[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 327 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 327

Congratulating and saluting Focus: HOPE on its 40th anniversary and for 
 its remarkable commitment and contributions to Detroit, the State of 
                    Michigan, and the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 15, 2008

 Mr. Conyers (for himself, Ms. Kilpatrick, Mr. Kildee, Mr. Upton, Mr. 
 McCotter, Mr. Camp of Michigan, Mr. Ehlers, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Walberg, 
  Mr. Knollenberg, Mr. Rogers of Michigan, Mr. Levin, Mr. Stupak, Mr. 
    Hoekstra, and Mrs. Miller of Michigan) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight 
                         and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Congratulating and saluting Focus: HOPE on its 40th anniversary and for 
 its remarkable commitment and contributions to Detroit, the State of 
                    Michigan, and the United States.

Whereas Focus: HOPE began as a civil and human rights organization in 1968 in 
        the wake of the devastating Detroit riots, and was cofounded by the late 
        Father William T. Cunningham, a Roman Catholic priest, and Eleanor M. 
        Josaitis, a suburban housewife, who were inspired by the work of Dr. 
        Martin Luther King, Jr.;
Whereas Focus: HOPE is committed to bringing together people of all races, 
        faiths, and economic backgrounds to overcome injustice and build racial 
        harmony, and it has grown into one of the largest nonprofit 
        organizations in Michigan;
Whereas the Focus: HOPE mission statement is ``Recognizing the dignity and 
        beauty of every person, we pledge intelligent and practical action to 
        overcome racism, poverty, and injustice and to build a metropolitan 
        community where all people may live in freedom, trust, and affection, be 
        they black and white, yellow, brown, and red, from Detroit and its 
        suburbs of every economic status, national origin, and religious 
        persuasion--we join in this movement'';
Whereas one of Focus: HOPE's early efforts was to support African-American and 
        female employees in a seminal class action suit against AAA, resulting 
        in ground-breaking affirmative action commitments made by the 
        corporation;
Whereas Focus: HOPE helped to conceive and develop the Department of 
        Agriculture's Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which has been 
        replicated in over 32 States, and through this program, Focus: HOPE 
        helps to feed 41,000 people per month throughout southeast Michigan;
Whereas Focus: HOPE has revitalized several city blocks in central Detroit by 
        redeveloping obsolete industrial buildings, beautifying and landscaping 
        Oakman Boulevard, creating pocket parks, and rehabilitating homes in the 
        surrounding areas;
Whereas Focus: HOPE's Machinist Training Institute has been training individuals 
        from Detroit and beyond in careers in advanced manufacturing and 
        precision machining since 1981, and has sent forth nearly 2,300 
        certified graduates, providing an opportunity for primarily 
        underrepresented minority youth, women, and others to gain access to the 
        financial mainstream and learn in-demand skills;
Whereas Focus: HOPE has recognized that manufacturing and information 
        technologies are key to the economic growth and security of Michigan and 
        the United States, and is committed to designing programs that would 
        contribute to the participation of underrepresented urban individuals in 
        these critical sectors;
Whereas in 1982, Focus: HOPE began a for-profit subsidiary that was initiated 
        for community economic development purposes and is now designated with 
        Federal HUBZone status;
Whereas Focus: HOPE created the pioneering skill-enhancing program, Fast Track, 
        designed to help individuals improve their reading and math competencies 
        by a minimum of two grade levels in 4 to 7 weeks;
Whereas all of Focus: HOPE's training and education programs have moved more 
        than 9,600 individuals out into the workforce since their inception, 
        with job placement rates significantly above the national average;
Whereas in 1987, Focus: HOPE reclaimed and renovated an abandoned building and 
        opened it as a Center for Children, which now has served nearly 6,000 
        children of colleagues, students, and neighbors with quality child care, 
        including latchkey, summer camp, early childhood education, and other 
        educational services;
Whereas Focus: HOPE, through an unprecedented cooperative agreement between the 
        Departments of Defense, Commerce, Education, and Labor, established a 
        national demonstration project, the Center for Advanced Technologies, 
        which integrates hands-on manufacturing training and academic learning, 
        and educates advanced manufacturing engineers and technologists at 
        internationally competitive levels;
Whereas Focus: HOPE partnered with five universities and six industry partners, 
        formerly known as the Greenfield Coalition, to design this unique 21st 
        century curriculum, that resulted in students receiving associate's 
        degrees in manufacturing technologies by Lawrence Technological 
        University, or bachelor's degrees in engineering technology or 
        manufacturing engineering by Wayne State University and the University 
