Building trust, sharing ideas and experiences with others without fear of reproach and working together to affect long-term change compose the backbone of Greater Cincinnati Study Circles, which kicked off Monday at St. Peter In Chains Cathedral downtown.

        After a trial run for the nationally recognized Study Circles program with two pilot sessions in July and August, The Cincinnati Human Relations Commission (CHRC) has fully implemented the program. It brings diverse groups together to talk about issues and develop solutions to the problems highlighted by the April riots.

        The riots erupted after the police shooting death of an unarmed black man who was fleeing police.

        The effort will involve groups from diverse parts of the community in meetings at schools, congregations, businesses and community organizations.

        Monday's meeting was the first official gathering, and drew a crowd of about 200.

        “We can all learn from each other, and this is an opportunity to have that face-to-face contact that we often don't have,” said David McPheeters Jr., who was director of CHRC in 1966 and 1967, "Back then, if we had had Study Circles before it happened, it wouldn't have happened.”

        Mr. McPheeters was referring to rioting in Cincinnati in 1967, and in 1968 after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

        The April riots were similar, he said, in that they were born out of contempt for a perceived adversary — the Cincinnati Police Division — that had little if any dialogue with the rioters before the rioting began.

        Rob McLaughlin, project coordinator for Aria Group Inc. — a conflict resolution firm with international experience that's helping to mediate Study Circles sessions — said that collaborative efforts such as Study Circles are key to improving relations between police and community members.

        “Collaboration is core, not only between police and community members, but between projects,” he said.

        Mr. McLaughlin was referring to the numerous initiatives launched by city officials and others in the wake of the riots to improve race relations in Cincinnati.

        On Nov. 18, Study Circles coordinators will take all the ideas conceived at each of five planned sessions and boil them down to a list of about a half dozen ideas. Those ideas will then be voted on and ranked Jan. 12 in order of importance by Study Circle participants and handed over to Cincinnati CAN for review and implementation.

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