ALFRED COMMITTEE ON EQUITY & SAFETY
Alfred Committee on Equity and Safety (ACES) is a working group established by the Village Board of Trustees in the summer of 2020. The group reports monthly to the Village Board with recommendations and findings.
Mission: ACES is a collection of representative individuals comprised of the various constituencies that make up the Town and Village of Alfred including representatives from: the faculty, staff and student bodies at Alfred State College and Alfred University; Alfred Police Department, Alfred State College University Police, Alfred University Public Safety, Alfred Village Board, Town of Alfred, A.E. Crandall Hook and Ladder Company, business owners and community members. The purpose of this group is to serve the entire community.
ACES works together to review policy, make recommendations, propose new or enhanced policy based upon available information, facilitate and develop meaningful collaborations and dialogues within the community, and present actionable opportunities to our community. ACES has and will continue to work within shared and unique spheres of influence to gather relevant information to inform that work. ACES works as one body to address the concerns of students and community members alike. The group is focused on the collaborative development of transformative opportunities to create actionable, tangible and demonstrative change with social justice, equity, accountability, and communal agency at its core for the benefit of the entire community.
During the June, 2020 Village Board meeting it was deemed necessary and appropriate to address the concerns of our community through the formation of a collaborative committee. In June, Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order No. 203: New York State Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative. The points outlined in the Executive Order are closely aligned with the mission of the committee, though do not describe the entire scope; policing is just one piece of the conversation. Once formed the committee began with bi-weekly meetings in August, 2020. After the October, 2020 listening session, the committee formed two subgroups, one to address the Executive Order, and the other to review the community as a whole. In October, 2020, ACES groups began meeting weekly.
On March 9, 2021 ACES presented to the Village Board and the community its work on the Executive Order. The work was open for public comment through March 23. On March 23, at 7:00pm, there was be a public hearing, and a vote to accept and ratify immediately following. The resulting Reform Plan will be submitted to the New York State by April 1, 2020.
ACES is committed to continuing this conversation. In addition to the Reform Plan response to Executive Order 203, the group will continue to add to, evolve and put forward recommendations; this is a live document, and a starting point. Transparency is paramount toward a goal of community transformation. Outlined in the plan is a promise to continue the conversation through outreach to various constituency groups and stakeholders. ACES has identified a number of such groups and will begin the process of reaching out through a series of focus groups over the second quarter of 2021. The public is welcomed to reach out as well to set up a time with their group and members of ACES.
After this series of meetings, ACES may put out another survey to the community to gauge progress.
Membership: ACES is currently comprised of members who represent a variety of stakeholders in our community. At this time, no term length has been established. Some of the members were appointed by the Mayor in August to serve with a specific focus on the Executive Order. Once work on the Executive Order is submitted, membership or the overall ACES will / may have some turnover. The group is committed to a membership made up of representatives who represent as many facets of the community as possible. Going forward, we encourage students to join.
To contact the committee, please use the chat us button on the Village website.
- Peter McClain, Village Deputy Mayor
- Merideth Field, Village Trustee
- Wendy Dailey, Alfred Town Board
- Desmond Davis, Assistant Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Center for Intercultural Unity, Alfred State College
- Nancy Furlong, A.E. Crandall Hook & Ladder Company/ Alfred Ambulance Corps
- Paul Griffith, Chief of Police, Alfred Police Department
- Caitlin Brown, Communications Coordinator for the Arts, School of Art and Design, Alfred University
- Jessica Middaugh, Chief of Public Safety, Alfred University
- Scott Richardson, Interim Chief of Police University Police, Alfred state College
- Gregory Sammons, Vice President for Student Affairs, Alfred State College
