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Home > Religious Action > Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry 15th Annual Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for
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15th Annual Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for > Speakers and Agenda |
We stand at a hopeful moment in our nation’s history, rich with the promise of creating real change for children and families who need it most urgently. But it won’t happen automatically or as the result of any leader, party or group’s efforts alone. Together, we can and must chart a new course for the next generation and our nation to ensure children are lifted out of poverty, provided health coverage, rescued from failing schools, prepared for successful employment, and set on paths to college and not pushed into a pipeline to prison.
It will take the commitment of every person of faith, the engagement of our congregations, the support of communities, and the transformation of our nation’s priorities—but we can help make it happen. Come join us at the Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry for the inspiration, information, skills and support needed to chart a course for the next generation and equip all children for safe passage to adulthood and the full life for which they were created.
Today, children are indeed adrift in a rough sea:
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More than 13 million children in our rich nation live in poverty—almost 6 million of them in extreme poverty;
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Nearly 9 million children lack health coverage and may not be able to see a doctor when they are sick or to keep them healthy; and
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Black boys born in 2001 stand a 1 in 3 chance of incarceration in their lifetime, while Latino boys face a 1 in 6 chance.
We must chart a course for the next generation:
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How can we pull children out of the treacherous undertow of poverty and lack of health coverage so they can survive and thrive?
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How can we navigate the sometimes challenging waters of interfaith understanding to develop strong and effective partnerships to rescue our children, and how are young people pointing the way forward?
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How can we provide the sails of education, work preparedness and youth leadership development so that all our children can move ahead?
The Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry provides five days of spiritual renewal, continuing education, movement-building workshops and networking, as Christians from across the denominational spectrum explore how their Christian faith calls them into ministries of child advocacy as it guides, shapes and sustains them in their work with and for children.
Participants include clergy, seminarians, educators, lay leaders, parents, grandparents, and all who wish to more fully understand and more faithfully live out God’s call to nurture, protect and seek justice for children.
Please note: CDF is planning a multi-faith child advocacy institute in 2010 for participants from every religious tradition to come together to explore common concerns and shared commitments to improving the lives of children, to determine ways we can work together to achieve justice for our nation’s children and to gain a deeper understanding of the richness and resources that each religious tradition brings to the movement for children.
Registration and Travel Information
New Leaders! The Joshua & Deborah Generation
Young adult leaders (ages 18-25) are invited to register for the Joshua & Deborah Generation track within the Proctor Institute. The Joshua & Deborah track affirms the important role that the newest generation of religious leaders has to play in the movement for children, and the importance of generations learning from each other and discovering unique leadership styles and opportunities. Spread the word and help us identify these emerging child advocates with demonstrated leadership skills and ability as exercised through both formal and informal roles in their community, campus, and religious organizations.
Partial and some full scholarships are available to Joshua & Deborah Generation participants who demonstrate both financial need and commitment to the goals of the program. Learn more and apply today!
“I have attended the Proctor Institute for seven years and it has changed my life. After attending, not only am I more informed on the state of our nation's children, but I am inspired by the excellent preaching and teaching to do more for them. This coming summer we in Virginia Beach will launch our first CDF Freedom Schools® Program! The Proctor Institute is the Beloved Community made flesh. Come join us!” - Rev. Dr. Pamela Anne Bro
“One place both of us have felt the powerful presence of the beloved community is at the Proctor Institute for Child Advocacy Ministry, sponsored every summer by the Children's Defense Fund. With equal parts of family reunion, spiritual renewal, and skills building, the gathering is an inspiring week of sermons, workshops, and reflection groups focused on the needs of children and celebrating our calls to advocacy. Held at the lovely [CDF] Alex Haley Farm in Clinton, Tennessee, the Institute provides a hospitable learning environment in an atmosphere of inclusion and celebration of diversity. The Proctor Institute is a place where we can articulate our dreams for children and be ‘fed’ intellectually and spiritually so that we continue our advocacy journeys with joy and conviction." - From Weaving a Just Future for Children: An Advocacy Guide by Diane C. Olson and Laura Dean F. Friedrich (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2008)
For more information about registering for Proctor or about audio and video tapes from previous Proctor Institutes, contact Ericka Wright Dobson at (865) 457-6466 or ewright@childrensdefense.org. You can also purchase audio and video tapes of previous events from the CDF Web Store in the coming weeks.
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