City Club Of Cleveland

THE CITY CLUB'S MISSION IS TO CREATE CONVERSATIONS (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O) OF CONSEQUENCE THAT HELP DEMOCRACY THRIVE IN PURSUIT OF OUR VISION OF STRONG, INFORMED INDIVIDUALS AND COMMUNITIES THAT PRIZE FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND CIVIL, CIVIC DIALOGUE.

TO FULFILL OUR MISSION, THE CITY CLUB PRODUCES FORUMS ON A RANGE OF TOPICS FOR A VARIETY OF AUDIENCES. THE BACKBONE OF OUR PROGRAMMING IS THE FRIDAY FORUM, A LUNCHTIME PROGRAM DEVOTED TO SIGNIFICANT NATIONAL AND REGIONAL CONCERNS. WE ALSO HAVE FORUMS ON OTHER DAYS, AT DIFFERENT TIMES AND VENUES (WHEN IN-PERSON), INCLUDING NEIGHBORHOOD BARS AND PUBLIC SQUARE IN DOWNTOWN CLEVELAND AND VIRTUALLY FOR LIVESTREAMING AUDIENCES. IN TODAY'S POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT, OUR WORK HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY CRITICAL BECAUSE COMMUNITIES NEED A FORUM FOR UNDERSTANDING THE NUANCES OF VARIOUS ISSUES AND REFORMS IN RELATION TO THE WAY WE LIVE OUR LIVES. SOME OF OUR MOST SUCCESSFUL FORUMS ARE (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O) DEVELOPED BY MEMBER-LED TEAMS AND STUDENTS. EVERY ELECTION SEASON, YOU CAN COUNT ON THE CITY CLUB TO CONVENE CANDIDATE AND ISSUE DEBATES. ALL TOLD, WE PRODUCE ABOUT 100 PROGRAMS EVERY YEAR, FROM SMALL, DEEP DIVE CONVERSATIONS WITH EMERGING COMMUNITY VOICES TO LARGE SCALE EVENTS, SUCH AS THE STATE OF THE CITY.OUR ORGANIZATION PROMOTES AND ENCOURAGES DIVERSITY BY WELCOMING SPEAKERS, MEMBERS, GUESTS OF VARIOUS RACE, CULTURE, AND ORIENTATION. WE ARE PROUD TO REPORT THAT IN RECENT YEARS, WE HAVE CONTINUED TO MEET AMBITIOUS TARGETS FOR SPEAKER DIVERSITY. OUR SPEAKERS TELL US THAT SPEAKING AT A CITY CLUB FORUM CONTINUES TO BE AN IMPORTANT INGREDIENT IN CONTRIBUTING TO PUBLIC DIALOGUE ACROSS THE COUNTRY.THE CITY CLUB'S PRIMARY MEDIA PARTNER IS IDEASTREAM PUBLIC MEDIA, WHICH INCLUDES 90.3 WCPN/NPR, 89.7 WKSU/NPR, 104.9 WCLV, WVIZ/PBS, AND THE OHIO CHANNEL. IDEASTREAM PROVIDES PRODUCTION SUPPORT TO CAPTURE THE CONTENT OF NEARLY ALL OF OUR FORUMS, AND PROVIDES A WEEKLY BROADCAST ACROSS THE REGION AND STATE ON MULTIPLE CHANNELS. THEY ALSO HELP US PROVIDE A FREE DIGITAL ARCHIVE AND LIVE STREAM OF ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS,

A GROWING NATIONAL DIVIDE IS REFLECTED IN THE FRACTURES WE SEE IN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT NORTHEAST OHIO. WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION, THE BARRIERS THAT DIVIDE OUR COMMUNITY ARE PARTICULARLY DESTRUCTIVE. THE CITY CLUB AIMS TO BRIDGE THIS DIVIDE THROUGH FOUR DISTINCT PROGRAMS THAT SERVES STUDENTS AND THE EDUCATIONAL COMMUNITY: CITY CLUB YOUTH FORUMS, STUDENT PARTICIPATION, THE FREE SPEECH ESSAY CONTEST, AND THE ANNUAL HIGH SCHOOL DEBATE CHAMPIONSHIP. SINCE ITS INCEPTION IN 1997, MORE THAN 14,000 STUDENTS HAVE ATTENDED CITY CLUB YOUTH FORUMS. STUDENTS TAKE CHARGE OF EVERYTHING IN THE FORUM, FROM TOPIC SELECTION TO PANEL MODERATION AND DELIVERING INTRODUCTIONS. THESE FORUMS ARE EXECUTED BY A (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O) PLANNING COUNCIL OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO COME FROM AREA HIGH SCHOOLS (BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE) TO MEET MONTHLY TO SELECT TOPICS AND INVITE THE SPEAKERS FOR AS MANY AS FIVE FORUMS EACH YEAR. YOUTH FORUMS PROVIDE A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR PARTICIPANTS TO DEVELOP EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS BY HOLDING GROUP DISCUSSIONS ON CURRENT EVENTS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS AT FORUMS, DEVELOP ANALYTICAL THINKING ABILITIES BY DEBATING THE TOPIC AND POINTS OF VIEW REFLECTED BY THE FORUM SPEAKER, AND ENCOURAGING POSITIVE COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT BY PROVIDING A DIRECT EXPERIENCE WITH ENGAGED DIALOGUE-THE VERY FIBER OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY.EVERY YEAR THE HOPE AND STANLEY ADELSTEIN FREE SPEECH ESSAY CONTEST CHALLENGES HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TO EXAMINE THE ROLE OF FREE SPEECH IN THE 21ST CENTURY. THIS ESSAY CONTEST WAS ESTABLISHED WITH A GENEROUS GIFT FROM THE ADELSTEINS TO HONOR THEIR DEEP COMMITMENT TO THE CITY CLUB OF CLEVELAND. NORTHEAST OHIO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS ARE ELIGIBLE TO COMPETE AND CITY CLUB MEMBERS AND COMMUNITY PARTNERS SERVE AS GUEST JUDGES SCORING THE ESSAYS ON THEIR CLARITY, CONTENT, ORIGINALITY, AND SIGNIFICANCE. WINNING ESSAYS ARE POSTED ON THE CITY CLUB WEBSITE AND THE TOP WINNERS ARE INVITED TO READ THEIR ESSAYS AT THE CITY CLUB. WINNERS RECEIVE A TOTAL OVER MORE THAN $4,000 IN PRIZES, INCLUDING $1,000 TO THE TOP WINNING ESSAY.FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES, THE CITY CLUB OF CLEVELAND HAS HOSTED THE ANNUAL HIGH SCHOOL DEBATE CHAMPIONSHIP. EVERY YEAR, THE TOP TWO AREA HIGH SCHOOL DEBATERS SQUARE OFF IN A CLASSIC "LINCOLN-DOUGLAS" STYLE DEBATE AT A FRIDAY FORUM. THIS GIVES THE DEBATERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE, NOT ONLY FOR THE JUDGES AND THE AUDIENCE IN THE ROOM, BUT ALSO FOR OUR RADIO, TELEVISION, AND LIVESTREAM AUDIENCES. DEBATE TEAMS FROM ACROSS NORTHEAST OHIO ATTEND THIS ANNUAL SPRING TRADITION AND THE FORUM IS CONSISTENTLY AMONG OUR MOST WATCHED YOUTUBE VIDEOS.