Camden, NJ – Governor Jon S. Corzine, Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells, Rutgers President Richard McCormick and Camden Mayor Gwendolyn Faison, community leaders and Office of Faith Based Chairman, Reverend Calvin McKinney today joined dozens of representatives from faith-based and community organizations, schools, hospitals, state, county and local officials for Camden Community Transformation: A Collaborative Partnership – a day-long symposium that discussed key strategies for sustainable economic development, human expansion and betterment throughout the city.
The keynote speaker was Geoffrey Canada, President & CEO of the Harlem Children’s Zone (“HCZ”). Considered a foremost advocate and authority on community redevelopment and expert on issues concerning violence and children, Mr. Canada’s work has been profiled by the New York Times Magazine. The agency’s Zone Project was called “one of the most ambitious social experiments of our time.” The project offers an interlocking network of social service, education and community-building programs.
Camden Community Transformation: A Collaborative Partnership took place at Rutgers University’s Camden Center for the Arts and drew a capacity crowd, eager to hear from Mr. Canada and a distinguished panel of experts on a wide array of community-based social and economic revitalization issues. Instructive workshops covered the following topics: Social Entrepreneurship, Public Safety and Community Partnership, Economic Development and Human Expansion, and What it Takes to Get Funders for Your Community Transformation.
“Today’s event touches upon so many vital, necessary areas for creating an effective community transformation policy,” noted Secretary of State Nina Wells. “I am pleased that Geoffrey Canada came to Camden to share his amazing social experiment with the local leadership at a critical time in the city’s transformation.”
To learn more about the work of the New Jersey Office of Faith Based Initiatives and other services within the New Jersey Department of State, visit www.state.nj.us/state.
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