Contact:

Jesyca H. Rodenberg

Communications & Outreach Director

Kansas Association of Community Action Programs

jesyca@kacap.org

785.234.0878

Feb. 2, 2010

For immediate release

Kansas Poverty Conference scheduled in Wichita

(Wichita, Kan.) - The executive director for the Coalition on Human Needs is the keynote speaker for the 2012 Kansas Conference on Poverty. The conference will be held July 25-27, 2012, at Hyatt Regency Wichita.

Deborah Weinstein became executive director of the Coalition on Human Needs in June 2003. She has more than 30 years of advocacy experience on a wide range of issues at the state and federal levels. Prior to joining the coalition, she spent nine years as director of the Family Division at the Children's Defense (CDF). During her tenure at CDF, Weinstein worked on policy strategies to lift children and their families out of poverty, including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), child support, jobs and wages, housing, nutrition, unemployment insurance, and equitable tax policy.

Helping Overcome Poverty's Existence (HOPE) is the theme for the conference being organized by The Kansas Association of Community Action Programs and the Kansas Community Action Network. The conference engages policy makers, government employees, social service agencies, advocates, volunteers and low-income people from around the region in intensive learning, training and planning on poverty issues.

Poverty can happen to anyone. In November 2010, a poll of American voters found that more than 50 percent have a family member who lives in poverty.

Go Wichita Convention & Visitors Bureau assisted the Coalition on Human Needs with organizing the conference by providing site-selection service and acting as a liaison with area hotels.

For more information, visit www.kacap.org.

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