Goals of the conference:

1. To increase the practical and prophetic knowledge base of clergy about the current wave of gun violence, particularly in Philadelphia, and how congregations can be realistically and effectively involved in addressing both the causes and the effects
2. To bring together those currently engaged in programming for at-risk youth with clergy and other religious leaders to provide a context for inspiration and an introduction to needed skill sets in developing programs such as job skills training, economic development/job creation, re-entry from prison, conflict resolution, responsible parenting, anger and stress management, etc.
3. To enable networking among all those who are addressing the crisis of gun related violence, to encourage partnerships that might develop strategies for addressing the youth violence in our cities
4. To educate seminarians for ministry with at-risk youth and as public advocates
5. A long-range goal for the conference is that partnerships might develop which can be the basis for policy advocacy aimed at dismantling what the Children's Defense Fund calls the "Cradle to Prison Pipeline®."

About the Keynoter: Dr. Robert Michael Franklin is the tenth President of Morehouse College. Dr. Franklin previously served at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University as presidential distinguished professor of social ethics. In the Office of the Provost, he led the university's strategic theme focused on "Confronting the Human Condition."

Dr. Franklin was a senior fellow in the Center for Interdisciplinary Study of Religion in the School of Law. From 1997 to 2002, he served as president of the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC), part of the Atlanta University Center consortium. He also has served as theologian in residence at the Chautauqua Institution in New York.

A frequent commentator for National Public Radio's All Things Considered, Dr. Franklin has built a national platform on social ethics and community values.

Dr. Franklin serves on several prestigious boards including the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund (Jacksonville, FL); Character Education Partnership (Washington, DC); Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference (Chicago, IL); Joseph Lowery Institute for Justice and Human Rights at Clark Atlanta University (Atlanta, GA); Public Broadcasting of Atlanta WABE (Atlanta, GA); and Visiting Committee, National Centers for Disease Control (Atlanta, GA).

Workshops repeated for both sessions

1. Immediate
   How do we respond to the crisis of violence now?
   Focus: Developing ministries that respond to the trauma of violence
2. Transitional Support
   How do we support individuals toward wholeness?
   Focus: Developing longer-term programs of counseling and assistance
3. Social Service
   How can churches help prevent reoccuring violence?
   Focus: How congregations can develop and maintain social services to the community
4. Justice/Advocacy
   How can we change the systems that contribute to the violence?
   Focus: How faith communities can become effective advocates
5. Community Transformation
   How can we change the culture of our community?
   Focus: Crafting a vision, organizing, mobilizing, negotiating, and working out the details of community transformation