and good intentions, this work has
had limited success in improving racial equity.
As described above, policies and decisions were driven by a variety of motivations.
Actions ranged from unquestionably racist to well-meaning and popularly supported
but lacking consideration of long-term, unintended consequences. These eventsand actions were not unique to Boulder and occurred throughout the United

11 University of Colorado Boulder, Penfield Wallace Tate II (1968), retrieved from https://www.colorado.edu/law/pen-wallace-tate-ii-68
12 Community Perception Assessment of Boulder as a Safe and Inclusive Communit. Retrieved from: https://www-static.bouldercolorado.gov/docs/CPA-1202003061252.pdf

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R a c i a l H i s t o r y o f t h e C i t y o f B o u l d e r, c o n t i n u e dStates. However, a more recent rising awareness of racial equity provides us with acontemporary opportunity to scrutinize past decisions through a new lens. We are ina position to consider both socio-economic and racial factors while correcting harmsthat originated in the past.
To be clear, this plan does not advocate for reversing past policy decisions. Rather,
the challenge now is to ensure our policies reflect all community values, including
environmental protection, quality of life and racial and soci-economic equity. To dothis, we must train a critical eye on past policies and consider their impacts in future
decision-making as we actively promote measures to help resolve inequity.
The city intends to understand its relationship with race and is endeavoringto create systems in order to collect data that supports a deeper understandingof its actions and impacts, as well as data to help identify and track outcomes ofracial equity work. In December 2019, the City Council of the City of Boulder passed
Resolution 127513 “…committing the City of Boulder to promote racial equity in city
relationships, programs, services and policies.”
The City of Boulder has historically leveraged its local resources to push policy
efforts upwards to effect systemic change. Like climate policy and policies that
address root causes of homelessness, both rooted in consequences of past policy
decisions, the city’s efforts to address Racial Equity should be part of a broader
regional, state and national effort. We cannot and should not do this alone. We must
work together to accomplish scalable change to rectify a system that, for too long,
has continued to cause so much harm.

13 Council Resolution #1275. Retrieved from: https://www-static.bouldercolorado.gov/docs/signed_copy_of_Res_1275-1-202004221428.pdf?_
ga=2.95372383.2144821488.1611337950-18428063.1598546093

Find more resources about the racial history of Boulder at the end of this Racial Equity Plan.

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Timeline of Work To Date
The City of Boulder has a history, commitment, and intention of improving the ability towelcome, support and serve people of diverse backgrounds within the community andcity organization. The city’s first diversity policy was developed more than twenty years
ago, and efforts continue to this day.

Brief chronology of key, equity-related milestones to date
1973
The city established the Human Relations Commission by ordinance, which had begun its work for the cityin the late 1960s. The commission focused on community relations in its formative years, holding public
meetings and issuing reports on a range of social issues: race relations, homelessness, services for seniors
and youth and poverty, among others.

1999 — 2004
The City of Boulder established agreements with 13 federally recognized American Indian Tribal Nations. These
agreements recognized that Tribal Nations and the city share several common open space interests, including
preserving the land and cultural resources and providing access for ceremonial practices on open space lands.

2005
In response to a series of hate-motivated incidents Frank Bruno who was the city manager at the time,
established a commitment to developing mechanisms to ensure rapid response to hate incidents as well as
ongoing effective engagement with community groups.

2006
Establishment of an Inclusiveness and Diversity Team (IDT) to further a City Council initiative ensuring theorganization models the ideals of inclusion and diversity.

2008
City’s first partnership with CU’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement on the CU Diversity
Summit.

2009
IDT published an ID plan and toolkit as a resource for departments wanting to create their own tailored equity
plans.

2009 — 2016
Various trainings and other resources were provided to employees by the IDT on topics such as socioeconomic diversity, invisible disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues.

2012
The city embarked on its vision and values initiative and adopted the value of Respect “We champion diversity
and welcome individual perspectives, backgrounds and opinions. We are open-minded and treat all individuals
with respect and dignity.”

2015
Boulder City Council adopted Resolution No. 1178 as drafted by the Human Relations Commission re-affirming
Boulder’s status as and commitment to be an inclusive community, its commitment to working with local
partners to improve support for and inclusion of diversity, and encouraging other jurisdictions and theirelected leaders to do the same.

14

2016
— The city organization refocused on equity with the first Employee Engagement survey to determine abaseline level of employee understanding, value and support of inclusion and diversity.
— In collaboration with community members and the Human Relations commission, Boulder City Council
Adopted Resolution No. 1190 a resolution declaring the second Monday of October of each year to be
Indigenous Peoples Day. The resolution acknowledges that:— The Boulder area encompasses ancestral homelands of Indigenous Peoples’ Nations.   
— Indigenous People in Boulder have, as in all parts of the Americas, endured centuries ofcruelty, exploitation and genocide.
— Facing and acknowledging our past, good as well as bad, makes our community stronger and more
resilient.  
— Boulder has benefited directly from Indian removal policies that violated human rights, brokegovernment treaties and forced [Indigenous Peoples] from their homeland.
— Those now living on these ancestral lands recognize that harm was done and acknowledge that wehave a shared responsibility to forge a path forward to address the past and continuing harm to theIndigenous People and the land.

2017— City Council added Chapter 12-5 “Undocumented Persons” to the Boulder Revised Code declaring the Cityof Boulder as a Sanctuary City.
— Community Perceptions Assessment finding a persistent lack of inclusion and safety, particularly by nonmajority community members and newcomers.
— Results from assessment informed the Human Relations Commission’s 2018-2020 work plan, which
included: expanding community outreach and education to increase visibility of and dialogue about
issues that are barriers to a welcoming and inclusive community; expanding public participation byscheduling events at times and locations convenient to all members of the public; and supporting
community awareness and education activities of local organizations.

2018— In early March 2018, the Boulder City Council passed an ordinance amending the fire code to allow
community members to conduct ceremonial fires within the city via permit.
— The City of Boulder entered partnership with the Government Alliance on Race and Equity and shifted
its equity efforts from administering surveys and assessments to gauge awareness, strengths, andopportunities; to becoming more strategic, operationalized and focused on equity as a value integrated
into organizational culture.

2019— In August of 2019, through the work of its Human Relations Commission, the City of Boulder passed
Ordinance No. 8335 —the Bias-motivated Hate Crimes Ordinance— significantly expanding protections
provided. These included enhanced prosecutorial ability and protections for religious expression covering
religious practices by Sikhs, Muslims, Orthodox Jews and other minority groups.
— Resolution 1275 was passed in December of 2019 as a resolution committing the City of Boulder topromote racial equity in city relationships, programs, services, and policies.
— The City of Boulder conducted formal government-to-government consultations with federally recognizedAmerican Indian Tribal nations. The City of Boulder respects American Indian Tribal sovereignty andself-determination and conducts government-to-government consultations with federally recognized
Tribal Nations. These relationships help us in addressing the past and ongoing harm to the Indigenous
Peoples and the land. Consultations also help us fulfill the Indigenous People’s Day Resolution and citytribal agreements. The city has invited the following American Indian Tribal Nations to participate ingovernment-to-government consultations:— Apache Tribe of Oklahoma— Cheyenne and Arapaho
Tribes of Oklahoma— Cheyenne River Sioux— Comanche Nation of
Oklahoma— Eastern Shoshone Tribe— Jicarilla Apache Nation— Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma— Northern Arapaho Tribe— Northern Cheyenne Tribe— Oglala Sioux Tribe— Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma— Rosebud Sioux Tribe— Southern Ute Indian Tribe— Standing Rock Sioux Tribe— Ute Indian Tribe of the
Uintah & Ouray Reservation— Ute Mountain Ute Tribes

