Coronado communications case study

The Youth Employment and recreational Services (YERS) program has a long and distinguished history in Coronado, California, a growing city of 1.2 million. In recent years, however, minority community members have pressed for increased services and facilities in parts of town with substantial minority populations. These requests have created dissension and growing controversy among YERS staff and members of the board of directors.

Margaret Rims was promoted to executive director of the Coronado YERS in 1993 after having been with the organization for twenty-five years. Margaret began her career in recreational development while attending Coronado University and has seen the YERS program grow from a one-person staff with limited programs in a single location to a staff of fifteen offering services at seven Coronado sites.

Over the years, Margaret Rims has been given credit for the growth of the recreation program. She has also been asked by the National Council of Youth Employment and Recreational Services to lead several regional and national workshops on recreation program development.

When Margaret Rims applied in 1993 for the position of executive director, several staff and board members were surprised because most assumed Margaret was happy in her recreational development role. Several members of the board voiced concern regarding Margaret’s overall administrative qualifications, but the prevailing sentiment supported her promotion.

Margaret Rims became executive director of the Coronado YERS in the climate of mounting pressure to increase services and facilities in the heavily populated minority areas of northeast Coronado. Several local groups also questioned minority representation on the YERS staff and board. Margaret felt these pressures were best ignored. She disagreed with several members of the board and staff who urged her to develop plans to increase minority involvement.

Margaret‘s strongest staff support came from her friend and personnel director, Jack Smith. Hack has been TERS personnel director for eighteen years. He has not been pleased with increasing personnel requirements established by the national executive council of YERS. Specifically, he has disagreed with detailing job descriptions and the institution of grievance procedures for employees. Jack believes employers should have more latitude than these policies and procedures affords. Some minority job applicants have charged that Jack was responsible for keeping them from being employed at YERS.