Next Meeting in San Jose, CA

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Next Meeting in San Jose, CA

THE PRESIDENT'S INITIATIVE ON RACE HOLDS
COMMUNITY FORUM AND ADVISORY BOARD MEETING IN SAN JOSE

Washington, D.C. -- The Advisory Board to the President's Initiative on Race will conveneits next meeting February 10 and 11, 1998 in San Jose, California. The primary purpose of the meeting is to examine issues relating to race and poverty. Advisory Board members will consider the impact of these issues in a multi-cultural community, such as San Jose, which already reflects the kind of diversity that more communities will experience in the 21st century.

San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer will open the board meeting at 9:00 a.m., at Independence High School. The morning session will include a panel of national and regional experts who will discuss the extent that poverty and race are related, as well as explore the main causes of continuing and concentrated poverty among minorities.

Panelists will include: William Julius Wilson, Harvard University; Douglas Massey, University of Pennsylvania; Robert Woodson, National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise; Matthew Snipp, Stanford University; Tarry Hum, New York University; Raquel Rivera Pinderhughes, San Francisco State University; and other regional experts. Manuel Pastor, Director of Latin Studies at University of California at Santa Cruz, will serve as moderator.

The keynote speaker will be U.S. Small Business (SBA) Administrator Aida Alvarez, who will discuss SBA's effort to increase economic opportunities for all American entrepreneurs and to spur business development and job creation in economically distressed communities. Administrator Alvarez has recently announced aggressive new goals for SBA lending and assistance to historically underserved segments of the small business community.

At 1:00 p.m., the afternoon panel will focus on state and local programs, policies and services that address issues related to race and poverty. Regional and local experts will examine how welfare-to-work programs, housing integration efforts, enterprise zones, community develop programs and various other strategies are working to reduce poverty and racial discrimination. The afternoon panel discussion will include: Rose Amador, Center for Training and Careers, San Jose; Jose Padilla, California Rural Legal Services, San Francisco; Denise Fairchild, Community Development Technologies Center, Los Angeles; and other participants.

Comments from audience participants are invited at the conclusion of the morning and afternoon panel discussions.

On February 10, the day before the meeting, Advisory Board members will host a community forum in San Jose. During the forum, board members will invite comments on how area residents are working to build greater understanding across racial lines, find resolutions that bridge racial divides and create equal opportunities for all.

FEBRUARY 10TH

WHAT: Open Community Forum
WHEN: 6 - 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: