Subject
title
Rockville Sister Cities Corporation FY25 Annual Presentation
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Department
Recreation & Parks
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Mayor and Council of Rockville receive Rockville Sister Cities Corporation’s annual presentation for FY25 (Attachment 1).
Discussion
The mission of Rockville Sister Cities Corporation (RSCC) is to conduct the sister cities program on behalf of the City of Rockville, Maryland (City). The City’s sister city program started in 1957 as a task force of the municipal government and changed to a volunteer 501(c)(3) corporation as RSCC in 1986. RSCC provides the community with dynamic cultural events and international exchanges to create global municipal relationships and lifelong connections that promote peace and friendships. Pinneberg, Germany has been a sister city since 1957 and Yilan City, Taiwan since 2019.
FY25 Activities & Initiatives
RSCC hosted several large-scale events and conducted smaller initiatives to support the City’s sister city program in FY25:
• Supported 15 students and four chaperones from the Richard Montgomery High School Jazz Band to visit Pinneberg, Germany for the 2024 Pinneberg Jazz Festival (August 5-12, 2024).
• Hosted the 2024 Bubble Tea Festival in Rockville Town Center with support from various sponsors (September 21, 2024).
• Hosted 10 student dancers and three chaperones from Fu Shing Junior High in Yilan City, Taiwan to tour and perform at the 2024 Bubble Tea Festival in Rockville Town Center and other local communities/venues (September 19-27, 2024).
• Supported the City’s Rocktobierfest with a RSCC vendor table (September 28, 2024).
• Attended the Taiwanese Association of America Greater Washington Chapter’s Thanksgiving celebration (November 16, 2024).
• Met with local Korhogo, Cote d’Ivoire representatives to discuss a possible third sister city (December 7, 2024).
• Hosted a winter holiday social for RSCC membership (December 16, 2024).
• Presented the 2025 Lantern Festival at the Cultural Center of Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S. (February 15, 2025).
• Accommodated an introductory virtual meeting between Mayor Ashton (Rockville, Maryland) and Mayor Chen (Yilan City, Taiwan) (March 19, 2025).
• Supported the City’s International Night with a RSCC vendor table (April 11, 2025).
• Supported the City presenting the Taiwan-American Heritage Proclamation to the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (May 12, 2025).
• Hosted the Klarinette Ensemble from Pinneberg, Germany, which included six student musicians and a musical director, to tour and perform at Richard Montgomery High School, Glenview Mansion at Rockville Civic Center Park, Hometown Holidays at Rockville Town Center, and the Memorial Day Ceremony and Parade (May 20-27, 2025).
RSCC participated in guided Rockville visits from a Cameroon delegation and Taiwanese film director. The organization is evaluating a third sister city relationship, how to incorporate elder activities into its program offerings, more student exchanges, and more cultural collaborations with fire departments and businesses. RSCC partnered with Montgomery College and professors at George Mason University and Loyola University to host a lecture on “Taiwan’s Past, Present and Future: Insights into the History and Politics of a Hotspot in the World.” RSCC continues to preserve student exchanges with Richard Montgomery High School and had visits with Rockville Economic Development, Inc. and Maryland Women’s Business Center. RSCC started discussions with the City’s Senior Citizens Commission on elder exchanges with our sister cities. RSCC engages in more regular correspondence and planning with DAGRP (German-American Society of Rockville-Pinneberg) and YSCC (Yilan Sister City Corporation) after the COVID pandemic interrupted international exchanges. The RSCC Board of Directors is fully seated, and meetings continue to be held on the third Tuesday of each month in-person at City Hall.
Challenges with Administrative City Processes
RSCC expressed concerns with the City’s current administrative processes and lack of City support. The organization was not consulted before it was classified as a Partner and Non-Profit Organization on November 1, 2021. RSCC no longer receives certain customary City services, such as event advertisement space in Rockville Reports and financial support separate from the annual grant process. RSCC can only obtain financial support through the annual grant process, which RSCC feels is burdensome for a volunteer organization supporting a City program. RSCC states that if the City would like for the sister city program to maintain current activity levels or expand, there must be equivalent City support.
Organizational Challenges
RSCC is currently facing organizational challenges. Membership and sponsorships have not recovered after the COVID pandemic. RSCC must raise more ongoing income to sustain current activity levels or to afford additional sister cities. There is also a need to increase volunteer participation to support current and future activity levels. Currently, the volunteer model relies heavily on the same group of individuals. RSCC may have a pending leadership crisis and is evaluating if the organization should implement a rotating presidency to help increase participation and efficiency. German cultural representation is wanning and may impact future participation in sister city organizations in Rockville and Pinneberg. Additionally, the way the grants cycle and administrative requirements are structured don’t allow for RSCC flexibility. The process requires so much specificity and advanced planning that RSCC cannot participate in unplanned, new and exciting opportunities. RSCC must fund these types of last minute opportunities at its own expense.
Looking Ahead to FY26 and Beyond
RSCC will continue to innovate through the implementation of cultural events and collaboration with various local and international partners. A City delegation will visit Pinneberg, Germany for its 150th incorporation celebration from September 4-8, 2025 and RSCC will host the 2025 Bubble Tea Festival on September 20, 2025. Additionally, RSCC will host other programs for the community with exact dates and venue locations to be determined later:
• German-American Day Picnic (2025)
• Lantern Festival (2026)
• 70th anniversary of the Rockville-Pinneberg sister city relationship (2027)
• Asian summer luncheon or German brewery tasting
• Student musicians to visit from Pinneberg, Germany
• Mayor Chen to visit from Yilan City, Taiwan
• Social event at Glenview Mansion at Rockville Civic Center Park
Mayor and Council History
Rockville Sister Cities Corporation provided a FY24 annual presentation to the Mayor and Council of Rockville on June 3, 2024.