HR Committee — Burlington, VT
Date: 2025-05-12
Time: 08:30

Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT

8:30 am, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT OR Remotely via ZOOM:
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/94820907375?pwd=ZWdzWk5KTGp5K29vZ1dEd2dLaU9jQT09
Meeting ID: 948 2090 7375
Passcode: 616429
1. Approve Agenda & Minutes
  Subject 1.1. Adopt Agenda
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 1. Approve Agenda & Minutes

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

  Subject 1.2. Approve Minutes
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 1. Approve Agenda & Minutes

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

2. Public Forum

3. Advisory Committee on Accessibility Nominations
  Subject 3.1. Approve nominations to the Advisory Committee on Accessibility
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 3. Advisory Committee on Accessibility Nominations

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action
4. Other Committee Business

5. Adjournment
  Subject 5.1. Move to adjourn
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 5. Adjournment

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

6. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

 The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or religious
 affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
 marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim status or genetic information. The City
 is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities and employment opportunities. The programs
 and services of the City of Burlington are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special
 arrangements, auxiliary aid, service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to
 participate in a program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
 Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled
 event.

Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT

8:30 am, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT OR Remotely via ZOOM:
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/94820907375?pwd=ZWdzWk5KTGp5K29vZ1dEd2dLaU9jQT09
Meeting ID: 948 2090 7375
Passcode: 616429
1. Approve Agenda & Minutes
  Subject 1.1. Adopt Agenda
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 1. Approve Agenda & Minutes

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

  Subject 1.2. Approve Minutes
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 1. Approve Agenda & Minutes

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

2. Public Forum

3. Advisory Committee on Accessibility Nominations
  Subject 3.1. Approve nominations to the Advisory Committee on Accessibility
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 3. Advisory Committee on Accessibility Nominations

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action




 Page 1 of 7
4. Other Committee Business

5. Adjournment
  Subject 5.1. Move to adjourn
  Meeting May 12, 2025 - HRPC 05/12/2025 - Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference
 Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT


  Category 5. Adjournment

  Department Human Resources


  Type

  Recommended Action

6. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

 The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or religious
 affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
 marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim status or genetic information. The City
 is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities and employment opportunities. The programs
 and services of the City of Burlington are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special
 arrangements, auxiliary aid, service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to
 participate in a program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
 Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled
 event.




 Page 2 of 7
 Human Resources Policy Committee Meeting
 Wednesday, March 17, 2025, 2:30 PM, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St.,
 Burlington, VT

 2:30 pm, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT OR Remotely via
 ZOOM: Please click the link below to join the webinar:
 Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/94820907375?pwd=ZWdzWk5KTGp5K29vZ1dEd2dLaU9jQT09
 Meeting ID: 948 2090 7375
 Passcode: 616429



Present:
Councilor Sarah Carpenter, Chair (SC)
Councilor Marek Broderick (MB)
Councilor Evan Litwin (EL)

Other in Attendance:
Lynn Reagan, HR Acting Director (LR)
Meaghan Diffenderfer, HR Administrative Coordinator

Meeting called to order, 2:32 pm by Chair Carter

 1. Adopt Agenda

MB moves to adopt the agenda without the tentative executive session
EL seconds
All in favor, motion so moved and adopted


 2. Approve Minutes
MB moves to approve the minutes from the 2/3/25 meeting as written
EL Seconds
All in favor, motion so moved and approved



 3. Public Forum

None.

 4. Policy Review
 Subject 4.1. Discuss / approve new policies to be added to the City of Burlington's
 Comprehensive Personnel Policy Manual

LR leads discussion around policy review of the new Interactive Process Policy and Market Factor policy.
Employee comments were shared with the committee.

Committee members asked clarifying questions.
 Page 3 of 7
MB moves to bring the policies forward to City Council.
EL seconds.
All in favor, motion so moved and accepted.

Next steps: Lynn will present policies to Board of Finance/Council, and Councilor Carpenter will add it to
consent agenda.



