The Rock Island Public Library will host a free public discussion on Building Success in Our Kids on Monday, Jan. 23 from 6:00 to 7:30 pm at the Rock Island Main Library, 401 19th Street. 

The free community forum is a follow up to a December visit to the Quad Cities by Professor Robert Putnam, author of Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis. In his remarks, Putnam proposed that the American Dream of equal opportunity is threatened by a growing gap between kids from the upper third of the social hierarchy and their peers from the lower third.

Participants at the Rock Island Library event will discuss ideas on successful methods to bridge the opportunity gap in the Rock Island and Milan communities. Discussion will be  facilitated by Dan McNeil, of Spring Forward Learning Center, and the Rev. Dwight Ford of Grace City Church, both of Rock Island. The event is free and open to the public.

Multiple local libraries, including Rock Island, distributed free copies of Putnam's book in December. The book distribution, along with follow-up programming at local libraries, was made possible through grant support from the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend.