Women in Leadership: A Countywide Snapshot of …€¦ · Gender Representation on Appointed Boards and ... commissions offer important avenues for ... serve as a springboard to positions

WomeninLeadership:

ACountywideSnapshotofGenderRepresentationon

AppointedBoardsandCommissions

SantaBarbaraCountyCommissionforWomen:WomeninLeadership2014 2

CommissionforWomenMembers:

1stDistrict:LauraBurtonCapps(Chair),GinaFischer,VictoriaJuarez

2ndDistrict:SuzannePeck,GailTeton‐Landis,SigridWright

3rdDistrict:TracyBeard,FranClow(ViceChair),DeborahDawicki

4thDistrict:MarthaHight,CindyLitzinger

5thDistrict:GaylePratt

MissionStatement:

TheCommissionforWomenpromotesthewell‐beingofwomeninSantaBarbara

County.TheCommissionwilladvisetheBoardoncriticalareasaffectingwomen,

especiallywomenwhohavethegreatestneed.Toaccomplishthispurpose,the

Commissionmancollaboratewithothercommissionsandcommunitygroups;

facilitate,recognize,andrecommendprograms;gatheranddisseminateinformation,

holdpublichearings,advisetheboard,andtakeotheractiontoaccomplishitspurpose.

ExecutiveSummary:

Backgroundonthisproject:AprimarygoaloftheCommissionforWomenisto

supportandfosterfemaleleadershipthroughoutSantaBarbaraCounty.Inspiredby

theOrfaleaFoundation’sNotYetEqual:ASnapshotofWomeninSantaBarbaraCounty

2014,andaftermuchdiscussion,theCommissiondecidedthataconstructiveapproach

toachievingthisgoalwouldbetoperformananalysisofgenderrepresentationon

boardsandcommissionsthroughoutthecounty.

Whydoananalysis?Thereasonsforthisarefivefold:

• Havingasenseofthetotalnumberofwomenandmenaswellasthenumberof

vacanciesoneachboardandcommissionisanecessaryfirststeptodoinga

moreeffectivejobofachievinggenderrepresentation.

• AnanalysiswouldprovidetheBoardofSupervisors,whomtheCommission

advises,withareviewofhowwomen’svoicesareincludedinourcivicdialogue.

• Boardsandcommissionsofferimportantavenuesforthepublictohaveaccess

tothegovernanceprocessandoftenfunctioninanadvisorycapacitytoelected

officials.


• Appointmentstoboardsandcommissionsareonewayforcitizenstovoluntarily

engageinpublicservice,andcanoftenserveasaspringboardtopositionsof

greaterleadership,includingcareeradvancement,electedoffice,andastronger

professionalnetwork.

• Constantly,therearevacanciesonboardsandcommissions.Armedwiththis

data,thesevacancies,intheviewoftheCommission,representanopportunity

toachievemoreequalgenderrepresentation.

Scope:InMayof2014andupdatedinJanuaryof2015,datawasgatheredfromatotal

of103boardsandcommissionfromtheCountyofSantaBarbaraaswellasfromthe

followingmunicipalities:Buellton,Carpinteria,Goleta,SantaBarbara,Solvang,

LompocandSantaMaria.Ofthe103totalboardsandcommissionsreviewed,there

wereacombinedtotalof748positionstobefilledbyappointment.Thecityof

Guadalupeisnotincludedinthisreportbecausethecitydoesnotmakeany

appointmentstocitizenboardsandcommissionsatthistime

Justasnapshot:Asdetailedbelow,therearetwomajorlimitationstothisanalysis1)

thereisconstantturnoverinappointmentsyetdataisnotupdateduniformly,sothe

qualityofthedataisdependentupontherecordsonfileineachclerk’sofficeandthe

accuracyofwebsiteinformation2)individualsarenotrequiredtoself‐identifytheir

genderinordertoserveonaboardorcommission,thusassumptionsweremadeinthe

datagatheringprocess.

Thefindings:Overall,womenmakeupapproximately39%ofappointees,men

represent49%,and12%arevacant.Forcountyappointments,womenrepresent33%,

menrepresent51%and16%arevacant.Ineachofthecities,womenmakeupbetween

20‐67%ofmunicipalappointments:Buellton=20%women,Carpinteria=45%women,

Goleta=24%women,SantaBarbara=40%women,Solvang=67%women,Lompoc

=41%womenandSantaMaria=49%women.Womenaremorelikelytoserveon

boardsandcommissionsthatcovertopicsintheArts&HumanitiesandHealth&

HumanServicescategories.

