December 3, 2013
Third “DIG”
This is your third opportunity this
semester to do a little digging into primary sources in search of evidence that
corroborates, complicates, or even contradicts the readings for the
course. This need not be an extensive
research project – no more than a page or two is necessary. DIG
3# is due in class on Tuesday, December 10th.
Michael Patrick MacDonald, author of
All Souls, currently works with Roca,
a Boston-based organization that helps high-risk young people turn around their
lives. I’d like you to browse their web
site: http://www.rocainc.org/ and read about the strategies they employ and the work they
do. (Clicking on the “Who We Are” and “What We Do” menus will give you the best
overview.)
Then, drawing from what you read in All Souls and on the web site, compare
and contrast the approach and philosophy of Roca to the welfare programs and
initiatives from the 1970s and 1980s that MacDonald criticizes in his
book. In what ways does Roca differ from
or appear similar to past efforts to help impoverished people? What appear to be the most striking
similarities and differences?