Human Resources Corporation, Kansas City, Missouri

The Human Resources Corporation of Kansas City, Missouri was incorporated in 1964 as a non-profit, tax exempt community action agency, to administer public and private funds for area anti-poverty programs. Founding incorporators were: Mayor Ilus W. Davis, Presiding Judge Charles E. Curry, James Doran (director of region IV), United States Department of Welfare, and Homer Wadsworth, president of the Kansas City Association of Trusts and Foundations. A board of directors was formed from area minority, labor, business, education, welfare, housing, and health groups, along with government officials and civic leaders. An initial grant to organize the agency was received in May 1965 from the Office of Economic Opportunity and Chester E. Stovall was hired as executive director. A staff was assembled to work with the Institute for Community Studies and the University of Missouri at Kansas City to write proposals to be submitted to the regional O.E.O. for funding. In February of 1966, HRC incorporated the Clay and Platte County Human Development Corporation and organized nine area neighborhood centers: six in Kansas City, one in Independence, and one each in Clay and Platte counties. Thus, operations of anti-poverty programs began. The neighborhood centers included family planning centers, adult basic education, summer, health and housing programs. In July of 1968 the HRC Board was reorganized to comply with a 1967 amendment to the Economic Opportunity Act which required a re-designation of community action groups by local governments. Consequently, local governments designated HRC and the community action agencies of Kansas City, Independence, Jackson, Clay, and Platte counties to administer anti-poverty programs. The board was to be composed of the following groups: one-third public officials, one-third representatives of the poor, and one-third from labor, business, education, civil rights as well as presidents of Clay and Platte County Human Development Corporations and the Head Start Advisory Council. Since 1968 annual elections have been held to select representatives to serve on the area council boards, local corporation boards and various advisory boards of HRC programs.