The Knowledge Effect
Meeting Agenda
January 12, 2017
10:00 – 11:30 a.m.
Vision Statement: The Knowledge Effect’s vision for Lafayette Parish is to create a safe and healthy
community.
I. Call to Order and Welcome
II. Introductions
III. Action Plan Discussion Year 5- Mechelle Richard started off the meeting opening the
discussion for members to chime in on what The Knowledge Effects accomplishments and
challenges have been for the past year and how we should proceed.
a. Accomplishments- Mechelle opened saying Family Friendly Mardi Gras is a
success as well as the Drug Recognition Expert Training that the officers attend.
She also spoke on our collaboration efforts to help reduce substance use.
i. Chris Waters talked about the success of our RHI event with Jim Peters in
June, the NAS Symposium that took place in February, and the Alcohol
Awareness Proclamation that took place in April.
ii. Tim Melancon suggested possibly going back over the previous year’s
minutes to gather any accomplishments that we have missed.
b. Challenges and How to Rectify- Mechelle opened the discussion for challenges by
stating that a change in leadership has been a major challenge.
i. Celeste Richard stated that we were gaining data from the office of Alcohol
and Noise control on compliance checks however as of March of 2016 we
have not received any.
1. Monte Potier mentioned that the reason behind this is due to lack of
funding. He did say that they do plan conducting a compliance check
in early February or right after Mardi Gras and that he will send that
information to Celeste once he has it.
ii. Another challenge that Tim brought up was the general acceptance of new
members for TKE from the general public.
1. Chris asked Tim on how he thinks we should gain general members
that we are lacking. Tim stated that he believes the informational
pieces that Russo Group has constructed would be a great way to
gain these members.
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a. Chris asked Dr. Shauna Leblanc from LPSS on how we
could possibly gain youth members and how can the student
be excused from class to attend. He also stated that if it were
too difficult to get a high school student to attend that we
could also reach out to the local colleges.
i. Dr. Leblanc said that she can take the information that
she gains from the meeting back to the board of LPSS
and as long as they are on board then we will sign an
agreement saying that it is okay for us all to go into
the schools. Dr. Leblanc continued the discussion by
saying that there are currently no drug prevention
programs in the school system currently besides that
of the School Resource Officers.
2. Doug also suggested that TKE goes out to the community as
opposed to waiting for the community to come and join in on our
meetings. Ways that this could be done is going into the schools, or
conducting town halls.
iii. Celeste mentioned the push back that the coalition had received from the
Mandatory 21 to Enter Ordinance was another challenge.
c. How to Successfully Continue
LA Statewide Coalition Meeting Update- Mechelle Richard, Doug MacDiarmid, and
Melissa Newell all attended the LA Statewide DFC Coalition meeting. Mechelle stated that
one of the biggest topics at the meeting was the opioid usage reversal as well as grants that
Louisiana is being given the chance to be given. Another thing that was mentioned at the
meeting was the possibility of connecting with LGBTQ Youth.
Nominations for New Leadership
a. Doug MacDiarmid was nominated by Chris Waters and seconded by Linda
Boudreaux for Chair
i. All voting members in attendance voted “YES”
b. Chris Waters was nominated by Tim Melancon and seconded by Mechelle Richard
for Co-Chair
i. All voting members in attendance voted “YES”
c. Celeste Richard was nominated by Mechelle Richard and seconded by Doug
MacDiarmid for Secretary
i. All voting members in attendance voted “YES”
d. Celeste is going to send and “e-vote” to those members who were not able to attend.
New Year Calendar- Mechelle opened the floor for discussion to add events from partner/
member agencies to add to the New Year calendar. She stated that if anyone has upcoming
events that they are wanting to add that they can get with Celeste after the meeting and she
will add it.
Website Discussion- Tim Melancon began by stating a few things that he saw that needed
change on the website. The first thing that caught his attention was underneath the “Who
Are We” section that the wording of the phrase, “The Knowledge Effect is a community
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coalition working to bring awareness and educate the issues surrounding substance abuse..”
he suggested changing this to “working to bring awareness and education to this issues
surrounding..” . The second thing that Tim saw was that underneath our “contact” tab there
were no inquiry form website visitors to fill out.
a. Chris stated that he noticed that the Lafayette Police Department Logo is not shown
under partners only the Lafayette Sherriff’s office logo. The second thing he stated
was the possibility of getting a form where people can sign up for our email list.
Agency Updates
a. Chris Waters: TCI Presentation- Chris Waters presented on The Change Initiative.
He began by stating that in 2010 part of TKE’s action plan was to identify
leadership in the 70501 zip code. On September 15th, 360 Collective got involved
with TKE and began having conversations about what it would take to get another
coalition started within the 70501 zip code. Chris and Rachel Godeaux went back
and forth on options that starting up another coalition would bring. There were two
options, first applying for a 5 year DFC Grant ($125,000 a year), or a mentorship
grant ($75,000 a year). After attending the CADCA Mid-Year conference it was
decided that they would go for the 5 year DFC Grant to fund The Change Initiative
that will focus on addressing youth substance abuse in the 70501and portions of the
70506 zip code.
Family Friendly Mardi Gras Reminder- Family Friendly Mardi Gras is approaching. If you
know of anyone who wants to volunteer or donate please contact Celeste Richard.
Closing Remarks- Mechelle Richard
Next Meeting: March 9, 2017- Rosa Parks Transportation Center: 10am to 11:30am
Mission Statement: The Knowledge Effect serves the community through education, public policy initiatives,
community events, and trainings that ensure community wellness targeting both youth and adults.
For more information contact Mechelle Richard 337-291-7183.