Community Development Project

Co-Directors:

Sorby Grant (607) 342-7994 sorby_grant@hks11.harvard.edu

Mike Wolking (323) 395-1777 michael_wolking@hks11.harvard.edu

Project Mentor:

William Julius Wilson

Who We Are & What We Do:

The Community Development Project (CDP) harnesses the academic and professional resources of Harvard University to facilitate civic engagement in economic development projects in underserved communities.

Our philosophy is grounded in a fundamental belief in the importance of locally driven economic development initiatives. We believe that success will be achieved when everyone, from community members to businesses and government, unites behind common interests and a shared vision for the future. As such, our goal is to bring people from all walks of life and from every sector together, see what the community wants for its future, and then work with everyone to build a vision of, and provide support for getting to, that goal.

The CDP Consulting Team is made up of Harvard Kennedy School students. We are diverse in race, ethnicity, and cultural heritage, and we all share a vision of America as a place where everyone has a chance to succeed. We are committed to making this vision of equal opportunity a reality. Most of us have a personal connection to communities in the South, and some of us have ties to the Delta in particular. We were drawn to Greenwood and Baptist Town because of their rich history and because we strongly believe that the residents of Greenwood and Baptist Town are in a unique position to shape their community’s future. Together, we will design a path to a better future for Baptist Town and for the broader community of Greenwood.

Our Vision for Greenwood & Baptist Town:

CDP envisions a Greenwood and Baptist Town in which everyone – from residents and their representatives to businesses and nonprofit organizations – works together to develop better homes, clean and safe streets, youth programming, and access to good jobs.

Our Mission:

CDP will work with Baptist Town residents to build locally driven partnerships and solutions that improve the quality of life within Baptist Town and Greenwood. We will achieve this by:

•Strengthening the ability of residents to advocate for their interests and achieve their goals;
•Connecting residents with local, regional, and national resources;
•Engaging the greater Greenwood community in the revitalization of Baptist Town; and
•Raising awareness of the assets and needs of Baptist Town, Greenwood, and the Delta region.
 

Director: Prof Dr Carola Lentz

Committee on African Studies
1730 Cambridge St, Rm S401
Cambridge MA 02138

617-576-9053

lentz@uni-mainz.de

Prof Dr Carola Lentz is a non-resident fellow at the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. She is in Cambridge this year as a Fulbright Scholar, and will work with the Du Bois Institute in pursuing her project.(Read more)

Director: Paula Caplan(Read more)

Working Group on Environmental Justice

Program Directors: James Hoyte and Timothy C. Weiskel

The purpose of the Working Group on Environmental Justice is to acknowledge and promote research and teaching on issues relating to environmental justice both within this country and abroad. The Group brings together a diverse faculty within Harvard as well as interested individuals from beyond Harvard to focus attention on these issues.(Read more)

Welfare, Children and Families: A Three-City Study

Director: William Julius Wilson

Address:
John F. Kennedy School of Government
79 JFK Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

Phone: 617.496.4514
Email: juprp@ksg.harvard.edu(Read more)

W. E. B. Du Bois Society

Director: Jacqueline Rivers

  "The New Cool Kids"

WBUR's "Here and Now" featuring the W. E. B. Du Bois Society

The W. E. B. Du Bois Society is an academic and cultural enrichment program, designed to engage secondary students of African descent who attend academically competitive public, parochial, and independent schools. The central theme of this series of seminars is the study of the history of Africa and the African Diaspora. Hosted by the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University and the Ella J. Baker House in Dorchester, MA, the Du Bois Society provides young people with an opportunity to develop study skills and teamwork as they reflect on readings selected by prominent Harvard professors.

Specifically, the purpose of the Du Bois Society is to build a social and intellectual support system for bright African American youths so they will understand that they have:

• Peers who are smart and want to achieve

• Elders (e.g., professors at Harvard) who have succeeded and who also believe in the young people's ability to succeed.

Approximately forty high school students meet six Saturdays per year with a Harvard Professor to discuss a reading he or she assigns to the group. The three Saturdays prior to meeting at Harvard, the Du Bois Society convenes at the Baker House with two or three Harvard undergraduates to talk about the text together and prepare a series of questions to ask their professor. Whether at Harvard or at the Baker House, each session lasts about two hours.

National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute

Co-directors: Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Waldo E. Martin, Jr., and Patricia A. Sullivan

Email: NEHINST@fas.harvard.edu(Read more)

Central Africa Diaspora to the Americas Project

Co-Directors: Linda M. Heywood and John K. Thornton (Boston University) (Read more)

Bamun Art Worlds

Integration and Innovation in Grassland Cameroon from 1700 to the Present

Director: Professor Suzanne Preston Blier

Telephone: 617.495.0781

Email: blier@fas.harvard.edu(Read more)

African Art Database / Africa Map

Director: Professor Suzanne Preston Blier

Telephone: 617.495.0781

Email: blier@fas.harvard.edu

Click Here To Visit AfricaMap Beta