Social justice expert to lead Fall Community Dialogue program here next week
The second in a two-part Fall Community Dialogue Series will be held from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15, in the third-floor lounge, Room 304, of Murray-Herrick Campus Center.
The series, developed and sponsored by Multicultural Student Services, is designed to involve St. Thomas students, staff and faculty in a discussion on the impact that poverty, racism and public policy have on the nation's youth.
Ron Krietemeyer
Co-sponsors of the series are Campus Ministry, University Lectures Committee, Service Learning, Center for Intercultural Learning and Community Engagement, Office for Mission and Division of Academic Affairs.
The first part of the series was held Sept. 10 and featured a talk by internationally acclaimed author, educator and civil rights activist Jonathan Kozol.
The second part, on Oct. 15, will feature a talk and discussion led by Ron Krietemeyer, director of poverty education at Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis. His talk on the 2007 national Catholic Charities report, "Poverty and Racism: Overlapping Threats to the Common Good," will be followed by small-group discussions.
A link to the Catholic Charities' brief on "Poverty and Racism: Overlapping Threats to the Common Good" can be found here. The brief is recommended reading for those planning to attend the Oct. 15 program.
Krietemeyer has more than 30 years of experience working in the social justice field and speaking to audiences about poverty and economic justice. In his talk he will examine the ways that poverty hurts us all and will offer suggestions for concrete actions we can take to end poverty.
He holds a master's in public affairs from the University of Minnesota and a master's in theology from St. John's University. He began his career at Catholic Charities in 1972 and later went to work for the U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference in Washington, D.C. He returned to Minnesota and to Catholic Charities in St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1992 and served 12 years as director of the archdiocesan Office for Social Justice.
The Oct. 15 program is free and all are welcome. Because a light meal will be served, those planning to attend are asked to pre-register by sending an e-mail message to multicultural@stthomas.edu.
