Spring 2009 One City Series

Lecture Series
The Mayor Robert J. Duffy
College Survival Skills
January 6, 6 pm—8 pm
College student panelists provide strategies for a successful college experience.
Free and open to high school students and parents.
Welcome by Charles Reaves, Commissioner of City of Rochester Recreation and Youth Services
Moderator: Bishop Kearney High School President Donna Dedee, with student moderators
Sponsored by Bryant & Stratton College
Community Partners: City of Rochester, Youth Voice One Vision,
Monroe-Clinton Planning Group, City Councilmember-At-Large Dana K. Miller
Community Gardening and Urban Agriculture
March 11, 7 pm—8:30 pm
Community gardening experts offer an informative sharing session for participants interested in the
urban farming movement from community gardens to co-op farming. Free and open to the public.
Community Partners: City of Rochester, Cornell Cooperative Extension,
South Wedge Farmers Market, Rochester Roots, City Councilmember-At-Large Dana K. Miller
Summer of Opportunity Employer Engagement Forum
March 25, 11:30 am—1:00 pm* or 4:00 pm—5:30 pm*
*Reservations Required: 585-232-7140 x16
Summer of Opportunity is a win-win for employers and youth... employers gain top notch summer workers and
youth gain solid work experience. Program details, highlighted by success stories, will provide new/prospective
employers with information about how to get involved with this very succesful program. Free and open to
prospective employers. Register to attend either the lunch hour or late afternoon session.
Sponsored by Bryant & Stratton College
Community Partners: City of Rochester, City Councilmember-At-Large Dana K. Miller
Location: The Dugan Center at St. Mary’s Church
15 St. Mary’s Place, Rochester, New York
585-232-7140
www.dcfrochester.org

Thanks to BJ Mann

On 12/8 BJ Mann presented a great Surviving The Holidays program - "The Holidays: Can't Live With Them; Can't Live Without Them." She gave us some wonderful tips and tricks for managing holiday stress and everyday stress, as well. Thanks to BJ! Anyone wanting one-on-one advice can connect with BJ via her mediation practice at 585.234.8740.

On December 8 at 7PM BJ Mann presents DCF's annual Coping With the Holidays program. "The Holidays: Can't Live With Them; Can't Live Without Them" is an interactive session that provides tips and strategies for handling holiday stressors. Free and open to the public.
The Dugan Center at St. Mary's
15 St. Mary's Place
Rochester 14607
585.232.7140

Water for Sudan Sept. 18 2008

Salva Dut will present the story of Water for Sudan on Sept. 18 2008, 7:00 PM at the Dugan Center. A former "Lost Boy" of Sudan, Dut returns to his homeland annually, bringing needed resources to villages. Water for Sudan is a nonprofit organization, founded and led by Salva Dut, that provided villages with wells. Water supply is vital to economic and social development. Dut's efforts have had amazing impact on the villagers, supporting education, food supply and enterprise. This program is free of charge and open to the public.
Call 585-232-7140 for further information.

One City Series Education Forum

On the evening of August 13th, DCF was host to a top notch panel of education advocates, as the third and final session in the One City Series. This was a particularly exciting forum, with the largest attendance among all three sessions. Supt. Brizard provided interesting and candid insight into the current state of RCSD and his vision for strategy and programs ahead. He was flanked by Dan Burns of M&T Bank who serves as our city's Literacy Commission chairperson and by G. Jean Howard, City of Rochester's Chief of Staff and point person for literacy issues. Each panelist brought rich perspective to the discussion. An array of questions was posed to the panelists, ranging from classroom resource and school safety issues, to after school programming, to educational standards, etc. Dr. Al Simone provided expert facilitation/moderation services, ensuring that the opportunity for Q&A was optimal.

We anticipate offering a future One City Series, targeted tentatively for Spring '09, that will focus on further topics of interest to our region's residents. Downtown Community Forum thanks its sponsors and community partners: The City of Rochester, City Councilperson Dana K. Miller, The Community Foundation, Leadership Rochester, The Rochester Red Wings, individual contributors and St. Mary's.

