About the Oshkosh Civility Project
The Oshkosh Civility Project began in the summer of 2010 as an ad hoc effort involving the initial efforts of Walter Scott, Karlene Grabner, and Tom Grogan. Walter Scott brought the idea for this initiative from his travels to Truckee, California, where he discovered the "Speak Your Peace" campaign developed by the Truckee-Tahoe Community Foundation. That campaign was developed based on work originally done in Duluth-Superior using as a reference authority "Choosing Civility" by P.M. Forni. Dr. Forni has advised the Oshkosh effort and many other groups on the formation of civility improvement efforts. Dr. Forni was brought to Oshkosh by the Oshkosh Civility Project and delivered several community presentations during the formal launch of the initiative in February 2011.
In his discussions with representatives from the Oshkosh Community Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, a small planning group was formed that was comprised of representatives from a number of community-based organizations, including the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, the Oshkosh Public Library, the Oshkosh Area School District and other related individuals and organizations.
The Oshkosh Civility Project is loosely organized as a non-profit community-based organization. As the project's efforts continue to develop, these efforts may result in a more formalized organizational structure. For the time being, however, this is a consensus-based effort with no pre-determined outcome or specific or organizational structure in development to provide leadership and governance to support future operations.
In his discussions with representatives from the Oshkosh Community Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, a small planning group was formed that was comprised of representatives from a number of community-based organizations, including the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, the Oshkosh Public Library, the Oshkosh Area School District and other related individuals and organizations.
The Oshkosh Civility Project is loosely organized as a non-profit community-based organization. As the project's efforts continue to develop, these efforts may result in a more formalized organizational structure. For the time being, however, this is a consensus-based effort with no pre-determined outcome or specific or organizational structure in development to provide leadership and governance to support future operations.