15

Since starting this work in 2018, a core team of city employees from all levels of the organization
have been working to normalize racial equity work through training, building leadership supportand ensuring racial equity is the city’s highest priority. Featured activities include:
Training— Advancing Racial Equity: The Role of Government (ARE) is the cornerstone workshop required of all racial
equity core team members, supervisors, new employees, council members and is made available forboards, commissions, and all other city employees. The workshop introduces the role, responsibilities, andopportunities for government to advance racial equity. Participants gain an understanding of racial equity
terminology, including implicit and explicit bias and individual, institutional, and structural racism. Theygain skill at identifying and addressing institutional and structural racism and increase capacity toadvance racial equity in the workplace.
— Racial Equity Instrument: Intro and Best Practices is a follow up to ARE and is an opportunity to gain
understanding and practice with the six steps of the Racial Equity Instrument. Participants learn how toleverage the instrument within work groups or projects to address impacts, as well as learn practices forassessing the development, implementation, and evaluation of programs, policies, and budgets.
— Bias and Microaggression is currently a requirement for all city employees and is intended to beoffered to council, advisory boards, and commissions. This training is an extension of the city’s work
to dismantle systemic racism and inequities at various levels with a focus on the interpersonal level.
This training engages individuals in committing to lifelong training, while learning to have courageousconversations about race, white supremacy culture and equity. This training was designed specificallyfor the city based on a series of focus group conversations with a local consulting team, Kebaya CIRCLE.
Future sessions will be hosted with trained city employee equity ambassadors.
Analysis— Inventory of existing efforts was conducted to understand equity efforts occurring across the city to share
across the organization, align resources, build capacity and inform the Racial Equity Plan.
— Community Perceptions Assessment in 2017 was utilized as a baseline of information for the Racial Equity
Plan.
— Historic inequities in Boulder were researched by all racial equity core team members and combined into
the racial equity story as the introduction to the Racial Equity Plan.
Urgency and Prioritization— Guiding Coalition members including: council members Mary Young, Aaron Brockett, Adam Swetlik,
Junie Joseph, and Rachel Friend work with other city leadership, including: Interim City Manager Chris
Meschuk, Police Chief Maris Herold, Housing and Human Services Director Kurt Firnhaber, Human
Resources Director Jennifer Sprinkle, Director of Planning and Services Development Jacob
Lindsey and Equity Program Manager Aimee Kane to provide leadership and oversight to the Racial Equity
Core Team. Monthly meetings are an opportunity to learn of the core team’s advancement while also
providing high-level strategic planning and guidance. This leverages many council members and internalcity leadership to champion an equity focus while making decisions.
Creating Tools— The Racial Equity Instrument, based on GARE’s Racial Equity Toolkit, was developed in addition toaccompanying employee training. This six-step model actively inserts racial equity into decision making
processes with a particular emphasis in the second step which is an opportunity to create a robust public
engagement plan. Additionally, it includes evaluating options and developing recommendations basedon that public input. The instrument can be helpful when used at any decision-making phase, but it has
the most impact when used at the forefront of planning for a program, project, or budgeting process. As
the instrument training is being rolled out several high-priority projects have been identified where theinstrument can be piloted and modified to ensure the most effective results.
— The Rapid Response Racial Equity Assessment was developed as part of the city’s COVID-19
Recovery plan. This four-step process was an opportunity to embed a racial equity focus when making
fast action decisions during the pandemic in partnership with a group of community Recovery Equity
Connectors who can provide input into recovery efforts and ensure those most impacted by the virus are
given the necessary guidance and resources to minimize illness and death.
— A Racial Equity Assessment is being established and provides a platform for departments to selfassess the status of equity work in their departments, using both qualitative and quantitative information,with the guidance of the Equity Assessment Team. The information gathered via the Equity Assessment
will serve as guidance for the department to begin or continue equity work and will set the foundation forequity-related goal setting specific to their business unit.    

16

Strategy and Planning— The Racial Equity Plan as guided by Council Resolution 1275 directs the city manager, in partnershipwith the community to develop a plan for delivering services in a manner that promotes racial equity
and directs strategic actions to advance and achieve equity, including: intentional collective leadership;community engagement, development of equity tools and infrastructure to support and sustain systemicchanges; and a shared accountability with metrics on progress that can be reported back to thecommunity including training by city council members.  
Community, Connection and Communication— The Communication and Engagement Department hired the city’s first language access program
manager, Manuela Sifuentes, in April 2020. This integral role is designed to coordinate language accessprograms and services across the city organization, further inclusive engagement strategies, and provide
bilingual, culturally competent counsel, direction, implementation, and oversight to better support
community members whose primary language is Spanish.
— The Community Connectors model was established in the spring of 2018 to better meet community
members where they are. Community Connectors strengthen the relationship between communityand city government by partnering to serve as a trusted voice within their neighborhoods or circles.
Community Connectors are bicultural and bilingual (e.g., English/Spanish, English/Nepali) and receive astipend for their time and expertise. A few examples of Community Connector programs that specificallywork to advance racial equity by focusing on the inclusion of voices of community members of color are
included below:— Recovery Equity Connectors – Seven members who ensure that the perspectives of community
members of color and Rapid Response Racial Equity Assessments are included in city decisionmaking throughout recovery process from June 2020 through the present— Emergency Response Connectors – 11 Community Connectors (part of a larger team that also
includes 23 volunteers) who build trust between community members and local government,
sharing COVID-19 updates and public health guidelines, reaching out and navigating for basic needs
services, and surfacing the issues and ideas of community members from March 2020 through thepresent— City Text Boulder - four Community Connectors who designed outreach for the city’s bilingual
texting platform pilot, City Text Boulder, from June 2019 – April 2020
— East Boulder Subcommunity Planning Working Group - Two Community Connectors, one of whom isthe only resident of the East Boulder subcommunity on the Working Group, who co-design and cofacilitate outreach and engagement opportunities for the San Lazaro, Vista Village and larger Latino
community from May 2019 through the present— The Communication and Engagement team has developed several opportunities for Spanish-speaking
community members to connect with council members. A few examples include:— Interpretation into Spanish of City Council meetings, including COVID-19 updates andpresentations/public hearings on Manufactured Home Sales Ordinance, on September 1, 2020 and
December 1, 2020.
— Reflecting the Governor’s Stay-at-Home order, virtual Chats with Council were hosted, either
Spanish-first (in partnership with KGNU’s Pasa La Voz) or interpreted into Spanish, on April 26, May
13, and May 18, 2020, for community members to share about issues that matter most to them.
— Beginning in the fall of 2018, the Engagement team partnered with Sacred Heart of Jesus Church
to host a series of Spanish-first Conversaciones con la Ciudad, or Chats with Council, wherecongregants could raise issues or concerns important to them and their communities. This programis currently on hold because of the pandemic.
— A Racial Equity web page has been created with up-to-date information about the city’s racial equity
efforts with an option for community members to register for updates and information about the city’s
racial equity work.

17

Racial Equity Engagement Working GroupThe purpose of
the Racial Equity
Engagement
Working Groupwas to co-design
meaningful
and inclusive
engagement andexpand the city’s outreach so that community
members could weigh in on the draft outline of aCity of Boulder Racial Equity Plan.

This Working Group consisted of seven working group members, with a majority being people of color.
Group members had clear ties to the city and/or a demonstrated ability to work with partner organizations that serve communities of color. The working group was facilitated by Magnolia Landa-Posasand met together for a total of six sessions from November 2019 through October 2020.
Members of the Racial Equity Engagement Working Group included:— Ingrid Castro-Campos— Julie Schoenfeld— Ken Iha
— Maria Murillo— Marina La Grave— Nikhil Mankekar— Dr. Sheila Davis

18

Community Feedback on the
Racial Equity Plan Outline
Community feedback on the plan was primarily collected through community partner feedback
sessions, recommended by the Racial Equity Engagement Working Group and facilitated in-person
or via online meetings, as well as through the city’s Be Heard Boulder online engagement platform.
As recommended by the Racial Equity Engagement Working Group, staff primarily focused bandwidthand resources on ensuring that outreach specifically engaged community members of color andtheir perspectives, thoughts, and lived experience.
Feedback Session Community Partners— CU Diversity and Inclusion Summit— Human Relations Commission— Latina Community Members (Spanish-first session
co-designed with Community Connector)— Leadership Fellows Boulder County (Fellows andAlum)— NAACP, Boulder County— Nepali Community Members (co-designed with
Community Connector and in partnership with
Rocky Mountain Friends of Nepal and Nepal America
Sociocultural Exchange Society)— Recovery Equity Connectors— Sabrina Sideris’ CU Class— ¡Suma! – part of the Boulder County Cultural Brokers
Resilience Program— Youth Opportunities Advisory Board

Three overarching themes became clear in compiling and analyzing community feedback:— Resonant content— Need for further detail— Plan for accountability

In response to the content of the Racial Equity Plan, the overwhelming reaction of community
members was that the goals and strategies listed resonated, reflected the previously heard concernsof the community, and were headed in a positive direction (e.g., “everything here is on the righttrack”). While sharing the aspects of the plan that resonated most, community members in generalalso shared “some skepticism about translating good intentions into effective life-changing policy.”
To address this, community members expressed the need for more definition and clarity around thetimeline of the Racial Equity Plan. Including further details around each goal, as well as a defined
timeline for what progress on the goals will be made by when. Additionally, community members
expressed that while a plan on paper is a good start, truly successful implementation of the Racial
Equity Plan will depend on ensuring effective accountability and evaluation towards outcomes
identified within the plan.
In addition to high level goals and strategies, the plan outlines action items with proposed shortterm outcomes through 2022, mid-term outcomes through 2025 and long-term outcomes through2030. Suggested output data accompany the individual activities.

