Nobel Peace Prize Winner Archbishop Tutu to Speak at Wheelock College Youth Symposium
Released on: October 23, 2007, 1:03 pm
Press Release Author: May Seto/ Colette Phillips Communications
Industry: Marketing
Press Release Summary: Archbishop Desmond Tutu\'s visit on the 29th of October is even more relevant with youth violence increasing.
Press Release Body: Nobel Peace Prize Winner Archbishop Tutu to
Speak at Wheelock College Youth Symposium
Using the South African Model to Reduce Youth Violence in Boston
(October 23, 2007, Boston, MA) -- Nobel Peace Prize Winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu will be in Boston on October 29th as the keynote speaker for a youth symposium hosted and organized by Wheelock College. Six hundred and fifty students from Boston middle and high schools are expected to attend "Bridges to Hope and Understanding: Exploring Truth and Reconciliation: A Conversation with Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and The Youth of Boston."
The aim of the Youth Symposium is to introduce Boston youth to the Archbishop's peaceful, reconciliation tactics that have been successful with South African youth. The symposium, along with an upcoming event in November honoring five Boston high school students who are "emerging leaders" in their communities, represents part of Wheelock's ongoing investment in its communities and its continuing 119-year mission to improve the lives of children and families.
With the recent surge in teen violence in Boston and across the country, finding ways to reduce and prevent the rise in teen violence is at the fore. The homicide rate in Boston is at an 11-year high, up 44 percent from last year. Wheelock College President Jackie Jenkins-Scott, who has won national acclaim as an urban problem solver, came up with the idea to create a series of events to help address issues with youth both nationally and locally - something that sorely needs attention by federal and state governments.
Archbishop Tutu will talk at the symposium about the "Truth and Reconciliation" platform he created, in which retribution is not an option. Archbishop Tutu seeks to inspire youth to eradicate violence and injustice throughout the world by working together in peaceful ways. In 2003, the Nobel Peace Prize Winner established the Desmond Tutu Emerging Leadership Program, which works to promote leadership skills and reward the achievements of young people who are committed to peace building and fostering change in their communities.
Following his talk, a panel of five students - four from the Boston schools and one Wheelock College - will respond to questions about their thoughts on Truth and Reconciliation and what is it we need to be doing in our communities to address youth violence.
As part of Wheelock's ongoing initiative to help youth, the college on November 14 will hold Passion For Action, an event to honor five Boston high school students who are exemplary and "emerging leaders" in their respective communities, and to honor entrepreneur, businessman and politician Chris Gabrieli with the Passion for Action Leadership Award.
Before she took the helm of Wheelock College three years ago, Jenkins-Scott headed the Dimock Community Health Center and under her leadership, the organization was singled out by the Clinton Administration as a national model for health care delivery to the poor and working class.
"Bridges to Hope and Understanding: Exploring Truth and Reconciliation: A Conversation with Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and The Youth of Boston" will be held at the Wheelock Family Theatre on the Boston Campus on October 29th from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. "Passion for Action" will be held on November 14th at 6 p.m. at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum. For more information, visit the Wheelock College web site, www.wheelock.edu
Founded in 1888 and located in Boston, Mass., Wheelock College is a private institution with the public mission of improving lives of children and their families. The college fulfills this mission by providing a strong education in the arts and sciences and in its professional fields - education, child and family studies, and social work - for which its undergraduate and graduate programs are nationally and internationally recognized. Throughout its academic programs and student experience, the college reflects the multicultural dimensions of the communities and countries in which it operates and fosters diverse learning experiences - all of which contribute to the success, leadership, and impact that its graduates enjoy in a wide variety of careers.
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