In early 2009, the Human Rights Commission Chair consolidated the Commission’s Issues Advisory Committee and Employment Advisory Committee, forming the Equity Advisory Committee. The new committee is expected to alert and make timely recommendations to the Commission on issues affecting the citizens of San Francisco including, but not limited to, human trafficking, homelessness, environmental justice, immigration, healthcare, senior quality of life, youth and education, criminal justice, housing access, workforce, diversity and equality of opportunity.
EAC Working Groups
The EAC currently maintains four Working Groups. For details about the work each of the Working Groups is undertaking, please click on the Working Group name below to view the Working Group's Work Plan. Working Groups typically meet once a month outside of regularly scheduled Committee meetings, on dates set by Working Group members.
- Education Working Group
Members: Pamela Duszynski, Daisy Hung, Carnelius Quinn, Jennifer Salerno
- Employment Working Group
Members: Joel Brown, Azalia Merrell, Mollie Ring
- Housing Working Group
Members: Joel Brown, Todd Mavis, Jennifer Salerno
- Immigration Working Group
Members: Daisy Hung, Sara Jackson, Nura Maznavi, Mollie Ring
DEADLINE EXTENDED FOR SUBMITTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE 2010 HRC RECOGNITION AWARDS
The HRC has extended the deadline for submitting applications for two new awards – the 2010 HRC Organization/Program Recognition Award, and the 2010 HRC Student Recognition Award. For more information about each of the Awards, please click on the links below:
MEETING SCHEDULE
The EAC meets on the second Wednesday of each month, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the main conference room of the HRC. We encourage and welcome non-EAC members to come to one of our upcoming meetings.
Meetings in 2010
January 13
February 10
March - MEETING CANCELLED
April - Retreat, Date TBD
May 12
June 9
July 14
August 11
September 8
October 13
November 10
December 8
Commissioners:
Jamal Dajani
Julius Turman
Faye Woo Lee
Community Members:
(for more information about each community member, click on the respective member's name)
Joel A. Brown
Pamela Duszynski
Daisy Hung
Sara Jackson
Todd Mavis
Nura Maznavi
Azalia Merrell
Priscilla Padilla
Carnelius Quinn
Mollie Ring
Jennifer Salerno
To view past reports prepared by this Committee, please visit: http://www.sf-hrc.org/index.aspx?page=6
EAC MEMBER BIOGRAPHIES
Joel A. Brown
EAC Member, 2009
Joel is the Chief Visionary Officer of Pneumos LLP (“Pneumos”), a management consulting firm. A graduate of the University of Minnesota and the University of Virginia School of Law, Joel worked for two defense law firms as an employment litigator, focusing on wage and hour disputes, discrimination matters, and sexual harassment cases. As a management consultant, Joel has given diversity presentations at Kansas City Power & Light and Applebee’s International. He has also served as a consultant to the Human Rights Campaign Fund and the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and co-facilitated diversity workshops for the Office of Naval Intelligence.
Pamela Duszynski
EAC Member, 2009
Pamela has served our San Francisco youth and families for over a decade as both teacher and administrator in public schools throughout the San Francisco Unified School District. Her passion for education stems from a strong belief in social justice and empowering under-served youth. A recent graduate of the Principal Leadership Institute (PLI) of the University of California, Berkeley, Pam seeks to bring education to the forefront of issues surrounding human rights.
Daisy Hung
EAC Member, 2009
Daisy Hung is the Diversity Pipeline Programs Manager at the Bar Association of San Francisco (BASF). She handles a number of BASF’s programs seeking to increase diversity in the legal profession, including the scholarship program, diversity career fair, student mentorship program, judicial mentorship program, minority summer associate receptions, and others. Prior to joining BASF, Daisy was a public interest attorney assisting low-income Asian and Pacific Islander clients. Daisy was a Staff Attorney at Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach where she directed the Domestic Violence Program, and practiced family law and immigration. She was also a Staff Attorney at Asian Law Alliance where she practiced housing law. She currently serves as a board member of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area, and a board member of Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach.
Sara Jackson
EAC Member, 2009
Sara Jackson is a Staff Attorney and the National Equal Opportunity Coordinator at the Equal Justice Society (“EJS”). She was formerly the EJS Constance Baker Motley Civil Rights Fellow. Sara received her B.A. in International Studies from Macalester College, and her J.D. and M.P.P. from UCLA Law School and the UCLA School of Public Affairs, where she participated in the Critical Race Studies and Public Interest Law Programs. Sara’s background in the non-profit sector has included work focused on economic justice, juvenile justice, educational access and equality, and international HIV/AIDS prevention & education. She’s proficient in Spanish and has some fluency in Kiswahili.
