Dr. Hyman Moderates Workshop at National Meeting in Atlanta, GA
On June 1 – 3, 2008, the Corporation for National and Community Service held its National Conference on Volunteering and Service, titled The Urgency of Now, in Atlanta, GA. Dr. James B. Hyman designed and moderated one of six concurrent "Immersion Learning Sessions" offered by the Corporation as opportunities for conferees to convene around priority issues in the community service field.
Three hundred conferees attended Dr. Hyman’s session, Engaging the Poor and People of Color in Organized Service: Challenges and Opportunities. The purpose of the session was to gain a better understanding of issues related to the relatively low levels of organized service participation by minorities and the poor.
Three papers were prepared for the session:- Do Race, Ethnicity, Citizenship and Socio-economic Status Determine Civic-Engagement: Background Paper for 2008 Annual Service Conference
- A paper by John Foster-Bey, used data to show that whites and people of higher socioeconomic status are more likely to say that they “volunteer” and that they engage in the other civic activities measured by the Census Bureau.
- Civic Engagement and the Disadvantaged: Challenges, Opportunities and Recommendations
- A second paper by James B. Hyman and Peter Levine, found that the story of race and volunteering is complex. Data suggest that African Americans are more engaged than all other racial/ethnic groups in working on “community projects.” Ironically, although whites are less likely than blacks to be involved in community projects and other local civic work, they are much more likely than blacks (and Latinos) to report “volunteering.”
- Diversity and Equity in Civic Engagement: Two Background Papers for the Corporation for National and Community Service
- A third “cover paper” was prepared to put these materials in the context of this session and to offer six questions that would focus participant’s learning experience.
Merlene Mazyck: Director, National Civilian Community Corps spoke about why this issue of minority participation is important to the Corporation, to communities and to individual poor and people of color and discussed the challenges she sees working with disadvantaged populations in NCCC.
Byron Amos: CEO of Capacity Builders, Inc. shared his experience as a community resident/organizer in Atlanta and gave a perspective on: who the people are; what they care about; and what that suggests about how they might be engaged (what works?).
Armando Rayo: Director of Hands On Central Texas discussed his experience working in the Hispanic communities around Austin, TX.
Dorothy Stoneman: President and Founder YouthBuild USA talked about her experiences and the lessons she has learn from working with 76,000 young people in building 17,000 units of affordable housing in 226 communities of the poor and people of color since 1984.
Michael Carmona: a Member of National Community Conservation Corps shared his personal story of his early struggles and current success as a result of finding focus and meaning in the NCCC program.
Garland Yates: Senior Fellow at the Annie E. Casey Foundation discussed the need for volunteering and service opportunities to speak to community-building/community-change agendas, strategies and approaches that often characterize engagement in disadvantaged communities.
John Jackson: President of the Schott Foundation spoke about the correlation between education and civic engagement and the role education can and must play in establishing an "ethic of participation" in poor communities of color.
A transcript of the session and a final Report of Proceeding will soon be available on this site.