19

Planning Timeframe and Tracking Progress
The time horizon for the Racial Equity Plan is three years. Progress will be reported by staff andreviewed annually by City Council with the opportunity for possible amendments to the plan toreflect changes in circumstances and community desires every three years.
The Racial Equity Plan describes goals and strategies for staff, boards, City Council, as well as coordination with the community and partners to advance racial equity. This will be done by ensuring that the City of
Boulder’s policies, programs, and practices are free from institutional and systemic racism and support a highquality of life and access to opportunity for community members of all races and ethnicities.
We heard from the community that this Racial Equity Plan is only as good as the accountability mechanisms that demand tangible progress. To honor this feedback, as well as the importance of these goals andstrategies, staff will report annually on progress, showing the degree to which staff have advanced strategies
and achieved outcomes, as detailed below.
Within the logic model, each outcome includes a measurable output. Many of these outputs are unable toinclude specific figures, as the city simply does not yet have accurate baseline data. As reflected elsewhere in
the logic model, collecting this baseline data is a top priority. Outcomes will also be measured in results fromstaff racial equity training assessments, as well as the city’s biannual Community Survey, especially in response to prompts (e.g., “I feel included in the Boulder community”) where results will be disaggregated by race
and analyzed by trends over time.
Recognizing the need to measure outcomes quantitatively (e.g., numbers, figures) and qualitatively (e.g.,experiences, narrative), staff also plan to co-design and co-host a series of focus group listening sessions
with community members of color. The goal of these annual sessions will be to hear more about the lived
experience of community members of color, as well as the impacts of the city’s work to advance racial equity.
Additionally, many outcomes will be further developed through departmental racial equity plans. Supporting
departments in identifying specific measurements will lead to outputs that are more measurable, realistic, andaccurate.
As staff track and communicate our status, we will also gather input from the community to determine theeffectiveness of programs and projects that advance Racial Equity Plan strategies and outcomes. City staff
also plan to provide an update to City Council each year. This update will include progress on outcomes (measured against outputs where possible), how racial equity priorities determined budget decisions, challenges
faced, and accomplishments of the city’s work in continuing to advance racial equity. Proposed next steps andadjustments to short-term, mid-term and long-term outcomes in response to City Council feedback may also
be included. Updates will be publicly available through an information packet written for council, an oral presentation given to council, and a series of digestible mediums for community members, such as videos, brief
online or printed overviews, community gatherings, etc.

As we move forward over the next three years, this living plan will continue to reflect thecommunity’s goals well into the future, and City Council will have annual opportunities toreview and discuss progress. After three years, the plan will be updated to reflect changes incircumstances, community desires and new priorities.

20

Goals and Strategies
Goal 1 — Everybody gets it.
The city will normalize and operationalize understanding of institutional and structural
racism among people who work for or represent the City of Boulder, including city staff,
City Council, Boards and Commissions, and ongoing program volunteers.
Strategy 1.1: Develop equity-focused leadership at all levels— Leverage the Guiding Coalition to ensure racial equity is embedded in council priorities.
— Develop expectation across work groups to participate on Racial Equity Teams.

Strategy 1.2: Develop workplace-based equity teams— Organize Racial Equity Teams responsible for leading implementation of the Action Plans within theirrespective departments.

Strategy 1.3: Provide Racial Equity Training— Provide introductory Racial Equity Training to all employees.
— In the Racial Equity Training, use a “train-the-trainer” model to continue to build internal expertise.
Provide Racial Equity Toolkit training to all managers. Provide training on communications and messaging
about racial equity to appropriate staff.
— Make Implicit Bias and Microaggression training mandatory for staff, council, boards, commissions, andvolunteers.
— Provide New Employee Orientation (NEO) that grounds new staff members in our organizational culture
and what the city is working towards.
— Make the Advancing Racial Equity: The Role of Government training mandatory for all supervisors andavailable for all staff members.
— Make Using a Racial Equity Instrument training available for all staff members (Advancing Racial Equity:
The Role of Government is prerequisite)— Provide opportunities for staff to engage in meaningful conversations about race.
— Establish clear racial equity expectation language and implement in handbooks, scopes of work, RFPs,
and contracts.

21

Goal 2 — Justly do it.
The city will take action to end racial disparities in city services.
Strategy 2.1: Achieve commitment at the department level— Departments will create their own Racial Equity Teams and Plans (identify areas of exploration to analyze,
the plan to prioritize that work, instrument applied to anything new).

Strategy 2.2: Operationalize the Racial Equity Instrument— Utilize the Racial Equity Instrument into new city programs and policies.
— Weave the Racial Equity Instrument into the city’s decision-making process.
— Strategically integrate the Racial Equity Instrument into the city’s existing programs, policies and budgets.

Strategy 2.3: Integrate racial equity into master and strategic Plans— Ensure consideration of racial equity is incorporated into the development of new master and strategicplans.
— Include Racial Equity Instrument in the city’s proposed planning toolkits.

Strategy 2.4: Focus on racial equity in stewarding public funds, racial equity programming and city
financial processes— Utilize the Racial Equity Instrument into budget, purchasing and procurement processes.
— Expand Minority-Owned Business policy beyond federal grants.
— Ensure broader accessibility of city financial processes, including grants, RFPs, taxes, and other processes.

Goal 3 — Community Commitment.
The city will strengthen partnerships and collaborate with community members andorganizations that demonstrate a commitment to ending racism.
Strategy 3.1: Partner with community— Identify organizations and community members interested in partnership and work together to establish
ways we can coordinate, collaborate, and complement each other’s work.
— Leverage council members in outreach and engagement within the community.

Strategy 3.2: Build community organizational capacity— Improve relationships between organizations focusing on advancing racial equity, establish mutually
beneficial best practices for communications and areas of collaboration.

Strategy 3.3: Seek opportunities to support and promote the value of diversity and multiculturalism
Strategy 3.4: Recognize history of institutional racism within the City of Boulder— Model changes in systems and structures that may guide other organizations in implementing similarchanges.
— Incorporate history of institutional racism and past lessons learned into staff training and decision-making
processes.
— Ensure broader accessibility of city financial processes, including grants, RFPs, taxes, and other processes.

22

Goal 4 — Power to all people.
The city will build and maintain trust, expanding the influence of community membersof color through inclusive and responsive engagement.
Strategy 4.1: Improve access to decision-makers— Identify and address structural inequities in access to council/decision makers.

Strategy 4.2: Support city-community relationships through staffing— Build trust and ensure staff has the responsibility, skills, and cultural proficiency to establish lasting
relationships.

Strategy 4.3: Focus on high-quality community engagement— Develop, share, and incorporate best practices and resources to support accessible, inclusive, andwelcoming engagement.
— Create collaborative opportunities to plan and implement engagement with people of color.

Strategy 4.4: Value lived experience— Listen and be responsive to community needs and recognize the value of lived experiences, assets, andstrengths within communities of color.

Strategy 4.5: Address language, cultural and engagement access barriers— Increase strategic use of interpretation and translation services as well as facilitation in languages otherthan English.
— Further develop and encourage the use of resources and tactics designed to meet community members
where they are (e.g., Community Connectors, micro-engagements).

Goal 5 — Representation matters.
The city will eliminate barriers and create opportunities to build a diverse workforce
across the depth and breadth of local government including elected officials, boards,
commissions and working groups.
Strategy 5.1: Address boards, commissions and working groups— Collect the demographic data of boards, commissions and working groups.
— Revamp application process, including forms, to support increased inclusivity.
— Ensure outreach and recruitment processes support and encourage racial equity.
— Identify and mitigate barriers in the operations of board, commission and working group meetings (timesof day, frequency, locations, days of the week, etc.).

Strategy 5.2: Develop City of Boulder’s workforce
Hiring— Expand outreach opportunities to attract a more diverse applicant pool.
— Integrate racial demographics into screening matrix.
Recruitment— Evaluate new and existing position descriptions to reduce barriers to access (e.g., higher education,
professional associations).
Retention— Create support structures for employee racial and ethnic affinity groups.
— Explore and implement compensation for language skills.

23

Short Term Outcomes
The City of Boulder will use a logic model as one tool to maintain accountability
and measure the impact of our efforts. The following are some of the short term
outcomes and some of the feedback that helped shape this plan.

Training would
be effective

How will you collectevidence the tool isbeing used by ALL
departments withfidelity?

weave equity into
ALL city’s decision
processes

Slow down.
Change happensat the speed oftrust.

...how to be “seen”
when for years POC
were not seen.

24

What
to expectin 2022Growing city staff and leaders’
understanding and capacity for, and action
to promote and achieve racial equity

City leadershipand employees at
all levels increaseawareness,knowledge andshared commitment
to anti-racism.

Create, modify and use
equity tools, instruments
and assessments

City staff understandand increasingly
utilize racial equity
assessment tools
and instruments for
decision making.

Conduct equity trainings

City staff collectrelevant data,
coordinate
data systems tounderstand and trackneeds and impacts.

