National Public Health Leader Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith to Speak About Youth Violence at the 2006 Givens NOMMO Forum
The Givens Foundation for African American Literature presents the 2006 Givens NOMMO Forum featuring Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith to speak about youth violence and ways to arm and educate communities on its prevention from a public health stand point. The lecture and book signing will take place on January 25, 2006 at the University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute for Public Health at 7:00 P. M.
Minneapolis, MN (PRWEB) December 29, 2005
The Givens Foundation for African American Literature Presents: The Givens NOMMO Forum Series featuring nationally recognized public health leader, Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith on Wednesday, January 25 at the University of Minnesota - Humphrey Institute for Public Affairs.
According to the 2004 Populations of Color in Minnesota Health Status Report, the leading cause of African American male deaths between the ages of 15 and 24 was homicide, which was also the second leading cause of death in females of the same age group. Prothrow-Stith's efforts to have youth violence defined as a public health problem forces society to take a harder look at the causes of violence and its prevention. The lecture and book signing entitled "Deadly Consequences: Community Strategies for Decreasing Youth Violence" will not only speak to this issue, but will explore approaches that will solve problems and lead to successful outcomes in education.
Dr. Prothrow-Stith began her career as a physician in inner-city Boston. In 1987 she was appointed as the first woman Commissioner of Public Health for Massachusetts under Governor Dukakis. There she established the first Office of Violence Prevention in a state department of public health. In 1995 President Bill Clinton appointed her to the National Commission on Crime Control and Prevention. Currently Dr. Prothrow-Stith serves as Associate Dean for Faculty Development as well as Director and Professor of the Division of Public Health Practice at the Harvard School of Public Health. Her books, "Murder is No Accident: Understanding and Preventing Youth Violence in America" (Jossey-Bass, 2004) and "Sugar and Spice and No Longer Nice: How We Can Stop Girls Violence" (Jossey-Bass, 2005) have provided communities nationwide with valuable resources on how to combat youth violence.
"The Givens Foundation is excited to have Dr. Prothrow-Stith as our first speaker for this year's NOMMO series. Her expertise and viewpoint of youth violence are truly an avant-garde way of looking at such a wide-spread problem not only in the African American community, but in all of our communities nation wide," says President Archie Givens Jr.
Sponsored in part by the University of Minnesota and General Mills Foundation, the Givens NOMMO Forum is a public series designed to explore divergent perspectives on issues relevant to the African American community through the experience of "nommo," a Swahili translation meaning the magic power of the word. The 2006 Forum is entitled "Shaping Our Destiny: From Words to Action" and will focus on educating and parenting our children.
About the Givens Foundation
The mission of the Givens Foundation is to enrich and celebrate African American literature and writers. The Givens Foundation for African American Literature was established in 1972 as the Archie & Phebe Mae Givens Foundation. Its original purpose was to provide scholarships to African American students. The Foundation's focus shifted in 1985 when the Givens family worked with the Twin Cities African American community to purchase a 3,000 piece collection of African American literature-one of the most important collections of its kind in the nation. Since then, the Archie Givens Sr. Collection of African American Literature housed at the University of Minnesota Library has inspired and supported the Foundation's efforts. Today the Givens Foundation produces a range of events, publications, and programs such as the NOMMO Forum, Givens Classics Book Series, Children's Literature Symposiums, and a K-12 residency program entitled "Spirited Minds and Strong Souls Singing" which places literary artists into Twin Cities Metro Area classrooms engaging students in arts-based writing and reading. For more information about the Givens Foundation for African American Literature visit: www. givens. org.
Who: Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith -"Deadly Consequences: Community Strategies for Decreasing Youth Violence"
What: The Givens Foundation for African American Literature - 2006 Givens NOMMO Forum
Where: Wednesday, January 25, 2006 - 7:00 p. m.
Where: University of Minnesota (West Bank)-Humphrey Institute for Public Affairs 301 19th Avenue South, Minneapolis
Cost: Free and open to the public
Parking: 19th Avenue Ramp
FFE: Jean Fountain, Program Coordinator (952) 941-5929
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