OnTheTable2015 gathers concerned citizens today in Chicago

Today the Chicago Community Trust is hosting its second annual OnTheTable event. I hope all who gather to discuss issues important to Chicago will use resources like the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC web site and blogs like this one to build a deeper understanding of issues and strategies that reach youth and families in all high poverty areas of the Chicago region.

At last Friday's Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference, Mark Duhon, Executive Director of Highsight, led an OnTheTable discussion. Participants were encouraged to host table discussions, focusing on questions such as:

* What is your organization's ultimate goal for the young people you serve?
* What are you doing well to help accomplish this goal?
* What can others do to help you (volunteers, donors, etc. from business, faith groups, colleges)?

Participant feedback was collected and will be posted on Tutor/Mentor blogs and social media, and shared with the larger #OnTheTable discussions.

I wrote about the 2014 OnTheTable event last May with an article titled "Follow up to On The Table2014 – 5 years, 10 years, 15 years."

On April 27, I shared this graphic, from a 1993 newspaper story, calling for a "master battle plan" to address poverty and its many related causes.

Last week I shared this graphic, urging leaders who organize events that bring diverse groups of people together, to build participation maps that show who is participating and where they come from, just as I've been trying to do to show who has been participating in the conferences I've hosted since 1993.

If you're one of the thousands of people participating in #onthetable2015, I hope you'll read this article and browse others I've written since 2005, then add this to your own library and planning process. I'd be happy to give you a guided tour and become your coach. Connect with me on Twitter or LinkedIN.