Goal:Thereasonforthissnapshotistoprovideconstructiveinformationtothosewho

makeappointments.TheCommissionforWomenstrivestobearesourcebothby

producingthisanalysisandthewayinwhichitmightbeutilized.

Thankyou:TheCommissionwouldliketoespeciallythankthefollowingpublicservice

staff:ChelseaLenzi,CountyClerkoftheBoard;DeborahApplegate,DeputyCityClerk,

CityofSantaBarbara;andFidelaGarcia,CityClerk,CityofCarpinteria.


ProjectGoal:

TheCommissionforWomenseekstoanalyzethegendercompositionofappointeesto

boardsandcommissionsinSantaBarbaraCounty.

ProjectDescription:

Thisprojectlookedatthegendercompositionof103totalboardsandcommissions*of

theCountyofSantaBarbaraandallmunicipalitieswithinthecounty.Thedata

examinedincludedboardandcommissionappointmentswheretheresponsibilityand

discretionoftheindividualappointmentresidesprimarilywiththeelectedofficialswho

makeuptheBoardofSupervisorsandthevariousCityCouncilswithinthecounty.

DecisionsonappointmentsaremadebytheBoardofSupervisors,CityCouncilsand

otherinterestedparties.Someappointmentsaremadeatthediscretionofonlyone

supervisor,andsomeboardsincludeappointmentsmadebyboththeBoardof

SupervisorsandCityCouncils.Allboardsandcommissionsreviewedforthisproject

haveadesignatedandopenpublicprocesstorecruit,apply,andselectappointees.

InitialdatawascollectedinMayof2014andupdatedinJanuaryof2015.(*See

AppendixAforafulllistofboards&commissions).

CFWReviewof748AppointedSeats

Male

Female

Vacant

368

49%

291

39%

89

12%


DataAnalysis:

Forthepurposeofthisstudy,theCommissionforWomenexaminedtherostersof103

totalboardsandcommissionsthroughoutthecounty.Theindividualsappointedto

these103boardsandcommissionswereselectedbyelectedmembersoftheSanta

BarbaraCountyBoardofSupervisorsandmunicipalrepresentativeselectedtothe

variousCityCouncilswithintheSantaBarbaraCounty.Membershiprequirementsfor

eachboardandcommissionaredesignatedbystateorlocalstatute,orbylawsforeach

boardandcommission.

Analysisofthedataidentifiedthenumberofwomen,menandvacantseatsonthe103

boardsandcommissionsincludedinthestudy.

Inanefforttocollectthemostcurrent,up‐to‐dateinformation,outreachbyphoneand

emailtotheofficeofthecountyClerkoftheBoardandtheCityClerksofficesineach

citywasperformed.DataobtainedfromtheClerkoftheBoardandCityClerksoffice

wasalsocross‐referencedwithawebreviewofeachboardandcommission.The

qualityofthedataisdependentupontherecordsonfileineachclerk’sofficeandthe

accuracyofwebsiteinformation.Aneffortwasmadetoidentifyvacantseatsonthe

boardsandcommissions.Thedatainthisreportwasupdatedinearly2015inorderto

attempttocapturedataasaccurateaspossible.ThecityofGuadalupeisnotincluded

inthisreportbecausethecitydoesnotmakeanyappointmentstocitizenboardsand

commissionsatthistime.

Foranalysispurposes,theboardsandcommissionsweregroupedintofourcategories

includingHealthandHumanServices,LandUsePlanning,Arts&Humanities,and

Other.

HealthandHumanServicesidentifiesthoseboardsandcommissionsthathaveanexus

tofundingorregulationofphysicalormentalhealthcare.Examplesofboardsand

commissionwiththisdesignationincludetheAlcoholandDrugAdvisoryBoard;

CommunityDevelopmentBlockGrantadvisorybodies;HumanServicesCommission;

MentalHealthCommission;andMosquitoandVectorControlBoard,amongothers.

TheLandUsePlanningdesignationdenotesthoseboardsandcommissionswhose

purviewincludesthesystemicevaluationandassessmentofpotentiallanddisposition

andutilizationoptionsfromaregional,urban,economic,social,neighborhood,

communityoranydefineddistrictperspective.Examplesofboardandcommissions

withthisdesignationincludeAgricultureAdvisoryCommission;ArchitecturalBoardof

Review;BuildingandFireCodeBoard;HistoricLandmarksCommission;regional

PlanningAdvisoryCommittees;Parks&RecreationCommission;SignCommittees;

TransportationCommittees;andTreeAdvisorygroups.

TheArtsandHumanitiesdesignationencompassthoseboardsandcommissionsthat

focusonhumancultureincludinglanguage,literature,philosophy,religion,andvisual


andperformingarts.ExamplesincludeArtsAdvisorycommissions;Libraryboards;and

SisterCitiesgroups.

ThefinalgroupingdesignationusedinthisanalysisisOther.BoardsandCommissions

groupedintheOthercategoryincludethosewithaquasi‐regulatorymissionorwitha

scopethatismorebroadthananyoftheotherdesignations.ExamplesfromtheOther

designationincludeCemeteryDistrictboards;Airportcommissions;Harbor

commission;andYouthcouncils.

Limitations:

Thissectionwilldiscussthelimitationsthatcouldhaveanimpactonthequalityofthis

studyofthegenderrepresentationonboardsandcommissionsthroughouttheCounty.

Limitation1:AccuracyofData&AppointmentofAlternates‐Thedataobtainedfor

thisstudywasoriginallygatheredinAprilandMay2014fromthecountyClerkofthe

BoardandCityClerksoffices.Challengesexistwithintheseofficesandwithinthedata

collectionprocessthatmaycompromisetheaccuracyofthedata.InJanuary2015the

datawasupdatedbyanextensivewebsitereviewofpostedrosterinformation.There

maybevacanciesandchangestothecurrentappointmentsonanyboardor

commissionnotreflectedinthedataobtained.Someboardsandcommissionsallow

foralternatestobeappointedincaseavotingmemberisnotabletoparticipate.Only

fullvotingmemberswerequantifiedforthisstudy.

Limitation2:GenderDetermination‐TheapplicationsusedbytheCountyand

participatingcitiesdonotincludeaboxrelatedtogender.Potentialboardand

commissioncandidatesarenotrequiredtoself‐identifytheirgenderinordertoserve

onaboardorcommission.Forthepurposeofthisstudy,genderwasdetermined

throughgenderassumptionbasedonthefirstnameoftheappointee.Forgender

ambiguousfirstnamesaweb‐basedsearchoftheindividuals’fullnameplusanyother

personalinformationonfilewiththegovernmentagencywasemployedtoidentify

morespecificdetailsinordertoassigngender.Someoftheinformationusedincluded

captionedphotographsidentifyingtheindividual,orbeingidentifiedas“he”or“she”

and/or“Mr.”or“Mrs.”inpublicmaterialsincludingnewspaperarticles,organization

newslettersandminutesfromtheboardorcommissionwherethattheindividual

serves.

Findings:

Ofthe103totalboardsandcommissionsreviewed,therewereacombinedtotalof748

positionstobefilledbyappointment.Womenheld291ofthose748positionsfora39%


total.Fortheremainderoftheseats,368or49%wereoccupiedbymen,and89or

12%werevacant.Womenaremoreheavilyrepresentedonboardsandcommissionsin

theArts&HumanitiesandHealth&HumanServicesareas.

WhenisolatingaportionofthedataandonlyanalyzingtheCountyboardand

commissiondatathereare35totalboardsandcommissionswith307seatstobefilled

byappointment.Womenheld101or33%ofthoseseats,menoccupied156seatsor

51%,andtherewereapproximately50vacanciesaccountingforaround16%.

Outcome1:Womenrepresent39%oftotalappointeesthroughoutSantaBarbara

CountyincludingthecitiesofBuellton,Carpinteria,GoletaSantaBarbara,SantaMaria

andSolvang.

CFWReviewof748AppointedSeats

Male

Female

Vacant

368

49%

291

39%

89

12%


Outcome2:Womenrepresent33%ofthetotalappointeesonCountyboardsand

commissions.Menrepresent51%ofappointeesoncountyboardsandcommissions.

Approximately16%ofseatsarevacantonCountyboardsandcommissions.

CountyOnlyBoard&Commission

Appointments

Women

Men

Vacant

33%

101

seats

16%

50seats

51%

156seats


Outcome3a(County):Arts&HumanitiesandHealth&HumanServiceshavemore

womenappointeesandmorevacancies.Womenappointeesmakeupbetween36%

and48%ofmembersservingintheseareasandthereareapproximately35vacant

seatsintheArts&HumanitiesandHHSareas,withHHShavinga25%vacancyrate

mostnotablywith11vacantseatsontheAdvisoryBoardonAlcohol&DrugProblems.

