Spartanburg Northside Initiative to receive inaugural Riley Institute award

FOR INFORMATION:

Katie Quine
Marketing and Communications Manager
The Riley Institute at Furman University
864.294.3368; katie.quine@furman.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

SPARTANBURG NORTHSIDE INITIATIVE TO RECEIVE INAUGURAL RILEY INSTITUTE AWARD RECOGNIZING LANDMARK COLLABORATIVE ACHIEVEMENT

The initiative will be recognized with the OneSouthCarolina Partners in Progress Award during the Building OneSouthCarolina Forum on January 19 in Columbia.

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Furman University’s Riley Institute has announced that Spartanburg’s Northside Initiative will be honored with the inaugural OneSouthCarolina Partners in Progress Award, which recognizes a landmark collaborative achievement contributing significantly to social and economic progress in South Carolina.

The award will be presented at the Building OneSouthCarolina Forum on Wednesday, January 19, at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. New in 2022, the forum is a sister event to the Riley Institute’s OneSouthCarolina Legislative and Civic Leadership Awards, formerly known as the David H. Wilkins Awards, which occurs the evening prior.

The Northside Initiative is an ongoing, comprehensive, “inside-out” transformation of a neighborhood in Spartanburg long beset by poverty’s challenges and is committed to increasing wellbeing and opportunity for existing and new residents. During the forum, key stakeholders will speak about the initiative’s origins, successes, failures, and hopes for the future.

Dr. Don Gordon, executive director of the Riley Institute, said he believes the Northside Initiative offers valuable takeaways which other communities may benefit from hearing.

“All across South Carolina, there are outstanding examples of leaders of different backgrounds rolling up their sleeves, united in addressing complex challenges with creative solutions,” Gordon said. “Offering the new award and the Building OneSouthCarolina Forum in addition to our annual legislative and civic leadership awards advances our goal to illuminate how progress happens in the state.”

The Building OneSouthCarolina Forum begins with a continental breakfast at 9 a.m. The forum and award presentation follow at 9:30 a.m. Tickets are $35 each and may be purchased by visiting furman.edu/building-onesouthcarolina.

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About the Riley Institute at Furman University

Furman University’s Richard W. Riley Institute advances social and economic progress in South Carolina and beyond by building leadership for a diverse society, hosting expert speakers to broaden perspectives on critical issues, supporting public education, and creating knowledge through community solutions-focused research. It is committed to nonpartisanship in all it does and to a rhetoric-free, facts-based approach to change. Learn more at furman.edu/riley.