Public Safety Forum generates controversy and ideas

On July 30th, DCF hosted Chief David Moore and D.A. Michael Green at a forum entitled Public Safety: Zero Tolerance and Beyond. Larry Feasel facilitated and provided context for many of the discussions, reaching back into his vast experience in law enforcement. In his opening remarks, Mayor Duffy encouraged those in attendance to present challenging questions and to offer ideas and suggestions for further consideration. During the two hour program, the Chief and the D.A. began by explaining their respective roles in the criminal justice/public safety environment. Many questioners described their personal observations and experiences, offering perspective and advice, along with anecdotal information for follow-up with the Chief and D.A. Green. I was struck by the tone of the evening, which was serious, intentional and respectful - no small feat for such a hot button topic. Our audience of 90 attendees included young and old, diverse races and ethnicities and an assortment of city residents and suburbanites. One group of young people who attended together represented a City of Rochester parks summer program where youth go about the business of searching out and rewarding people who are doing good things around the community. As a reward for good works, they give away tickets to local events and attractions, which are donated for this purpose. What a great way to put positive energy into practice. All in, my "unofficial" count was at least 17 people in attendance who appeared to be under 21 years of age - a great sight for DCF! Several high schoolers put questions to our panelists - so very articulate and, needless to say, plugged into their worlds in a way that adults do not get to experience first hand. Hats off to all who showed up, voiced their opinions and offered what they could to build community in and around Rochester. We also thank the several public officials who attended and heard these messages first-hand. Thanks also to community partners who came, including Josanne Reaves of Leadership Rochester and Ed Doherty of The Community Foundation. Have I mentioned that the Rochester Red Wings provided game tickets as thank you gifts for our panelists? Let's hope that all of us who love baseball get a chance to take in a game this summer.

Economic Development Forum Draws A Crowd

Last evening's session, Economic Development - What Lies Ahead, drew a crowd of 100 citizens who came to DCF to hear from Commissioner Carballada, Mr. Wiest, Mr. Fiedler and Ms. Zimmer-Meyer. The evening was lively and interactive, to say the least, and could have gone on for another two hours or more! As always, our presenters all have public contact information and encourage follow-up from folks who have further input on the topic. This forum will go down in the books as one of DCF's best and brightest. Stay tuned for our next high impact session on July 30 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM - Public Safety: Zero Tolerance and Beyond.

Ramping up for the One City Series, Session #1

Very exciting..........we're ramping up and ready to launch the One City Series - session #1 Economic Development - What lies ahead. Our panelists have been in touch and are poised to field questions in the Dugan Center on Wednesday night. So, bring your issues, arrive early and find out first-hand what's ahead for our city. Several of our participants will be bringing along printed materials for forum attendees to take home and read over. All welcome follow-up from our group. Looking forward to seeing you on Wednesday night.............

DCF One City Series in the news

The One City Series will be featured in a segment of "Rochester In Focus" on Sunday morning, 7/13/08. The program airs at 7:00 AM.


This week's edition of WXXI's City Wise focuses on DCF's series, with guests Monica Mattioli and City Councilperson At-Large Dana Miller. City Wise airs on Sundays at 4:00 on WXXI and on City12 Thursdays at 8:00 PM, Fridays at 9:30 AM and Saturdays at 11:30 AM.

Great news for DCF!!

One City Series coming soon

Location: Dugan Center at St. Mary's
15 St. Mary's Place Rochester 14607
For further information call 232-7140
Reservations not required
Arrive early for best seating


7/16 Economic Development - What Lies Ahead 7:00 PM
Get the latest updates on economic development in downtown Rochester from E.D. Commissioner Carballada, Chris Wiest of the R.B.A. and ESL CEO David Fiedler. Heidi Zimmer-Meyer faciliatates. Panel discussion followed by open forum q&a.