The founder, president and CEO of the Harlem Children's Zone -- which the federal government hopes to recreate in 21 American neighborhoods -- and the "star" of the much-discussed "Waiting for Superman," Geoffrey Canada will speak in Milwaukee on Friday, Oct. 22.
Canada will give a talk at the Hyatt Regency Hotel at 11 a.m. as the closing keynote speaker at the 2010 Alliance for Children and Families National Conference.
According to a news release, "Canada will share models for reform that combine educational, social and medical services that impact children from birth to college. He will discuss the trend toward service integration and the impact his suggested models for reform have on child welfare."
The Harlem Children's Zone is a 97-block "residential educational system" in New York that has, over two decades, been nationally recognized for its success in tackling issues facing education and families in the poverty-stricken neighborhood via a network of charter schools and child-focused health care programs.
The program -- and Canada -- are featured in the new documentary "Waiting for Superman," which makes its Milwaukee premiere Sunday at the Milwaukee Film Festival and is expected to return to area screens in mid-October.
Yesterday, the federal government announced the 21 winners of a competition among American neighborhoods for $10 million in grants that come with being named a "Promise Neighborhood."
None of the 21 winners is in Wisconsin. Of 339 applicants for the grants, two were from Milwaukee.
The Alliance for Children and Families, which celebrates 100 years in 2011, is a non-profit national membership association of private, nonprofit human service providers in the United States and Canada.
To register for Canada's presentation, go to nc10.allianceinfo.org. Tickets can be purchased at a special keynote speaker price for $50 and must be reserved in advance.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
