Candidate for
United States Representative; District 1

As a teacher, community developer, and consultant to non-profit agencies, Greg Harris has seen firsthand the challenges that people face everyday in southwestern Ohio. Like many others, Greg was frustrated with the status quo in his region and a lack of effective leadership, especially at the congressional level. His passionate commitment to building a better future for all who call Greater Cincinnati their home motivated Greg to run for Congress against Rep. Steve Chabot.

Greg hopes to be a strong advocate in Congress for the working families of Ohio's First Congressional District. However, Greg's commitment to serve did not begin with his bid for Congress. While earning his PhD from Miami University, Greg enjoyed working as a teacher for seven years. The desire to work more directly with underprivileged youth led Greg to leave the classroom to work in neighborhoods as Program Manager for an inner-city youth development and apprenticeship program called Public Allies/Americorps. Greg helped create numerous jobs for young adults, while coordinating trainings that helped program participants emerge as future community leaders.

In 2000, Greg sought to tackle pressing community problems at a broader level by taking over as Executive Director of the regional public policy organization, Citizens for Civic Renewal (CCR), founded by former Ohio Governor John Gilligan. Greg brought in significant new resources, quadrupling CCR's budget in order to carry out important projects built on principles of good government and regional collaboration. Under his leadership, CCR was transformed into an influential public policy organization. Through task forces and town meetings, Greg worked directly with over 4,000 citizens as well as government, civic and corporate leaders to identify solutions to some of the more pressing problems facing the region, including school finance reform, urban sprawl, and poverty.

An active member of the community, Greg serves on the boards of the Charter Committee for Good Government, the Jewish Early Learning Center, and the Smart Growth Coalition of Greater Cincinnati. Recently, Greg has served his community as a consultant to non-profit agencies in areas of project development and grant writing. Last year alone, Greg designed projects and raised over $125,000 in seed money that enabled two small but effective environmental non-profit agencies to carry out important work in the region.

As the area's representative in Congress, Greg will fight for:

• Protecting American jobs by fighting for fair trade
• Bolstering our Homeland Security without compromising civil liberties
• Quality affordable healthcare for every American
• Increased education funding from early childhood through college
• A pro-conservation energy policy that achieves energy independence