FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The City of Springfield, along with the 12 partner organizations listed below, are bringing author and Harvard professor Robert D. Putnam to speak noon-1 p.m. Friday, April 8 at Missouri State University’s annual Public Affairs Conference at Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts. Putnam, author of “Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis,” and “Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community,” will address what he calls the “opportunity gap,” noon-1 p.m. at the conference. Putnam is a political scientist and Malkin Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government. He is responsible for popularizing the term "social capital." Praised by The Washington Post, The New Yorker, and The New York Times Book Review, “Our Kids” explores why "fewer Americans today have the opportunity for upward mobility.” Admission to the conference is free and open to the public, and registration is not necessary. For more information about the conference, please visit publicaffairs.missouristate.edu/conference. Members of the media interested in interviewing Dr. Putnam may contact Care to Learn Executive Director Linda Ramey-Greiwe at 417-862-7771, 417-655-6980 or [email protected] # # # Partner Organizations
• Care to Learn
• Community Foundation of the Ozarks
• Community Partnership of the Ozarks
• Council of Churches of the Ozarks
• Every Child Promise
• The Hamels Foundation
• Help Give Hope
• Missouri State University
• Ozarks Regional YMCA
• Ozarks Technical Community College
• Springfield Public Schools
• Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce