Minority Inclusion

Objective - Minority InclusionMinority Inclusion icon

Lead by example through the adoption of city-wide and departmental inclusion strategies focusing on a diverse pool of applicants for employment, committees, and boards. 

Note: This has been a City Commission Priority since 2021.

Minority Inclusion Priority Details

Expectations and Tactics
  • Continue to support the Paducah Diversity Advisory Board and Human Rights Commission.
  • Support the diversity initiatives led by the Diversity Specialist.
  • Proactively seek a diverse candidate pool for city boards and committees.
Accomplishments - 2021 to present

Award  The Paducah Board of Commissioners received in November 2022 at the Paducah/McCracken County NAACP Annual Freedom Fund Banquet the Fred Paxton Diversity and Inclusion Award recognizing the City’s focus on diversity and inclusion strategies and awareness.

Demographics - Reflection of Community  Created an internal dashboard of the City’s employee demographics with a goal of updating quarterly to measure how closely we reflect the City’s demographics. Also, Human Resources worked with Murray State University to distribute an assessment in 2023 focused on DE&I for the City government. Murray State administered the survey and collected the data. Currently, the data is under review by the elected officials, leadership team, and PDAB.

Diversity Specialist The City created the position of Diversity Specialist. The hiring is complete with Diversity Specialist Daisha Johnson beginning March 2024.

Engagement 

  • Mayor George Bray held several meetings with citizens to establish the structure, purpose, and bylaws of the Paducah Diversity Advisory Board. 
  • During the city manager recruitment process in June 2021, a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion community panel interviewed the city manager candidates.
  • Mayor Bray, a founding member of the Minority Entrepreneur/Small Business Roundtable, is involved with the promotion and success of minority businesses.
  • Several City departments participated in WKY Launch Experience in March 2022 which provided an opportunity to share career and educational opportunities with approximately 800 eighth grade students.
  • City sponsored and partnered with the Paducah-McCracken County NAACP and the Carson Center the first-ever Juneteenth Celebration in 2022. City also co-sponsors the August 8th Celebration and participates in the parade.

Inclusive Recruiting  Focusing on inclusive recruitment processes by assembling a list of local minority groups for job announcements, posting positions on national minority professional associations, and working with the Leadership Team to break down barriers that exist to apply for city positions. Example: The City held firefighter testing locally at no cost to the participants.

Paducah Diversity Advisory Board (PDAB)  The City worked with citizens to establish the structure, purpose, and bylaws of the Paducah Diversity Advisory Board.  The Board began meeting monthly in May 2021. The Board presented a community update at the May 9, 2022, meeting of the Paducah Board of Commissioners. The City is working on drafting a diversity statement.

Paducah Human Rights Commission  In June 2023, the City amended Paducah Code of Ordinances Section 58-32 related to the Human Rights Commission to expand the board from five to seven members. Before these appointments, terms for all of the previous members had expired, and the board was vacant. In July 2023, seven board members were appointed. One of the first tasks for the new Human Rights Commission will be to review the existing ordinance and recommend changes, if any. The Board is holding regular meetings and intaking complaints. The Board also completed training by the State Commission.

Training  Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Training for all city employees was held March 8-10, 2022, with a professional trainer. The City Leadership Team participated in DE&I training in June 2023. Human Resources is working with the Paducah Diversity Advisory Board and other HR professionals to determine additional  training or engagement opportunities.

Commission Priorities

Read all Commission Priorities and Continuous Improvement Items including each action item's objective and expectations by visiting Commission Priorities.