About

The proposal submitted by the Reverend Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney Coalition was selected to initiate the process of taking control of the Seattle Vocational Institute (SVI) property on 22nd Avenue South and South Jackson Street. The late Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney was responsible for bringing Seattle Opportunity Industrialization Center (SOIC) to Seattle for the purpose of training, educating, and uplifting African Americans in Seattle. The proposal submitted would restore the pre apprentice training program, employment training in technology, contractor/business support center, and other relevant programs that will enhance the growth and development of the African American Community in Martin Luther King Jr. County.

Vision

African American, other ethnic minority and under-served families and businesses will continue to live and grow with dignity in the Central District of Seattle (CD) through receiving quality education, career opportunities, livable wage jobs, and affordable housing while being recognized for their contributions to Seattle and society on a national and international level.

Mission

The CD CPDA’s mission is to drive economic empowerment for African-American, other minority and under-served communities through employment, career advancement, education, training and business development.

Rev. Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney

“In 1966, Rev. Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney, a Baptist minister, co-founded the Seattle Opportunity Industrialization Center (SOIC) in the basement of his church. The training center equipped minorities who were unemployed or underemployed with the life and job skills necessary to compete in the workforce. Dr. McKinney’s educational model replicated the national OIC founded in 1964. McKinney became a prominent figure in the organization and served as its national Vice President. By 1970, nearly a thousand students found work through the Seattle OIC. It was just the beginning.

‘We were able to, for 20 years, train people and build a facility at 22nd and Jackson,’ McKinney said.

The Central District Community Preservation and Development Authority (CD CPDA) was created in 2019 by the WA State Legislature to mitigate the adverse effects of major public works and capital projects on the CD. The CPDA will engage and SVI already does essential work that is close in aim and purpose to the social gospel ministry of Rev. Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney. The Social Gospel is Christian faith practiced not just as spiritual conversion but as social reform. Changing lives is social reform.
SVI changes lives. The collaborative work, institutional support and community building of the CPDA changes lives. The Samuel Berry McKinney Vocational Institute and the Samuel Berry McKinney Community Public Development Authority would honor, teach and maintain community history, the practical transition and continued success of educational, vocational
and life-skills programs, historical preservation, economic development and neighborhood enhancements that make communities thrive and that would make Seattle soar.

About Central District Community Preservation and Development Authority:

The Central District Community Preservation and Development Authority (CD CPDA) was formally announced on June 24, 2020 and is chartered by state law to preserve the unique character and history of the Central District, long recognized as the historical center of the Seattle African American community. Today, the Central District is a prime example of the negative impact of gentrification. Where once the Black population represented more than 70 percent of the residents, now less than one-fifth of the population is African American. Central District Community Preservation and Development Authority’s aim is to preserve and restore the historical and cultural character of communities, like the Central District, that have experienced dislocation, displacement, and disintegration.

CD CPDA GOALS:

Assist community-based organizations in providing workforce skills training, mentorship, and coaching that will increase the ability of businesses to live and grow with dignity in the Central Area of Seattle.
Create a pioneering educational academy that will provide increased access and support for middle and high school, college-aged and career-ready African-Americans, other ethnic minority and underserved families in the pursuit of knowledge and training in mathematics, science, technology, the arts and humanities.
Develop and support leaders, including young leaders, from the Central District who will forge connections within and among businesses, community members and educational institutions.