Community Action, Inc. History Statment

• The Community Action movement was created as a result of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (EOA) and the federal Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO).   National directors have included Sargent Shriver and Donald Rumsfeld.

• Local Community Action Agencies (CAA's) were created to fight the "War on Poverty".

• Community Action, Inc. (formerly known as Jefferson-Clarion County Economic Opportunity Association, Inc.) was established in 1965 as a private, non-profit charitable 501(c)(3) corporation and has been designated by the Boards of Commissioners of Clarion and Jefferson Counties to serve as a multi-purpose administering and service delivery entity for a variety of anti-poverty, social and/or humanistic programs.

• Community Action, Inc. has served the Clarion and Jefferson County area continuously since inception.

• Community Action, Inc. has been instrumental in locally creating programs such as:  VISTA, the Job Corps, Neighborhood Youth Corps, Legal Services, Head Start, Foster Grandparent Program, Green Thumb, Weatherization Programs, TEFAP, Employment and Training Programs (CETA and JTPA), Older Americans Act, Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and Federal Housing Programs, which along with many new programs, continue today.

• Community Action, Inc. is governed by a local 18 member tripartite Board of Directors.

Revised April 26, 2005