        of Detroit Mercy, respectively;
Whereas due to the unique educational pedagogy at Focus: HOPE's Center for 
        Advanced Technologies, the starting salary of its graduates is higher 
        than the national average when compared to graduates with the same 
        degree from other universities;
Whereas Focus: HOPE has made outstanding contributions toward increasing 
        diversity within the traditionally homogenous science, math, 
        engineering, and technology fields, and 95 percent of currently enrolled 
        degree candidates are African-American, with the Center for Advanced 
        Technologies being one of the top graduators of bachelor-degreed 
        minorities in manufacturing engineering;
Whereas Focus: HOPE's unique partnership with the Department of Defense has 
        resulted in several research and development projects, including a 
        nationally recognized demonstration project, the Mobile Parts Hospital, 
        whose Rapid Manufacturing System has been deployed to Kuwait in support 
        of the Armed Forces' current operations in Afghanistan, Kuwait, and 
        Iraq;
Whereas Focus: HOPE began a community arts program in 1995, presenting 
        multicultural arts programming and gallery exhibitions designated to 
        educate and encourage area residents, while fostering integration in a 
        culturally diverse metropolitan community, and more than 70,000 people 
        have viewed sponsored exhibits or participated in the program;
Whereas Focus: HOPE established an Informational Technologies Center in 1999, 
        providing Detroit students with industry-certified training programs in 
        network administration, network installation, and desktop and server 
        administration, and has graduated nearly 800 students to date, and 
        initiated, in collaboration with industry and academia, the design of a 
        new bachelor's degree program to educate information management systems 
        engineers;
Whereas Michigan designated Focus: HOPE's campus and the surrounding community a 
        ``Cool Cities'' neighborhood in 2006;
Whereas the Secretary of Labor presented Focus: HOPE with an Exemplary Public 
        Interest Contribution Award in recognition of its success in opening 
        employment opportunities for minorities and women;
Whereas the Village of Oakman Manor, a 55-unit senior citizen apartment building 
        sponsored by the Presbyterian Village of Michigan in collaboration with 
        Focus: HOPE, opened in 2006 near the Focus: HOPE campus as the first new 
        construction in the area in more than 50 years;
Whereas Focus: HOPE's initiatives and programs have been nationally recognized 
        for excellence and leadership by such entities as the Government 
        Accounting Office, the Department of Labor, the International Standards 
        Organization, the National Science Foundation, the Cisco Networking 
        Academy Program, Fortune magazine, Forbes magazine, and the Aspen 
        Institute;
Whereas former presidents George H.W. Bush and William Jefferson Clinton have 
        visited Focus: HOPE's campus;
Whereas Focus: HOPE's cofounder Eleanor M. Josaitis received honorary degrees 
        from 13 outstanding universities and colleges, was named one of the 
        ``100 Most Influential Women'' in 2002 by Crain's Detroit Business, was 
        inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame, received the Detroit 
        NAACP Presidential Award, the Arab American Institute Foundation's 
        Kahlil Gibran Spirit of Humanity Award, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce 
        Award for Distinguished Service and Leadership, and the Dr. Charles H. 
        Wright Award for Excellence in Community Activism, the Caring 
        Institute's National Caring Award, the Clara Barton Ambassador Award 
        from the American Red Cross, as well as many other awards;
Whereas through the generous partnerships and support of individuals from all 
        walks of life, the Federal, State, and local governments, and 
        foundations and corporations across the United States, the vision of 
        Focus: HOPE will continue to grow and inspire;
Whereas Focus: HOPE has been fortunate enough to have an active board of 
        directors and advisory board from the most senior levels of corporate 
        and public America, and has benefited from thousands of volunteers and 
        supporters;
Whereas Focus: HOPE has been a tremendous force for good in the city of Detroit, 
        the State of Michigan, and in the United States for the past 40 years;
Whereas Focus: HOPE continues to strive to eliminate racism, poverty, and 
        injustice through the use of passion, persistence, and partnerships, and 
        continues to seek improvements in its quality of service and program 
        operations; and
Whereas Focus: HOPE and its colleagues will continue to identify ways in which 
        it can lead Detroit, the State of Michigan, and the United States into 
        the future with creative urban leadership initiatives: Now, therefore, 
        be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) congratulates and salutes Focus: HOPE for its 
        remarkable commitment and contributions to Detroit, the State 
        of Michigan, and the United States; and
            (2) directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to 
        make available enrolled copies of this resolution to Focus: 
        HOPE for appropriate display.
                                 <all>