Making Philadelphia Family Friendly

Posted by Next City on October 13, 2014

City Sessions 1: Making Philadelphia Family Friendly
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2014
5:00 PM – 7:30 PM

You’re invited to join us for a series of discussions about the ideas, issues and communities that will shape Philadelphia’s future. This three-part event series is brought to you by Next City in partnership with the media organizations, 900AM-WURD and AL DÍA News, with the support of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. All events are free and open to the public.

Making Philadelphia Family Friendly
October 29, 2014
Pre-reception: 5 p.m.
Program: 6 p.m.
Moore College of Art & Design Auditorium

Keeping young families in Philadelphia will be critical to the city’s future success. Hear from local and national leaders and join the discussion about what is needed to make the city more family friendly.

RSVP Required
http://nextcity.org/events/detail/city-sessions-event-series

Philadelphia owes much of its population growth to Millennials who have stayed in or move to the city. But as they get older and form families, many of them will leave for the suburbs or other cities that are more family-friendly, undoing their contribution to the city’s growth. Keeping young families in Philadelphia will be critical to the city’s future success. Families invest in schools and neighborhoods and have a multiplier effect on the economy. How can Philadelphia improve the city for those families already living here and encourage others to raise families here? Better schools, of course, will be necessary. But there are other elements that attract families: safer streets, parks, recreation spaces, employer incentives, and civic opportunities. This panel discussion will look at what Philadelphia is doing right, inspire ideas of how it can improve, and generate a conversation with the audience about what it will take to make the city friendly to all citizens.

Moderator:

Sara Lomax-Reese – President and General Manager of WURD Radio

The panel:

Dennis Campa – Associate Director of State Policy Reform and Advocacy at the Annie E. Casey Foundation
Helen Gym – Co-founder of Parents United for Public Education
Michael DiBerardinis – Deputy Mayor for Environmental and Community Resources for the City of Philadelphia
Otis Hackney – Principal of South Philadelphia High School