Collect
Collectand
andanalyze
analyzemeaningful
meaningfuldata
dataPowering continuous, increased level andrate of improvement by integrating racial
equity data into our decision processes

Prioritize inclusive
community engagement
Increasing empowerment and efficacy of people ofcolor community members for engagement in city
program and process decision making

Use resolutions
and declarations toprioritize, elevate andevaluate racial equity

Complete inventoryof barriers forcommunities ofcolor to publicly
participate. Pilot
co-design of new
inclusive engagement
opportunities.

City Council normalizes
the use of resolutions anddeclarations in alignment with
the Racial Equity Plan. Staffand community members
increasingly understandthe purpose and function ofresolutions and declarations.

2022...find ways to pay people
and organizations fortheir consultation andinvolvement.

Collaborate withinstitutional partners

The participation
between the government
and the agencies andorganizations... should
increase.

Engage in GARE Networkand other professionalgroups committed toadvancing equity

Racial Equity Teamsneed to be the leadersthat guide everybody.

Seeing morecultural managers inimportant positions orjobs, that will help ourcommunity a lot.

Very importantthat money is being
dedicated towards
these initiatives.

Implement
departmental andcitywide equity
policies

Understand and inventory
the racial equity work
being done by our
institutional partners to
be aware of, and continue
support and expansion of
coordinated efforts.

Understand and inventory
the racial equity work
being done by our
institutional partners to
be aware of, and continue
support and expansion of
coordinated efforts.

Each city department
has in place a Justice,
Equity, Diversity andInclusion (JEDI) Team.

Prioritize a diverse andinclusive workforce

Establish diversification
goals. Applicationof the Racial Equity
Instrument tocity workforce HR
processes.

Infuse equity in city
investments

Increase use of Racial
Equity Instrument (REI)and Rapid Response
Equity Assessment(RREA) to assess andimprove key investment
programs.

25

Full Logic Model
ACTIVITIESSHORT-TERM

ACTIVITIESConduct Equity Trainings

City leadership and employees at all levels
increase awareness, knowledge, sharedcommitment to anti-racism.

City staff retain knowledge from
City staff routinely evaluate, modify, add
trainings; increasingly utilize trainings toto training offerings to reinforce and build
change institutional habits, processes,
racial equity capacity at all levels.
decisions.

Increase in training participation by offering
at least 4 trainings with 30 participant
Continue to host trainings for new staff
capacity. 5 case studies on how Instrument and evaluate usefulness.
was used in decision making process

Bias & Microaggression

All city staff participate in Bias andMicroaggression Training by end of 2022

Improved employee engagement and areduction in the number of employeesof color leaving the city

City staff understand and increasingly
utilize racial equity assessment tools andinstruments for decision making.

City staff utilize racial equity
assessment tools in all budget andMaster Plan processes. Council, Boards,
Committees, Commissions increasingly
understand and utilize assessment
tools.

OUTCOMES
Long-term
Outcomes(2030)(2030)OUTPUT DATA
Output Data

Improved knowledge of racial equity
concepts among employees andleaderships through feedback from
employee engagement surveys

Number of trainings held, number ofparticipants and staff levels trained, trends
by survey responses, staff exit interviews

Racial equity is integrated regularly into
routine operations and budgets

Number of trainings held, number ofparticipants and staff levels trained, trends
by survey responses

Improved knowledge of racial equity
concepts among employees andleaderships through feedback from
employee engagement surveys

Number of trainings held, number ofparticipants and staff levels trained, trends
by survey responses, staff exit interviews

Racial Equity Instrument

Standardized racial equity performance
Utilization of the racial equity instrument metric tracking across all departments,
as part of all Master and Strategic planning incorporated into department-level Masterand Strategic Plans and tracked as part ofprocesses
unified cross-department reporting

Rapid Response Equity
Assessment

Each recovery team implements theassessment for half of their decisions.
Baseline established for utilization Rapid
Response Racial Equity Assessment inbudgeting processes. Include use of theassessment in relation to any emergency
situations that arise.

All continuing recovery team decisions
will use the assessment. Rapid
Response Racial Equity Assessment
used in all budgeting processes;
including dashboard to allow for
Executive budget decision making
across departments. Continue to use
the assessment in relation to any
emergency situations that arise.

Continue to refine assessment as needed.

Standardized reporting of % contribution ofproject/programs toward overall city
budgetary commitment to improving racial
equity within the staff and within thecommunity; incorporate % change per year
(ROI) per department-level Master Plan
Goals

Departmental Equity
Assessment Tool

Completion of development of theassessment tool (for individuals andworkgroups) by Q1 2021. Assessment
facilitated by Pilot JEDI teams to pilot
departments by Q3 2021 and updated
based on feedback by Q4 2021. Begin rollout of assessment tool to additional
departments with JEDI teams by end of2022.

Completion of the racial equity
assessment tool by 50% of individuals
and 50% of workgroups within theirdepartment and identification of wheredepartmental equity policies need to besolidified and areas in which there aregaps.

All departments complete RE assessment Standardized reporting of trends fromtool every 2 years to evaluate progress and assessment tool results, by department withinform the modification, updating andreference to citywide RE Plan outcomescontinued improvement of departmental (e.g., % contribution, growth trajectory,plans to continue progress and alignment types of concerns, %resources considered,with the citywide RE Plan outcomes.
%polices evaluated and refined)

City staff collect relevant data, coordinate
data systems to understand and trackneeds and impacts.

City staff consolidate data, increasingly
use analysis tools to more deeply
identify racial equity trends.
Increasingly communicating data
publicly in an easy to understandmanner.

City staff, Council, Boards, Committees
and Commissions routinely evaluate,
modify, improve upon data systems anddata utilization. Staff routinely use data incommunity engagement processes.

Collect and make accessible unified
demographic and prosperity data (e.g.,
economic, health, safety) on our
residential, workforce, university affiliates,and visitors [for consistent impact analysis
support]All departments develop and share RE
analysis methodology, as well as resultsfrom annual impact assessments(progress toward Master Plan RE goals);
link all analyses to master data story
hub (Open Data Portal)

Support interactive RE data platform (rawand analyzed) to empower leadership toroutinely incorporate RE data and impact
results (e.g., community-level RE FitBit)
into normal strategic conversations andcommunity sharing work

% departments with explicit RE goals(related to city-wide efforts), % departmentswith logged RE analysis methodology, %departments completing annual impact
analysis, % departments with RE reporting
on Open Data Portal, % departments
contributing to interactive data platform

Demonstrate substantive Collect and make accessible demographic
commitment todata on all staff, by department andrepresentation within staff at function [for consistent impact analysis
support]all levels

All departments report annually as part All departments complete and report onof Master Plan progress tracking onchanging composition of staff, by role andrepresentation within department
level of responsibility (transparency)% departments consistently reporting on RE
by role/responsibility level, % departments
recognizing changing composition (anddrivers)

Develop accessible 'datastories' that explain where
we are at, what we arelearning and trying, andwhere we are going

Develop and publicly socialize/sharequalitative and quantitative indicators ofdegree of RE over space and time

Cross-department collaboration on
unified presentation of RE outcome
objectives (by responsibility) andprogress tracking; unified vision =unified communication

All departments provide multi-year viewon RE goals and achieved outcomes withspecific link to explicit RE outcomes within
Master Plan and other strategic planning
work; recommend interactive web-hosted
data sharing tools to facilitate leadershipand community conversations andfeedback% departments with explicit RE 'data stories'
designed to share growth journey, %departments with qualitative/quantitative
indicators of RE relevant to service area, %departments participating in unified
presentation efforts of RE efforts across city,% contribution to interactive data sharing
platform, % time dedicated to RE reflections
during leadership and community

City Council normalizes the use ofresolutions and declarations in alignment
with the Racial Equity Plan. Staff andcommunity members increasingly
understand the purpose and function ofresolutions and declarations.

City Council and Staff increasingly utilize
All resolutions are rooted in, and containresolutions and declarations to
racial equity-based language andestablish and reinforce racial equity
actionable elements. Declarations areaccountability. Resolutions andincreasingly designed and approved withdeclarations are increasingly designed
application of a racial equity focus.
with early input from community
members experiencing racial burdens.

Recognize who we serve(community data on
residents, workforce,
university students, visitors)= store in organized,
accessible data repository

Use resolutions anddeclarations to prioritize,
elevate and evaluate racial
equityPass resolutions anddeclarations to engage City
Council in advancing racial
equity, boostingaccountability

City council passes the first slate of racial
equity resolutions, including a resolution
Pass additional racial-equity resolutions
for the city to promote racial equity in city
Develop a robust resolution process thatas opportunities arise. Evaluate andrelationships, programs, services andincorporates racial equity in all
develop accountability infrastructure forresolutions.
policies; and a resolution declaring racism areviewing past resolutions.
public health risk. Issue other resolutions
and declarations as opportunities arise.

Ensure consistent use of
Staff will ensure that other resolutions areracial equity focus in city
consistent with prior racial equity
resolutions and declarations resolutions.

