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01-15-08 - Stratford's CARE (Citizens Addressing Racial Equity) Program Recieves National Recognition

Mayor James R. Miron reinvigorated local efforts to work on issues of racial equity by providing town management personnel with cultural diversity training, requiring each department to submit a diversity plan, and tasking the Community Services department with developing a plan to engage the community.

Phase One of the community plan centered on bringing citizens of diverse backgrounds together for dialogue to address racism and inequities. It began with the Community Conversation on Race, sponsored by the Office of the Mayor in cooperation with the Stratford Youth and Family Advisory Board, the Stratford Clergy Association and The Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport, Inc. Attended by nearly 100 Stratford residents, it launched the study circle dialogue groups that involved over 60 residents during a six-week period, culminating in the Community Action Forum on Race in May 2007.  Citizens began to develop ideas for action to promote racial equity and cultural competence and the CARE (Citizens Addressing Racial Equity) program was developed. CARE’s action phase centers around three action teams engaged in problem-solving and strategies to enhance the educational experience for all Stratford children, improve police community relations and engage more community leaders that reflect the diversity of Stratford. The action phase is being implemented by 50 citizens and is sponsored by the Office of the Mayor in cooperation with the Stratford Youth and Family Advisory Board, the Stratford Clergy Association and The Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport, Inc.

The group’s work to date has been so impressive, that the Study Circles Resource Center has selected the Town of Stratford’s CARE program, one of eight in the nation, to take part in a national initiative aimed at helping communities create and sustain public engagement and community change on issues around racial equity. The Study Circles Resource Center is a national organization that works with neighborhoods, cities and towns, regions, and states, helping them pay particular attention to how racism and ethnic differences affect the problems they address. Stratford’s Citizens Addressing Racial Equity (CARE) is one of eight programs selected to work with the Study Circles Resource Center over the next two years as part of the Communities Creating Racial Equity initiative. Contact Stratford Community Services at 203.385.4095 to become involved in the CARE program.