The Racine Environment Committee was formed in the fall of 1967 “to study, plan and recommend action on community problems which affect the industrial, economic and social climate of the Racine metropolitan area.” In particular, the programs of the REC were designed to assist the growing minority and low-income population in the inner-city, in the fields of housing, education, employment, and business opportunities, and through other community projects and local government work.
REC's predecessor organization, the Hill-Kidd Committee, was established in August 1966 by the Mayor of Racine to investigate racial discrimination in the city. Named after co-chairmen Merritt Hill, president and chairman of the J. I. Case Company, and William C. Kidd, president of Western Publishing Company, the Committee ultimately recommended the formation of a permanent organization empowered to deal with urban and racial problems. The establishment of the Racine Environment Committee, Inc. was the result.
Funding for administration of the REC, its educational grants, and its business and housing loans, is provided by many area manufacturers and industrialists; foremost among the supporters have been Samuel C. Johnson and the Johnson Foundation. Committee membership is open to individuals and contributors from all areas of business and community life in Racine, and the REC has maintained close ties to many local civic and civil rights groups. Among the organization's most important programs is the Educational Assistance Program. Recognizing that only 15 per cent of Racine's minority high school graduates went on to college and technical schools, as compared to 55 per cent of the white graduates, the EAP was established to provide the needed grants and other financial aid for minorities. The EAP also provides special counseling for enrollees visits students at school, and has held college orientation and career education sessions. Another area of REC interest has been the Graduate Program in Urban Education, designed to increase the awareness of local teachers in regard to the problems of inner-city and urban education. The program was conducted in conjunction with the Racine United School District and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The REC Educational Fund, begun in July 1968, raises and administers funds for college grants.
Other major activities of the REC were the General and Summer Employment Programs, designed to find both permanent and summer jobs for inner-city youth, and REC Industries, Inc., which trained and found work for unskilled and under-employed adults. Operating in a factory donated by the J. I. Case Company, and equipped by several area manufacturers, REC Industries produced machine parts for local firms. The REC Non-Profit Housing Corporation had as its objectives the replacement and rehabilitation of substandard dwellings. The Corporation purchased and renovated several homes, which were then sold to residents. The Business Opportunities Committee and Corporation coordinated a loan guarantee program for businessmen in the inner-city and “high-risk” areas, funded with the cooperation of local industries and banks and the Small Business Administration. Other REC committees included Government, Pollution Control, Public Relations, and Public Schools. In addition, the REC is the only Wisconsin affiliate of the National Urban Coalition, which was formed in 1967 through the merger of Urban America, Inc. and the Urban Coalition “to offer a greater commitment to improving the conditions of urban life.” In particular, National Urban Coalition efforts have been directed to the problems of urban development and environment.
In 1973 the Racine Environment Committee was reorganized to concentrate and expand efforts. Further consolidation in 1978 centered REC activities, in two areas, education and employment. The REC Educational Fund was designated as the principal coordinating agent of the education program, while a new Finance Committee was established for fund-raising purposes. Work in these two areas continues to the present.