Staff engages impacted community
Staff and city council members engage inmembers to receive input and ideas for evaluation of racial equity impact ofresolutions.
resolutions and declarations

Evaluate racial equity impact
Staff and City Council will begin to developof resolutions andresolution review and evaluation process.
declarations

Staff utilize the racial equity instrumenton all resolutions, and ensure that
resolutions are consistent with the city's
racial equity goals.

JEDI Teams complete departmental
equity assessment to inform specificEach city department has in place a Justice, department equity plans. Plans are
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Team. implemented, communicated citywide,

Growing city staff and leaders'
understanding and capacity for,and action to promote andachieve racial equity

City staff, City Council, Boards,
Committees and Commissions utilize racial
equity assessment tools in all decision
making processes.

City council regularly utilizes the Racial
Increase in training participation by offering
Equity Instrument when establishingat least 4 trainings with 30 participantorganizational priorities andcapacity. 5 case studies on how Instrument
implemented initiation of any new
was used in decision making process
projects that go to council.

Collect and analyze
meaningful data

Implement departmental
and citywide equity policies

All boards & commissions and city staff
participate in Advancing Racial Equity:
The Role of Government

Racial Equity Instrument

Create, modify, use equity
tools, instruments,
assessments

LONG-TERMOUTCOMES
Mid-Term
Outcomes (2025)(2025)All supervisors (#s) by 12.31.20; 40% total
Advancing Racial Equity: The staff. 80% of trained staff report increased
understanding of RE. All new staff
Role of Government
participate as part of NEO.

26

MID-TERM(2022)OUTCOMES
Short-Term
Outcomes(2022)HIGHER-LEVELSTATEMENT ORPURPOSE FOR
High-level statement of
THE ACTIVITY/
purpose for the
OUTCOMES
Activity/Outcomes

Staff develops evaluation metrics tomeasure the impact of racial equity
resolutions and addresses successes or
shortcomings in new resolutions.

All city departments routinely assess,modify and improve racial equity plans tomaintain alignment with the citywide

Standardizing assessment andreporting methods for use of
racial equity tools: establishingnorms on analysis, reporting,and continuous monitoring for
improvement.

Powering continuous,
increased level and rate of
improvement by integrating
racial equity data into ourdecision processes

Publicly formalizing the city'scommitments to racial equity
for increased community
knowledge and engagement,
and to increase city
accountability to advance racial
equitydeclarations to prioritize,
elevate and evaluate racial
equitywith the Racial Equity Plan. Staff andcommunity members increasingly
understand the purpose and function ofresolutions and declarations.

Pass resolutions anddeclarations to engage City
Council in advancing racial
equity, boostingaccountability

ACTIVITIES

accountability. Resolutions anddeclarations are increasingly designedwith early input from community
members experiencing racial burdens.

actionable elements. Declarations are
increasingly designed and approved withapplication of a racial equity focus.

City council passes the first slate of racial
equity resolutions, including a resolution
Pass additional racial-equity resolutions
for the city to promote racial equity in city
Develop a robust resolution process thatas opportunities arise. Evaluate andrelationships, programs, services andincorporates racial equity in all
develop accountability infrastructure forpolicies; and a resolution declaring racism a
resolutions.
reviewing past resolutions.
public health risk. Issue other resolutions
and declarations as opportunities arise.

SHORT-TERM

MID-TERM

LONG-TERM

Ensure consistent use of
Staff will ensure that other resolutions are(2022)OUTCOMES
racial equity focus in city
consistent
with prior racial
equityresolutions and declarations resolutions.

Staff engages impacted community
Staff and city council members engage in(2025)(2030)OUTCOMESOUTCOMES
members
to receive input
and ideas for evaluationof racial equity
impact ofresolutions.
resolutions and declarations

Evaluate racial equity impact
Staff and City Council will begin to developof resolutions andresolution review and evaluation process.
declarations

Staff utilize the racial equity instrumenton all resolutions, and ensure that
resolutions are consistent with the city's
racial equity goals.

OUTPUT DATA

All city departments routinely assess,modify and improve racial equity plans tomaintain alignment with the citywide
Racial Equity Plan outcomes.

JEDI teams for 3 pilot departments will be
developed by Q2 2021. Pilot JEDI teams incoordination with citywide RE facilitators
All departmental JEDI teams havewill facilitate completion of the racial equity facilitated the completion of the racialassessment tool to individuals andequity assessment tool by 50% of
Development of Department workgroups within their department by
individuals and 50% of workgroups
Equity teams
end of 2021. Staff from all city departments within their department by 2025 andwill have been informed about andidentified where departmental equity
supported in the use of the RE Department policies need to be solidified and areas
Teams Toolkit to begin recruitment andin which there are gaps.
selection of members for theirdepartmental JEDI team by the end of

All departments will have JEDI teams
which have completed at least one fullround of the Assessment Tool. JEDI teams
will facilitate completion of the RE
assessment tool every 2 years to evaluate
progress and inform the development,
modification, updating and continued
improvement of departmental plans tocontinue progress and alignment with the
citywide RE Plan outcomes.

# of formed deparmental equity teams. # ofcompleted departmental equity plans.
Trends by assessment tool data anddepartmental plans.

Inventory of all departments' policies will
be complete by end of 2022 for all
departments with a JEDI team.

Use racial equity instrument to identify
and begin to remove bias and develop
new departmental policies to advance
racial equity and change departmental
habits, processes and decision-making.

All departmental policies include a focus
on equity and are consistently reviewed
for gaps using equity assessment tools.
City staff routinely evaluate, modify, andadd to departmental policies to reinforce
and build racial equity at all levels.

Trends by assessment tool data (staff andcommunity feedback). %s of diverse staff,
boards, commission members hired andretained, etc. Policies tie into all the otheraspects/outputs listed...

Inventory of all citywide policies will becomplete by end of 2022.

Use racial equity instrument to identify
and begin to remove bias and develop
new citywide policies to advance racial
equity and change citywide habits,
processes and decision-making.

All citywide policies include a focus onequity and are consistently reviewed forgaps using equity assessment tools. City
staff routinely evaluate, modify, add tocitywide policies to reinforce and build
racial equity at all levels.

Trends by assessment tool data (staff andcommunity feedback). %s of diverse staff,
boards, commission members hired andretained, etc. Policies tie into all the otheraspects/outputs listed...

Department policy review,
updates and development

Citywide policy review,
updates and development

Departmental RE Plans

Guiding Coalition

Pilot JEDI teams have developed
departmental equity plans (that are in
N/A yet. This will follow results from Equity alignment with the citywide RE Plan) to
Assessment tool.
address identified departmental gaps
based on results from the equity
assessment tool by the end of 2025.

Leadership support of embedding racial
equity work in departmental work plans

Embed a committment toFocus on equity is embedded in the Pilot
advancing racial equity in
Departmental Master Planning & Strategic
citywide master and strategic
Planning Guide
plans

Individual RE Plans
Engage in GARE Network andother professional groups
committed to advancing
equity (National League ofCities, National Association
for Civilian Oversight in Law
Enforcement, International

Develop and finalize individual RE Plan
expectations.

Utilization of prioritization tools andcommunity input in determining equity
impacts of policy decisions

All departments have developed equity
plans (that are in alignment with the
citywide RE Plan) to address identified
departmental gaps based on results from
Departmental equity plans
the equity assessment tool.
Implementation of all department plans is
occuring by 2030 and being communicatedcity and community-wide.
All guiding coalition members demonstrate
an in depth understanding of city's RE
Feedback from Guiding Coalition teampractices, tools and instruments andmembers
consistently advocate for advancing equity
in all policy decisions

Individual RE Plans are embedded inSpecific annual goals are set and we'll
annual work plans and evaluations. XX%
continue to refine and improve process asof staff show improvement towards
needed.
individual RE plan goals.

City staff outside of Racial Equity CoreTeam utilize the GARE portal andparticipate in specific topic groups
related to their work

# and % of individual staff members whomeet or exceed RE Plan goals Data by race,
gender to see who has completedplans/made progress

Be the leaders in equity and connect with
regional partners (other local GARE
members such as Boulder County, Denver,Etc) in these efforts.

City staff continue to build capacity andbring forth ideas to advance racial equity
in departmental work planning

Number of city staff who regularly
participate in network calls, issue groups

Participation in regional,
national meetings

Racial Equity Core Team members have theopportunity to build capacity and bringback learning to core team members andother city staff

Other city staff have the opportunity toCity staff continue to build capacity andattend regional and national meetings
bring forth ideas to advance racial equity
in order to build capacity andin departmental work planning
implement learning into own work plan

Presentations to GARE

Racial Equity Core Team Members
represent city equity work to other GARE
members in an effort to advance equity ata systemic level

Racial Equity Core Team members build City of Boulder staff are seen as leaders
Feedback from city staff and other agencies
skills and leadership in presenting on
and models in advancing racial equity on a who reach out for more information on city
programs, policies and decisions
racial equity best practices
larger systemic scale

Understand and inventory the racial equity
work being done by our institutional
partners to be aware of, and continue
support and expansion of coordinatedefforts.