LandUsePlanningandOthercategoriesarepredominantlyfilledbymenandthereare

lessvacantseatstobefilled.(SeeAppendixBforthefulldataforCountyboards&

commissions)

Women,Men&VacantSeatsonCountyBoards&Commissions

Outcome3b(Countypluscities):WomenappointeesintheCountyandthroughout

thecitiesareprevalentintheArts&HumanitiesandHealth&HumanServices

categories.

ByCategory:

Total Women Men VacantPercent

• Arts&Humanities: 66 48 10 8 73%

• Health&HumanServices: 154 63 60 31 41%

• LandUse/Planning: 334 123 187 24 37%

• Other 194 57 111 26 30%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Arts&Humanities Health&Human

Services

LandUsePlanning Other

Women%

Men%

Vacant%

48%

36%31%

21%24%

28%

39%

25%

61%

8%

69%

10%


WomenAppointeesonCityandCountyBoards&Commissions

Outcome4:Womenserveinappointedpositionsthroughouttheregion.Total

percentageofwomenservingthroughouttheCountyrangebetween20%inBuellton

and67%inSolvang.

ByRegion:

Total Women %W %M %V

• CountyofSantaBarbara: 310 110 35% 50% 15%

• Buellton: 10 2 20% 80% 0%

• Carpinteria: 45 20 45% 42% 13%

• Goleta: 25 6 24% 64% 12%

• SantaBarbara: 203 81 40% 46% 14%

• Solvang: 15 10 67% 33% 0%

• Lompoc 85 35 41% 52% 7%

• SantaMaria 55 27 49% 49% 2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Arts&

Humanities

HHS LandUse/

Planning

Other

FemaleAppointeesby

Category

MaleAppointee

Vacant

73%

30%

37%

41%

15%12%

39%

20%

56%

7%

58%

12%


NumberofAppointedWomenbyArea

GeographicComparisonofTotalWomenAppointeesbyCity

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

CountyofSB

Buellton

Carpinteria

Goleta

SantaBarbara

Solvang

Lompoc

SantaMaria

TotalSeats

Vacant

Women

Men

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

TotalFemaleAppointmentbyCity

TotalFemaleAppointment


AppendixA

BoardsandCommissions:

Theboardandcommissionsreviewedforthisreportinclude:

