By Nicole Maharaj
February 17, 2003

Several Conference of Mayors members are involved in a two-year Executive Session at Harvard University's JFK School of Government to explore and discuss faith-based and community approaches to city revitalization. The Executive Session participants convened their second session thus far at Harvard, February 6-8. The group will meet twice more over the next one year time period.

The session is sponsored by a grant from the Pew Charitable Trust Foundation and is lead by the former Mayor of Indianapolis and current Chairman of the Corporation for National and Community Service Stephen Goldsmith.

Those involved with this initiative include the following mayors: Patrick McCrory of Charlotte, Bill Purcell of Nashville, Martin O-Malley of Baltimore, Anthony A. Williams of Washington, D.C., R. T. Ryback of Minneapolis, and Glenda E. Hood of Orlando. Some former mayors are also involved with the session including Mayors Marc H. Morial of New Orleans and W. Wilson Goode, Sr. of Philadelphia. Conference Executive Director J. Thomas Cochran attended the February session as well.

The Executive Session poses to serve as a standing task force comprised of knowledgeable mayors, civic, and religious leaders, academic specialists, and others representing the field. Key topics of discussion for the forum include Faith-Based Approaches to Reducing Youth Violence, Building Faith-Based Affordable Housing Partnerships and Creating and Sustaining Cross'sector Partnerships.

Areas of the concentration and focus of the session include: 1) Knowing how to reach beyond institutional loyalties to develop new leadership networks; 2) Sorting through pressing issues to achieve strategic focus; 3) Generating political support and community participation; 4) Identifying and mobilizing community resources; 5) Deciding when and how to evaluate outcomes; and 5) Finding ways to sustain positive impacts on the social welfare of disadvantaged communities.

For more information about the Executive Session, please call Anne Mathew, Assistant Director for the Joint Program on Religion and Public Life at the Hauser Center for Non-profit Organizations at the J.F. Kennedy School of Government at (617) 495-7553 or e-mail Anne at anne_mathew@harvard.edu.