 5. Other Committee Business

Last committee meeting as this group, with presumed carry-over after organization day on 4/7. Should
know first week in April what committee make-up will be.

LR provided an update on the timeline of the BPOA and BFFA negotiations.

 7. Adjournment
Meeting adjourned by Chair SC at 3:00 pm.

 8. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements
 The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political
 or religious affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual
 orientation, gender identity, marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim
 status or genetic information. The City is also committed to providing proper access to services,
 facilities and employment opportunities. The programs and services of the City of Burlington are
 accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special arrangements, auxiliary aid,
 service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a
 program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
 Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before
 the scheduled event




 Page 4 of 7
 Proposed BACA Members in Accordance to Resolution for appointment

Three (3) City Staff including the City’s ADA Coordinator and the Director of Capital Programs
Katherine Schad (she/her) - ADA Coordinator

Ashley Parker (she/her) – Capital Programs Director

Timothy Williams (He/Him) Safety Manager - dedicated City of Burlington employee and lifelong
resident with a deep personal and professional commitment to advancing accessibility and inclusion.
Living with less visible disabilities—including hearing loss, clinical depression, ADHD, dyslexia, and other
language-based learning disabilities—Tim brings lived experience and insight into the broader spectrum
of accessibility needs.

He Believes strongly in expanding the conversation around accessibility beyond mobility challenges to
include individuals with limited English proficiency and those with cognitive, sensory, and mental health
disabilities. Tim has a working knowledge of reasonable accommodations and is passionate about
helping create environments where all community members can fully participate.

Three (3) representatives from organizations or programs representing those with a disability
Nate Besio (he/him) – Vermont Center for Independent Living (VCIL) - currently serves as a Peer
Advocate Coordinator at the VCIL Burlington office. Prior to that he has over ten years of business and
accounting experience, primarily in the non-profit industry working for the State of Vermont and UVM.
He is currently serving his 3rd term as a Vermont Human Rights Commissioner and is a committed
community leader who has served on many boards.

John Thomas (he/him) Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired [VABVI] – He has
served as the Director of Development for VABVI for seven years. He has been the project manager for
VABVI’s accessibility work with the City of Burlington Parks and Rec Dept.

Karen Downey (She/Her) – UVM Department of Medicine Occupational Therapy – As a Burlington
resident for over 40 years and a licensed and certified occupational therapist, I wish to be a member of
the Burlington Advisory Committee on Accessibility. I have worked with both children and adults who
have disabilities in a variety of settings including acute care hospitals, nursing homes, home health
agencies and educational settings. Recently I retired from the full-time position of District Occupational
Therapist in the Burlington School District where I worked with children with disabilities along with their
family members. I am presently an adjunct faculty member of the University of Vermont Occupational
Therapy Doctoral program. I am also a Ward 5 election worker as well as a member of Vermont
AMBUCS, a non-profit organization that provides adapted tricycles for children and adults with mobility
challenges.

As a member of the Burlington Advisory Committee on Accessibility, I wish to assist the city to improve
citizen access to city services, buildings and programs. Considering the number of city residents with
mobility and other sensory disabilities as well as the aging of our general population, I am interested in
offering creative and evidence-based solutions for accessibility problems that the city faces.




 Page 5 of 7
At least three (3) people with lived experience who live, work, or spend significant time in
Burlington.
Lisa Black (She/Her) Burlington Resident - My goal is to be a valued member of the Accessibility
Advisory Committee to the Mayor by offering up my unique lived experience as a disabled person and as
a medical professional. Being a certified ADA coordinator who took all the necessary courses and passed
the national final certification exam a board certified Physician’s Assistant for over 30 years and a board
certified Patient Advocate offers a trifecta of advocacy and skills plus being a disabled person myself.




Scottie Taylor (They/them) Burlington Resident - I am recently an “official” addition to the residents
of Burlington after years of living here as an undergrad student, grad student, young professional, and
now hoping to grow my family here. It is quite a privilege to have the opportunity to be a member of
the Advisory Committee on Accessibility. My spouse, Taran [they/she] and I bought our home on
Shelburne St, and talk often of how excited we are to add a younger generation to our home. Milo, our
cat [he/him] shares our home, is exclusively an indoor cat, and loves being a BTV cat.

Burlington has felt like home for me all these years - I’ve loved everything from Church Street to the
bike path to Oakledge to the small city parks sprinkled throughout. I love our old city buildings and our
charming pockets of community within the city. In order for me to know I love these parts of our city, I
have the privilege of easily accessing them - in some ways they were designed with my body in mind.
Not all bodies were considered, and now we have the opportunity to amend and learn from time and
experience. I love that I have an opportunity to bring my lens to a Committee committed to making all
these parts of Burlington accessible to all, so they can discover what pockets of Burlington they love the
most.

As a Physical Therapist with a variety of experiences, I hope to bring insights from many perspectives -
families with children who feel overwhelmed in accessing the community, alternative mobility
considerations, neurodivergent considerations, and anything I might not be familiar with, I am not one
to shy away from a conversation filled with curiosity and learning.

Thank you again for your consideration in my participation in your Advisory Committee. If it feels like it
might be a good fit, I look forward to working with you all. If, for now, you find another whom brings
what is needed, thank you for your work in making Burlington feel like an accessible home to all.



Sharon Henault (She/Her) Burlington Resident – Sharon Henault is a 70 year old woman with cerebral
palsy who is lucky enough to have lived through the civil rights and IL movements for people with
disabilities.

She has worked for the Governor’s Committee on Employment for Persons with Disabilities (GCEPD)
(formerly “for handicapped,”), as a Vocational Rehabilitation counselor, an advocate for United Cerebral
Palsy and a navigator for the Federation for Children’s Mental Health.




 Page 6 of 7
She has served on many boards and commissions that work to protect and expand the civil rights for
people with disabilities. She also helped start the Vermont Center for Independent living (VCIL)




 Page 7 of 7

Monday, May 12, 2025, 8:30 AM, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT
8:30 am, HR Conference Room, 200 Church St., Burlington, VT OR Remotely via ZOOM:

Members Present:
Councilor Sarah Carpenter, Chair (SC)
Councilor Marek Broderick (MB)
Councilor Melo Grant (MG)
Lynn Reagan, Acting HR Director (LR)

Others in Attendance:
Karen Downey (Accessibility Committee nominee)
Lisa Black (Accessibility Committee nominee)
Tim Williams, Safety Manager
Meaghan Diffenderfer, HR Administrative Coordinator

Meeting called to order by SC, 8:36 am
Introductions

 1. Approve Agenda & Minutes
MB moves to approve the agenda as written
MG seconds
All in favor, motion so moved and adopted

MB moves to approve the minutes from the last meeting
SC seconds
All in favor, so moved and approved

 2. Public Forum

None.

 3. Advisory Committee on Accessibility Nominations
Tim Williams provides background on the Burlington Advisory Council on Accessibility, its structure, and
the HRPC role in approving the nominations.

Karen Downey and Lisa Black provide thanks for consideration of the nominations. Karen Downey
elaborates on the committee’s current projects.

MB moves to recommend the slate of nominees to the mayor and city council
MG seconds
All in favor, motion so moved and adopted.


 4. Other Committee Business
MG asks clarifying questions as a new member to the committee; SC and LR help answer.



 5. Adjournment
MB moves to adjourn
MG seconds
Meeting ends 9:22 am

 6. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

 The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political
 or religious affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual
 orientation, gender identity, marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim
 status or genetic information. The City is also committed to providing proper access to services,
 facilities and employment opportunities. The programs and services of the City of Burlington are
 accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special arrangements, auxiliary aid,
 service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a
 program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
 Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before
 the scheduled event.