Improve Integration and collaboration
with partners in a more formalizedmanner including increased/clearly
defined leadership to advance racial
equity efforts and better serve othermarginalized communities throughshared outcomes.

Collaborate withinstitutional partners

CU and Naropa

Ensuring that city racial equity
goals, policies and practices are
manifest at every departmental
level of the city institution.

City department master and strategicSpecific goals are set and in all master and # and departmental master and strategicplans participate in an Equity
plans with accompanying workplan items
strategic plans with appropriate funding
Assessment to establish areas of equity
focused on advancing racial equity
resources allocated.
focus and align with work plans

Identify city staff liaisons to GARE.
Expand and deepen participatation in
Coordinate dissemination of GARE
GARE. Evaluate and identify additional
information to RE Core Team members and partnerships/learning opportunities
other city staff.
within GARE.
Racial Equity Core Team members display
and convey an understanding on what isParticipation in network calls, happening in other jurisdictions; city
supervisors don't view staff racial equity
issue groups
contributions as an 'add' on to their work,
but rather part of their work

PURPOSE FOR
THE ACTIVITY/
OUTCOMES

Staff develops evaluation metrics tomeasure the impact of racial equity
resolutions and addresses successes or
shortcomings in new resolutions.

JEDI Teams complete departmental
equity assessment to inform specificEach city department has in place a Justice, department equity plans. Plans are
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Team. implemented, communicated citywide,
and include community engagement asneeded.

Implement departmental
and citywide equity policies

Publicly formalizing the city'scommitments to racial equity
for increased community
knowledge and engagement,
and to increase city
HIGHER-LEVEL
accountability
to advance racial
STATEMENTOR
equityIncrease % of student participation in
Baseline established of number of students
public meetings and applying for staff
of color participating in public meetings andpositions;host commuity conversations
applying for staff positions
on racial equity

Number of city staff who regularly
participate in meetings and present
innovative ways of advancing racial equity tocolleagues and leadership

Using a clearly defined system andformalized agreements around a focus on
racial equity and other marginalized
communities, collaborate withinstitutional partners around shared
metrics in a cohesive way with sharedaccountability and transparency.
Data collected through surveys with
Students remain in the city of Boulder post
students; participation rates of students
graduation for 5 years
participating in public meetings

Community Foundations

Work with other institutions and advocacy
groups to identify, align, and implement
strategies for advancing racial equity

Create shared calendar for equity
related events; host commuity
conversations on racial equity

Regularly host equity related events withpartner organizations

Local government partners

Partner with other agencies in sharing
training, tools and resources; participate in Racial equity initiatves begin to be
partner equity initiatives and act as theintegrated into regional plansconvener when appropriate

Regularly host equity related events withpartner organizations

Implement equity-focused partnerships,

Fostering and reinforcing aculture and practice of learningand collaboration with state,regional, national andinternational racial equity
partners

Data collected through community surveys
Strengthening partnerships andcollaboration wtih community
members and organizations
that demonstrate acommitment to ending racism,
for better community-wide

27

Participation in regional,
national meetings

Racial Equity Core Team members have theopportunity to build capacity and bringback learning to core team members andother city staff

Other city staff have the opportunity toCity staff continue to build capacity andattend regional and national meetings
bring forth ideas to advance racial equity
in order to build capacity andin departmental work planning
implement learning into own work plan

Presentations to GARE

Racial Equity Core Team Members
represent city equity work to other GARE
members in an effort to advance equity ata systemic level

Racial Equity Core Team members build City of Boulder staff are seen as leaders
Feedback from city staff and other agencies
skills and leadership in presenting on
and models in advancing racial equity on a who reach out for more information on city
racial equity best practices
larger systemic scale
programs, policies and decisions

Understand and inventory the racial equity
work being done by our institutional
partners to be aware of, and continue
support and expansion of coordinated
SHORT-TERM
efforts.

Improve Integration and collaboration
with partners in a more formalizedmanner including increased/clearly
defined leadership to advance racial
equity efforts and better serve other
MID-TERM
marginalized
communities through(2025)OUTCOMES
sharedoutcomes.

Collaborate withinstitutional partners

ACTIVITIESOUTCOMES (2022)

Data collected through surveys with
Students remain in the city of Boulder post
students; participation rates of students
graduation for 5 years
participating in public meetings

Community Foundations

Work with other institutions and advocacy
groups to identify, align, and implement
strategies for advancing racial equity

Regularly host equity related events withpartner organizations

Local government partners

Partner with other agencies in sharing
training, tools and resources; participate in Racial equity initiatves begin to be
integrated into regional plans
partner equity initiatives and act as theconvener when appropriate

Non-profit community
partners

Prioritize inclusive
community engagement

Create shared calendar for equity
related events; host commuity
conversations on racial equity

Strengthening partnerships andcollaboration wtih community
members and organizations
that demonstrate acommitment to ending racism,
for better community-wide

Regularly host equity related events withpartner organizations

Work with other institutions and advocacy
groups to identify, align, and implement
strategies for advancing racial equity

Implement equity-focused partnerships,
evaluate partnerships together on an
Regularly host equity related events withannual basis and apply lessons learned
partner organizations
to future partnership work; hostcommuity conversations on racial equity

Data collected through community surveys

Complete inventory of barriers forcommunities of color to publicly
participate. Pilot co-design of new inclusive
engagement opportunities. Ensurealignment of Engagement Strategic
Framework and trainings with RE Plan.

Expand and systemitize our co-designof inclusive engagement opportunities.
Increase the inclusivity of entire
engagement processes from beginningto end.

# of participants, % of participation byhistoricallly excluded community members,
number of engagement opportunties codesigned with community members of color,
response on biennial City of Boulder
Community Survey

Reflecting full and consistent use of the
Engagement Strategic Framework, all city
engagement opportunities are open andinclusive to all community members.

Pilot inclusive engagement opportunities
for council meetings (could be during
Institutionalize inclusive practices formeetings or a process outside set meetings, council meetings.
such as Conversaciones con la Ciudad).

On-going assessment and strengthening of # of participants, % of participation byhistorically excluded community members
inclusive practices.

Community Connectors

Community Connectors arelCommunity Connectors are engaged
institutionalized into working
groupthrough several project-based, long-term, processes. Integration into projectbased and long-term processes isand work group processes. Situationallyeffective practices are identified and shared expanded. Situationally-effective
practices are identified, updated, andwith organization.
shared.

Situationally-effective practices arecontinually identified, updated, andshared.

Boards, Commissions,
Committees

100% of working group members
complete implicit bias and RE core
100 % of board /commission members
training. 100% of incoming
complete implicit bias and RE core training.
board/commission memebrs complete
Identification of barriers to participation for
implicit and RE core training. Increase
community members of color.
racial or ethnic diversity of board andcommission members.

On-going assessment and improvement of Increase in # of board / commission /working group members of color.
accessibility, support, and training.

Draft and share with community an initial
Language Access Strategic Plan.
Threshholds are identified for translating
documents/webpages and interpreting
engagement opportunities.

Institutionalize language access for
specific
documents/webpages/engagement
opportunities. Evaluate ongoing
language access needs of community.

# of community members engaging in
Evaluate ongoing language access needs ofinterpreted/translated/native content orcommunity.
engagement opportunities.

Pilot inclusive engagement opportunities
for short-term and long-term projects orInstitutionalize inclusive practices forengagement opportunities.
processes. Develop resources, bestpractices, and additional trainings for staff.

Continue to identify, refine, and update# of participants, % of participation by
inclusive engagement practices as needed. historically excluded community members

Engagement Opportunities

Increase use of Racial Equity Instrument(REI) and Rapid Response Equity
Assessment (RREA) to assess and improve
key investment programs.

Infuse equity in city
investments

Community Investments (i.e. Complete Racial Equity Instrument
grant programs, contracts to assessments on at least three grant or
non-profits)
funding programs.

Procurement

Identify procurement processes to which
the assessment instruments could beapplied

Allocate appropriate funding
Financial resources are allocated to ensure
to equity programs, including
appropriate staffing and resources formoney allocated for staffing
Citywide Racial Equity Programand supporting programs

Budget processes(departments, city-wide)[add council language]

New investment initiatives

Evaluate impact of RREA on the 2021
budget process. Complete a REI for the
citywide 2022 budget process.

Staff will capture insights and ideas formeeting community needs, related to
COVID19 and other disparities; best newideas for addressing income, otherdisparities.
Establish diversification goals. Applicationof the RE Instrument to city workforce HR
processes.

