You’re invited! Spotlight PA hosts “Path to Equity” summit in Harrisburg

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HARRISBURG — Join Spotlight PA for its first in-person summit on Wednesday, Oct. 11, from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Whitaker Center in Harrisburg. Spotlight PA is co-presenting this event with Color & Culture, a Pennsylvania marketing firm.

“The Path to Equity: Empowering Pennsylvanians through Democracy Initiatives” will focus on the state's rapidly growing communities of color, why they are not yet proportionally represented in positions of power, what obstacles exist in terms of their engagement, and the vital importance journalism plays in this equation. This is an important conversation at any time, but especially ahead of 2024 as a swing state.

Tickets are now on sale at this link until sold out.

The program, held in the large Sunoco Performance Theatre at the Whitaker Center, features keynote speaker Errin Haines, MSNBC contributor and editor at large at The 19th, a national nonprofit newsroom focused on gender, politics, and policy.

The day also includes two panels (details below), lunch, a coffee bar and dessert reception, and a post-event happy hour for those who wish to stay.

• "Leadership in Change" Panel: The panelists are the executive directors from the Governor’s Advisory Commissions on African American Affairs, Asian American and Pacific Islander Affairs, Latino Affairs, LGBTQ Affairs, Next Generation Engagement, and Women.

• “Power to the People” Panel: Moderated by journalist Anthony Orozco, the panelists are: Salewa Ogunmefun, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Voice; Yamelisa Taveras, Founder and Director of The Unidos Foundation, CEO of Counseling Solutions of LV; Rep. Johanny Cepeda-Freytiz, Pennsylvania House District 129; Jonathan Cervas, Carnegie Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for Politics & Strategy; and Jennie Dallas, Publisher, La Voz Latina Central; and former Rep. Stanley Saylor, Pennsylvania House District 94.

For sponsorship information or to sponsor a student or an attendee in financial need, please email michelle@spotlightpa.org.

BEFORE YOU GO… If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results.