The State of the Dream: A Community Conversation about Diversity

                       An evening of thoughtful conversation about where we are as a nation and a state in regards to civil rights. This panel conversation will highlight the perspective of three Connecticut leaders who have dedicated their lives to mutual respect, human rights and community education in the hopes of affecting change.

                      In honor of Martin Luther King Day the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Hartford and West Hartford Public Schools will co-sponsor an important community conversation on diversity, religion and race. The program will examine how we, as a community, can engage in a civil discussion on difference and diversity, fostering respect for the beliefs of others and what role can educational, religious, and political institutions play in this process.

Following the speakers, Professor Avinoam Patt and Philip D. Feltman Professor of Modern Jewish History at the MauriceGreenbergCenter for Judaic Studies at the University of Hartford, will moderate a conversation among the panelists which will culminate in a Q&A with the audience. Deacon Art Miller, Director of the Office for Black Catholic Ministries for the Archdiocese of Hartford; Cheryl A. Sharp, Deputy Director of the State of Connecticut, Commission on Human Rights; Marji Lipshez-Shapiro, Education Director for the Connecticut Office of the Anti-Defamation League.