HIGHER-LEVELSTATEMENT ORPURPOSE FOR
THE ACTIVITY/
OUTCOMES

Data collected through community surveys

Public comm with Council,
City manager

Language access

28

OUTPUT DATA

Increase % of student participation in
Baseline established of number of students
public meetings and applying for staff
of color participating in public meetings andpositions;host commuity conversations
applying for staff positions
on racial equity

CU and Naropa

Prioritize a diverse andinclusive workforce

Using a clearly defined system andformalized agreements around a focus on
racial equity and other marginalized
communities, collaborate withinstitutional partners around shared
metricsLONG-TERM
in a cohesive way with shared(2030)OUTCOMES
accountability
and transparency.

Number of city staff who regularly
participate in meetings and present
innovative ways of advancing racial equity tocolleagues and leadership# of projects and working group processes,
effective integration of feedback into
engagement processes

Increasing empowerment andefficacy of people of color
community members forengagement in city programand process decision making,through increased, sustainedlevel of equitable engagement

Racial equity assessments are incoporated
Increase use of Racial Equity Instrument
into all city investment processes. Cityand Rapid Response Equity Assessment.
staff routinely track and publicy report
Develop citywide process to routinely
racial equity impacts resulting from city
evaluate and track racial equity impacts
investments. City investments arefrom investment programs. Increased
commensurate with ongoing needs ofequitable funding, contracting.
people of color community members.
Complete REI on all grant/funding
programs, per program and as a whole
regarding funding directives and impact.
Sustained higher, or increased diversity of
Increase use of outcome/impact
grant contracts. Increased long-term
evaluation for departmental andstability of POC-led agencies, services.
citywide racial equity improvements.
Increase funding for POC-led, POCserved agencies.
Increase use of REI and RREA. Develop
citywide process to routinely evaluate
Increased diversity of contractors,
and track racial equity impacts fromconsultants, by percentage of the total city
investment programs. Increased
contractors and consultants and withinoutreach to, contracts to POC-led
types of procurement.
businesses.

# of assessment completed. # of dollars
allocated, attributed to POC-led, POC-served
agencies.

# of contracts awarded. # of bids submitted,
contracts awarded to POC and other
underrepresented groups

Financial resources are allocated toensure appropriate staff and resources Citywide dollars routinely assessed and# of dollars allocated, attributed to racial
for departmental initiatives; specific line allocated to support new opportunities for equity work, POC-benefit activities,
programs and services
times in department budgets dedicated initiatives to address racial equity
to equity work
Use REI in combination with data
analysis tools and community
engagement to improve strategic
investment decision making processes.
Increase budget allocation forprograms, services to POC.

Incremental, annual increase of# of dollars allocated, attributed to racial
equity work, POC-benefit activities,
department program budgets/citywide
budget attributed to relieving racial equity. programs and services

Staff will asess potential revised or new Staff will implement and routinely assess
investment policies and projects to
new opportunities for initiatives toadvance racial equity.
address racial equity
Establish and implement recruitment
and retention strategies

Establish baseline for the number ofqualified people of color, including womenof color, hired by the city. Review and
10% increase in number of people ofCity workforce recruitment update hiring policies to prevent bias incolor, including women of color, hired
recruitment and hiring strategies, including into leadership positions within the city
ensuring that recruitment is not based on
quotas alone.

# and nature of new investment initiatives.

Our city workforce and leadership meetsor exceeds the racial diversity reflected inour community.

10% increase in number of people of color,
Employee demographic data and employee
including women of color, hired into
engagement surveys
leadership positions in the city

Investing in increased quality oflife, resilience and inclusion ofpeople of color and people ofcolor-led agencies andbusinesses, through a wide
range of budget, procurement
and funding programs

applied

Allocate appropriate funding
Financial resources are allocated to ensure
to equity programs, including
appropriate staffing and resources formoney allocated for staffing
Citywide Racial Equity Programand supporting programs

Budget processes(departments, city-wide)[add council language]

ACTIVITIES

Evaluate impact of RREA on the 2021
budget process. Complete a REI for the
citywide 2022 budget process.

SHORT-TERM

New investment initiatives

Prioritize a diverse andinclusive workforce

Staffwill capture insights
and ideas for(2022)OUTCOMES
meeting community needs, related to
COVID19 and other disparities; best newideas for addressing income, otherdisparities.
Establish diversification goals. Applicationof the RE Instrument to city workforce HR
processes.

investment programs. Increased
outreach to, contracts to POC-ledbusinesses.

100% of hiring managers trained on Biasand hiring; baseline established of numberof employees of color leaving the city;
baseline understanding about the reasons
for which employees of color leave the city.

Identify career tracks; conduct an analysisof positions that have a large number ofCity staff advancement(training/promotions/succes anticipated retirements in the coming five
years, for opportunities to increasesion planning)
recruitment of qualified people of color.

underrepresented groups

businesses, through a wide
range of budget, procurement
and funding programs

Financial resources are allocated toensure appropriate staff and resources Citywide dollars routinely assessed and# of dollars allocated, attributed to racial
for departmental initiatives; specific line allocated to support new opportunities for equity work, POC-benefit activities,
times in department budgets dedicated initiatives to address racial equity
programs and services
to equity work
Use REI in combination with data
analysis tools and community
engagement to improve strategic
investment decision making processes.
Increase budget allocation forprograms, services to POC.

MID-TERM
OUTCOMES (2025)

Incremental, annual increase of# of dollars allocated, attributed to racial
department program budgets/citywide
equity work, POC-benefit activities,
budget attributed to relieving racial equity. programs and services

LONG-TERMOUTCOMES (2030)

Staff will asess potential revised or new Staff will implement and routinely assess
investment policies and projects to
new opportunities for initiatives toadvance racial equity.
address racial equity
Establish and implement recruitment
and retention strategies

Establish baseline for the number ofqualified people of color, including women
10% increase in number of people ofof color, hired by the city. Review andCity workforce recruitment update hiring policies to prevent bias incolor, including women of color, hired
recruitment and hiring strategies, including into leadership positions within the city
ensuring that recruitment is not based on
quotas alone.

City staff retention

contractors and consultants and within
types of procurement.

OUTPUT DATA
# and nature of new investment initiatives.

HIGHER-LEVELSTATEMENT ORPURPOSE FOR
THE ACTIVITY/
OUTCOMES

Our city workforce and leadership meetsor exceeds the racial diversity reflected inour community.

10% increase in number of people of color,
Employee demographic data and employee
including women of color, hired into
engagement surveys
leadership positions in the city

Incremental annual decrease of
employees of color leaving the city
(excluding employees retiring).
Managers receive guidance on
supporting, retaining employees ofcolor.

10% increase in number of people of color,
Employee demographic data and employee
including women of colored in leadershipengagement surveys
positions in the city

Develop and implement career
pathways to ensure a diverse applicant
pool is prepared to compete forvacancies; expand and sustain a highfunctioning professional development
program

Equitable succession plan created andevaluated on a quarterly basis. Sustained,
Employee demographic data and employee
incremental increase in qualified people ofengagement surveys
color employees who advance in job
mobility and leadership within the city.

Eliminate barriers and create
opportunities to build a diverse
workforce and volunteer base -including elected officials,
boards, commissions andworking groups -- for a29

Resources
Definitions
Using shared definitions of key terms in the city’s racial equity work provides clarity
and consistency across the organization, which leads to better analysis of how institutional racism functions and is maintained. We can then be more effective in deconstructing these mechanisms that support institutional racism and begin constructing
ones that produce equitable outcomes.
— Adverse Impacts: refers to practices or policies that appear neutral but have a discriminatory

effect on a protected group. Source: Office of Equity and Human Rights (OEHR)     — Communities of Color: is a term used primarily in the United States to describe communities of people who are not identified as white, emphasizing common experiences of racism.
Source: OEHR     — Community outcomes: The specific result you are seeking to achieve within the community that advances racial equity.  Source: Seattle RSJI    — Discrimination: refers to practices or policies that may be considered discriminatory and illegal if they have a disproportionate “adverse impact” on persons in a protected class. Source:
OEHR     — Disparate Impacts: refers to practices or policies that may be considered discriminatory
and illegal if they have a disproportionate “adverse impact” on persons in a protected class.
Source: OEHR     — Diversity: includes all the ways in which people differ, and it encompasses all the different
characteristics that make one individual or group different from one another. Source: UC
Berkeley CEID    — Environmental Justice: According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, environmental justice is the right to a clean, safe and healthy quality of life for people of all races, incomes and cultures. Environmental justice emphasizes accountability, democratic practices,
remedying the historical impact of environmental racism, just and equitable treatment, andself-determination.
— Ethnicity: a category of people who identify with each other based on common language,ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences. Source: Oxford English Dictionary     — Equity: when one’s identity cannot predict the outcome. Source: OEHR     — Equity Focus: is a critical thinking approach to undoing institutional and structural racism,
which evaluates burdens, benefits, and outcomes to underserved communities. Source:
OEHR     — Inclusive Engagement: Processes inclusive of people of diverse races, ethnicities, cultures,
gender identities, sexual orientations and socio-economic status. Access to information,
resources and civic processes so community members can effectively engage in the designand delivery of public services.  Source: Seattle RSJI    — Institutional Racism: occurs within institutions and systems of power. It is the unfair policies
and discriminatory practices of particular institutions (schools, workplaces, etc.) Source:
Race Forward, Moving the Race Conversation Forward     