Todd Mavis
EAC Member, 2009
Todd Mavis owns a real-estate management and property development company in San Francisco. He is also a former Adjunct Professor at Golden Gate University in the School of Law. For many years he has been an activist for housing and employment rights, working with numerous neighborhood associations, various governmental agencies and community development boards. Todd is also on the Board of Directors at San Francisco Coalition for Responsible Growth - dedicated to improving housing and employment opportunities at all income levels. He lives together with his partner Kevin and their two dogs: Bisou and Chloe (who they recently rescued when her owner passed away). In his free time, Todd enjoys playing tennis and going to the theater.
Nura Maznavi
EAC Member, 2009
Nura Maznavi, a Sri Lankan-American Muslim, is a civil rights attorney. After graduating from law school, she received a Fulbright Scholarship to Sri Lanka where she worked with international and local non-governmental organizations on Sri Lankan migrant worker rights. Nura litigated prisoner civil rights actions and employment discrimination cases for several years before joining the legal advocacy non-profit Muslim Advocates, where she works on religious and racial profiling issues. She is an active member of the National Association of Muslim Lawyers and serves on the board of the Bay Area Association of Muslim Lawyers. Nura is a California girl—she was raised in Los Angeles but now calls San Francisco home.
Azalia Merrell
EAC Member, 2009
Azalia Merrell, a native San Franciscan, served as a member of the HRC Issues Advisory Committee for three years, prior to being appointed to the Equity Advisory Committee. She currently works in construction management, and has worked within the Construction Industry for over 15 years. In her position and as a dually elected delegate to the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council, the San Francisco Labor Council and the San Francisco Building Trades Council, she has long worked and continues to work to further opportunities and advocate for of women, people of color, and working individuals of all walks of life. Azalia has also been a member of the Executive Board of the Cesar Chavez Holiday Parade & Festival since 2003, whose mission, in addition to organizing annual festivities, is to commemorate and celebrate the Life and Work of Cesar E. Chavez while bringing the current plight of workers and the issues they face front and center, with the end to provide a platform for individual to connect with communities to provide service to others.
Priscilla Padilla
EAC Member, 2009
Priscilla Padilla is a Bay Area native. She is a graduate of Boston University. She has volunteered for a diverse array of non-profit organizations around immigrant rights, health care for disenfranchised populations, HIV/AIDS awareness, and reducing veteran homelessness in both the Bay Area and Boston. Currently she works for the San Mateo County as a program coordinator for a chronic disease prevention study. She particularly enjoys volunteering with programs that support youth in pursuing higher education and health awareness. Currently, she is a board member for the North Peninsula Chapter of the ACLU, SF Crisis Care, and a leadership fellow for Handson Bay Area.
Carnelius Quinn
EAC Member, 2009
Carnelius is a San Francisco native whose path was shaped by the City’s youth programs which he grew up in. Carnelius graduated from San Francisco State University with a double BA in Sociology and Theatre and went on to create and direct the educational theatre troupe T4. He now works as Program Manager for Health Initiatives For Youth, a San Francisco based organization that seeks to provide empowering health education for young people and their adult allies. He is proud to serve on the Equity Advisory Committee, and humbled by all of the great community efforts the Committee is aspiring to this year.
Mollie Ring
EAC Member, 2009
Mollie Ring works as the Trafficking Project Manager for the Standing Against Global Exploitation (“SAGE”) Project, a San Francisco based non-profit organization dedicated to serving survivors of commercial sexual exploitation, trauma and human trafficking. She also works as a consultant for organizations such as UNICEF, the United Nations Development Programme, and ontheFRONTIER Group. Beyond her work as a member of the Equity Advisory Committee, Mollie collaborates with the Human Rights Commission as a member of the San Francisco Coalition Against Human Trafficking. She received a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University in 2007 with a focus in social policy implementation.
Jennifer Salerno
EAC Member, 2009
Jennifer Salerno was appointed to the Equity Advisory Committee in March of 2009. She currently works as an Education and Employment Specialist for First Place for Youth, a nonprofit organization that assists emancipating foster youth with securing housing and employment as well as achieving their educational goals. She also serves as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for a youth in foster care. In 2008, Jennifer traveled to Denver to volunteer as a Deputy Field Organizer for President Obama’s campaign. Jennifer currently lives in the East Bay where she spends her free time hiking and enjoying nature with her husband and her dog Simon.