Board/Commission Area

AccessAdvisoryCommittee SantaBarbara

AdvisoryBoardonAlcohol&DrugProblems County

AgriculturalAdvisoryCommission County

AirPollutionControlDistrictCommunityAdvisoryCouncil County

AirportCommission

Lompoc&Santa

Barbara

AllAmericaCityCommittee SantaMaria

ArchitecturalBoardofReview

County(4),Carpinteria,

SantaBarbara,Solvang

ArtsAdvisoryCommittee SantaBarbara

AssessmentAppeals#1 County

AssessmentAppeals#2 County

BeautificationandAppearanceCommission Lompoc

BlockGrantsAdvisoryCommittee SantaMaria

BluffsManagementAdvisoryBoard Carpinteria

BoardofAppeals SantaMaria

BuildingandFireCodeBoardofAppeals SantaBarbara

CarpinteriaCemeteryDistrictBoardofTrustees County

CarpinteriaFirstCommittee Carpinteria

CDBGCommittee Carpinteria


CitizensCommitteetoOverseetheParkMaintenanceandCity

PoolAssessmentDistrict Lompoc

CivilServiceCommission County&SantaBarbara

CommissionforWomen County

CommunityDevelopment&HumanServicesCommittee SantaBarbara

CommunityEventsandFestivalsCommittee SantaBarbara

CountyRidingandHikingTrailsAdvisoryCommittee County

CreeksRestoration&WaterQualityImprovementProgram

CitizensAdvisoryCommittee(CreeksAdvisoryCommittee) SantaBarbara

DesignReviewBoard Goleta

DowntownParkingCommittee SantaBarbara

Downtown‐TBusinessAdvisoryBoard Carpinteria

EconomicDevelopmentCommittee Lompoc

FireandPoliceCommission SantaBarbara

FireandPolicePensionCommission SantaBarbara

FireBoardofAppeal County

FishandGameCommission County

GaviotaCoastPlanningAdvisoryCommittee County

GoletaCemeteryDistrictBoardofTrustees County

GuadalupeCemeteryDistrictBoardofTrustees County

HarborCommission SantaBarbara

HistoricLandmarksAdvisoryCommission

County,SantaBarbara

&SantaMaria

HousingAuthorityBoardofCommissioners County

HumanServicesCommission County&Lompoc

LibraryAdvisoryCommittee County

LibraryBoardofTrusteesLompoc,SantaBarbara


&SantaMaria

LivingWageAdvisoryCommittee SantaBarbara

LompocCemeteryDistrictBoardofDirectors County

LosAlamosCemeteryDistrictBoardofDirectors County

LosAlamosPlanningAdvisoryCommittee County

MeasurePCommittee SantaBarbara

MeasureU2012Citizen’sOversightCommittee SantaMaria

MentalHealthCommission County

MobileHomeRentStabilizationBoard Carpinteria

MontecitoAreaPlanningCommission County

MosquitoandVectorControlBoardofDirectors

County,Carpinteria,

Goleta,SantaBarbara

NeighborhoodAdvisoryCouncil SantaBarbara

OakhillCemeteryDistrictBoardofDirectors County

OrcuttTrailsCommission County

Parks&RecreationCommission

County,Buellton,

Goleta,Lompoc,Santa

Barbara,SantaMaria,

Solvang

PlanningCommission

County,Buellton,

Carpinteria,Goleta,

Lompoc,SantaBarbara,

SantaMaria,Solvang

PublicSafetyCommission Lompoc

PublicTreeAdvisoryBoard Goleta

RentalHousingMediationTaskForce SantaBarbara

SBCountyArtsCommission County

SantaBarbaraYouthCouncil SantaBarbara

SantaMariaCemeteryBoardofTrustees County


SantaMariaCommunityTelevision SantaMaria

SeniorCommission Lompoc

SignCommittee SantaBarbara

SingleFamilyDesignBoard SantaBarbara

SisterCitiesBoard SantaBarbara

TransportationandCirculationCommittee SantaBarbara

TreeAdvisoryBoard Carpinteria

UtilityCommission Lompoc

Veteran'sServicesAdvisoryCommittee County

WaterCommission SantaBarbara

YouthCommission Lompoc


AppendixB

DataforCountyfromOutcome#3a

Board/Commission

Total

Seats Women Men Vacant

%

Women

%

Men

%

Vacant

Advisory Board on Alcohol &

Drug Problems 20 5 4 11

Air Pollution Control District

Community Advisory Council 26 5 17 4

Commission for Women 15 10 0 5

Housing Authority Board of

Commissioners 7 2 4 1

Human Services Commission 15 11 1 3

Mental Health Commission 11 4 7 0

Mosquito and Vector Control

Board of Directors 8 3 5 0

Veteran's Services Advisory

Committee 8 0 5 3

Health & Human Services

(HHS) Sub Total 110 40 43 27 36% 39% 25%

Board/Commission

Total


%

Women

%

Men

%

Vacant

Library Advisory Committee 14 6 1 7 43% 7% 50%

Santa Barbara County Arts

Commission 15 8 6 1 53% 40% 7%

Arts & Humanities Sub

Total 29 14 7 8 48% 24% 28%


Board/Commission

Total


%

Women

%

Men %

Vacant

Agricultural Advisory Commission 12 6 6 0

Board of Architectural Review-

Central 5 4 1 0


Montecito 7 2 5 0


North 5 0 4 1


South 7 3 4 0

County Riding and Hiking Trails

Advisory Committee 20 2 14 4

Fish and Game Commission 12 0 8 4

Gaviota Coast Planning Advisory

Committee 11 4 7 0

Historic Landmarks Advisory

Commission 11 3 7 1

Los Alamos Planning Advisory

Committee 7 3 4 0

Montecito Area Planning

Commission 5 2 3 0

Orcutt Trails Commission 7 3 4 0

Park Commission 5 3 2 0

Planning Commission 5 2 3 0

Land Use Planning Sub Totals 119 37 72 10 31% 61% 8%


Board/Commission

Total


%

Women

%

Men

%

Vacant

Assessment Appeals #1 5 3 1 1

Assessment Appeals #2 5 3 2 0

Carpinteria Cemetery

District Board of Trustees 5 0 5 0

Civil Service Commission 5 2 1 2

Fire Board of Appeal 5 0 2 3

Goleta Cemetery District

Board of Trustees 3 1 2 0

Guadalupe Cemetery

District Board of Trustees 5 1 4 0

Lompoc Cemetery District


Los Alamos Cemetery

District Board of Directors 3 0 3 0

Oakhill Cemetery District


Santa Maria Cemetery

Board of Trustees 5 0 5 0

Other Sub Totals 49 10 33 6 23% 67% 10%

Documents

Women in Leadership: A Countywide Snapshot of …€¦ · Gender Representation on Appointed Boards and ... commissions offer important avenues for ... serve as a springboard to positions