30— Latino/Latina: a person of Latin American origin or descent, using traditional gendered lan-

guage.
— Latinx: a person of Latin American origin or descent sometimes used as a gender-neutral or
nonbinary alternative to Latino or Latina.
— Marginalized populations:  groups and communities that experience discrimination and exclusion (social, political and economic) because of unequal power relationships across economic, political, social and cultural dimensions. Source: National Centre for Determinants ofHealth  — Performance Metrics: measures an organization’s behavior, activities, and performance. It assesses how well workers are doing their respective tasks and how companies are accomplishing their objectives. It provides hard data and gives off outcomes that appraise clearly definedquantities within a range that facilitates improvement and upgrading. Source: Wikipedia— Privilege: refers to the unearned set of advantages, entitlements, and benefits bestowed by
the formal and informal institutions of society to ALL members of a dominant group (e.g. White
privilege, male privilege, economic privilege, etc.). Privilege is usually invisible to those whohave it. Source: OEHR     — Race: A non-scientific, social construct that divides people into distinct groups based on
characteristics such as physical appearance, ancestral heritage, cultural affiliation, cultural history, or ethnic classification. Source: Maurianne Adams, Lee Anne Bell and Pat Griffin, editors.
Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice: A Sourcebook. New York: Routledge.    
— Racial Equity: when race does not determine or predict the distribution of resources, economic/political/social opportunities, and burdens for group members in society. Source: OEHR and
Seattle RSJI    — Racial Equity Framework: An understanding of the root causes of racial disparities, an analysisof the structures that perpetuate these disparities, and the ability to deploy critical strategies
to undoing those structures (e.g., community self-determination, shifting power) in order toreplace them with structures that produce equitable outcomes.    
— Racial Equity Tools: A set of strategies, procedures, and resources designed to integrate
explicit consideration of racial equity and that can be implemented and applied throughout
organizational policy, procedures, and operations to ensure/drive equitable process, impacts,
and outcomes. Source: OEHR    — Stakeholders: Those impacted by proposed policy, program or budget issue who have potential concerns or issue expertise. Source: Seattle RSJI    — Structural Racism: is racial bias among institutions and across society. Source: Race Forward,
Moving the Race Conversation Forward     — Underserved: refers to people and places that historically and currently have not had equitable resources or access to infrastructure, healthy environments, housing choice, etc. Disparities may be recognized in both services and in outcomes. Source: OEHR    

31

Rac ia l I n e q u i ty Data
Prosperity Now Scorecard
Although Boulder County ranked markedly better than the state as a whole on many measures of prosperity,that wealth was not always equally distributed. For example, Boulder was measured as having half the average
Colorado poverty rate at just 5.8 percent, it had higher income inequality and higher costs of homeownership.
Fewer people in Boulder were without health insurance than the statewide or nationwide average; however,proportionally more of the uninsured in this county were people of color.
The organization Prosperity Now published its annual scorecards to determine where Americans are most— and least — able to build wealth, avoid poverty and create a more prosperous future for themselves. In thereport, all 50 states and Washington, D.C. receive a rank in three categories: outcome rank, racial disparity rank
and scorecard rank. Outcome rank shows how a state is doing for its residents overall, without accounting for
racial disparities. Racial disparity rank looks at just that — gaps across 26 outcome measures between white
residents and residents of color.

Here’s how Colorado ranked:— Scorecard rank: 14 (out of 50 states)— Outcome rank: 7— Racial disparity rank: 42
The rankings were based on an analysisof 78 measures spanning five categories: financial assets and income; businesses and jobs; homeownershipand housing; health care; and education. It also assessed each state for 28 policies that promote financial
security.
Colorado ranks 14th on the prosperity of its residents compared to the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
This rank is based on states’ performance on economic measures for all residents but also accounts for racialdisparities in outcomes. Relative to other states, Colorado’s performance ranks in the top 10 states for residents overall. However, the extreme gap between White residents and residents of color drops the state’s rank
and has negative implications for the prosperity of Colorado. For example, the homeownership rate of White
households is 70% compared to 50% for Latino households and 40% for Black households.
The Scorecard ranks states and DC from best to worst: #1 is the most desirable, #51 is the least desirable.
The Scorecard rank is a factor of two underlying ranks: an Outcome rank for all residents and a Racial Disparity
rank on the gap in outcomes between White residents and residents of color. The Outcome rank accounts for
60% of the Scorecard rank and the Racial Disparity rank for 40%. This average is then re-ranked to obtain the
final Scorecard rank, making it possible for states to have lower Outcome and Racial Disparity ranks than their
final Scorecard rank.
The Outcome Rank is calculated by averaging the individual ranks on 52 outcome measures for all residents
compared to residents of other states and DC. The Racial Disparity rank is calculated by averaging the gaps inoutcomes for White residents and residents of color on 26 measures. A Racial Disparity Rank of 51 means thatthe disparity is the largest compared to all states and DC, and a lower rank indicates that the disparity is narrower than in other parts of the country.

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City of Boulder Population and Demographics
The following population data provides a snapshot of our City of Boulder demographics.
This data set is portrayed in several different formats for a more complete illustration of our community’s
populaltion. Please note that much of this information relies on data from the decennial Census and the mostrecent data available is from 2010. This section will be updated in future editions of the city’s Racial Equity Plan,
once data from the 2020 Census is publicly available from the Census Bureau.

*estimated population as of July 1, 2019, per U.S. Census Bureau

This image represents a Racial Dot Map,
created by the University of Virginia’s
Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service
and utilizing Census data from 2010. Eachdot represents one person living in agiven census tract, not a specific address.
Individual dots are randomly located andalign with the aggregate population withina given census tract.
While concerns exist about the
researchers lumping together “Other
Races / Native American / Multi-racial”
categories into one dot color, the Racial
Dot Map may still provide a helpful
big-picture perspective of our city’s
demographics.

The following eight maps showing census tract data from the American Community Survey 5-year
Estimates (2012-2017). The data are broken out into percentages of different racial groups. There are stillquestions to answer about the best way to use this, but the hope is that in combination with other data,
they can help us determine where public services are needed to create a more equitable city.

Observations about the maps:— Pay attention to percentages because colors of maps can be deceiving— Confirms a predominantly white population— Classification method is quantiles (equal number of observations in each class), but maybe anothermethod is more valuable

Data source: Living Atlas provided by ESRI, sourcing the 2012-2017 ACS 5-Year Census Tract DataAdditional Resources: Racial History of The City of Boulder— Hickcox, Abby (2007) “Green Belt, White City: Race and the Natural Landscape in Boulder, Colorado,”
Discourse: Journal for Theoretical Studies in Media and Culture: Vol. 29 : Iss. 2 , Article 3. Available at:https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/discourse/vol29/iss2/3— Summary: hidden behind the guise of open space preservation and conservation lurks a philosophy of ensuring the “right people” enjoy Boulder’s landscape in perpetuity.
— Southern Arapahoe Chief Niwot, History and Background— Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples, Toolkit— Conflict, Race, Violence Video (Boulder County Latino History)— Latinos of Boulder County, Colorado; 1900-1980; Volume I: History and Contributions; Chapter: Conflict, Racism, and Violence, 1910-1940— Ellen Tate Interview (2001) from the Carnegie Library, Boulder, CO— ABSTRACT: Ellen Tate describes growing up in Philadelphia, moving frequently with her husband, Penfield Tate II, while he was in the military; and moving to Boulder in 1967. She speaks
about experiences as an African American, experiencing racism while traveling in the 1960s,
creating a sense of black community in Boulder, and race relations in general in Boulder.
— De Laris Carpenter Interview (2001) from the Carnegie Library, Boulder, CO— ABSTRACT: De Laris Carpenter talks about her upbringing in Mississippi; her life in Boulder; hercareer as a teacher, counselor, and administrator; and the role of family in her life, addressing
both her own childhood and her role as a parent. Throughout the interview, she discusses theAfrican American community and interactions of the white and African American communities, including discussion of racism in Boulder, at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and in the
Boulder Valley Schools.
— “Boulder Releases Data on Law Enforcement Discrimination”, KUNC Report, May 1, 2019
— “Boulder prides itself on being welcoming to all. But its citizens of color tell a different story”, Daily
Camera Article, July 28, 2018

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City of Boulder, 2021
More at www.bouldercolorado.gov

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