| SPARC Happy Hour with Morgan Kelley |
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For the last 80 years, "New Dealers" and builders of "The Great Society" have been endlessly expanding government agencies and government control of many aspects of our lives. But the day of reckoning has come--the government has run out of money to keep running (ineffectively) all the "public service" programs they want to control. Maybe it's a good idea to keep the places and programs open, and to just get the government bureaucrats out of the way. This is the goal of "civic engagement." Various concerned citizen's groups and organizations are stepping up to work with city and state agencies to take over the valuable public service programs that the citizens actually want. At the forefront of the "civic engagement" movement is Prof. Peter Peterson and the Davenport Institute at Pepperdine University. Join us on November 16 to hear the real story of how "the people" are finally getting back the power over many aspects of our lives. Dinner with Professor Peterson and your SPARC friends
Wednesday, November 16, 2011 6 pm—8 pm
Fremont Hills Country Club 12889 Viscaino Place Los Altos Hills, CA 94022 Tel. 650-948-8261
SPARC Members: $35 Non-Members: $45 All reservations must be prepaid by Monday, Nobemer 14, 2011 Pete Peterson – Director of the Davenport Institute at Pepperdine University – was the first executive director of Common Sense California, which in 2010 joined with the Davenport Institute at the School of Public Policy to become the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership. He developed the organization's annual Public Engagement Grant Program, which has provided over $200,000.00 in grants over the last several years to municipalities and special districts across California. Peterson has also consulted on several of these "participatory planning" and "participatory budgeting" projects in cities ranging from Salinas to Palmdale. Peterson has co-created and currently co-facilitates the training seminar, "Public Engagement: The Vital Leadership Skill in Difficult Times" – a program offered to California leaders from city planners to regional officials. To date over 350 city, county, school district, and nonprofit officials have attended these seminars. He has written extensively on public engagement for an array of print and online journals, and since 2008 has co-authored the California Civic Health Index. Peterson earned his BA in history from George Washington University, and an MPP from Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy. He was also a public affairs fellow at The Hoover Institution in 2006. |