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Oral histories are intimate conversations between and among people who have generously agreed to share these recordings with BHS’s archives and researchers. Please listen in the spirit with which these were shared. BHS abides by the General Principles & Best Practices for Oral History as agreed upon by the Oral History Association and expects that use of this material will be done with respect for these professional ethics.
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[Last name, First name], Oral history interview conducted by [Interviewer’s First name Last name], [Month DD, YYYY], [Title of Collection], [Call #]; Brooklyn Historical Society.
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Wayne Winborne
Oral history interview conducted by Jako Borren
January 16, 2008
Call number: 2008.030.55
0:31 - Winborne's role at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (BSRC); Bed-Stuy in 2008
3:45 - BSRC's agenda, impact in urban development; African Americans' political plight
14:04 - BSRC's future direction; Winborne's career biography and path to BSRC's Board of Directors
31:38 - Ethos at BSRC in the early 1990s & Bed-Stuy's economic renaissance; auditing BSRC's work
39:52 - BSRC's institutional evolution; funding strategies & challenges faced; charting the future
53:14 - Impact of BSRC on Winborne's own life; proud moments in his tenure with BSRC; concluding thoughts
60:14 - Concluding thoughts
Interview Description
Oral History Interview with Wayne Winborne
Wayne C. Winborne (born 1959) grew up in Portsmouth, Virginia to a father who worked in the shipyards, and was educated at Stanford University and New York University. After graduating college, Winborne moved to the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn to perform community development for inner-city youth. From his perch in Brooklyn, Winborne became involved with both Restoration and the Ford Foundation. In 2003, Winborne joined Restoration's Board of Directors. At the time of the 2008 interview, Winborne was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Restoration and a vice president of business diversity outreach at Prudential Financial. In 2015, Winborne become the executive director of Rutgers University's Institute of Jazz Studies.
Wayne C. Winborne begins this interview with a discussion of the socio-economic difficulties faced by inner-city African Americans, and reflects on the roles of economic development and cultural education in eradicating the cycle of poverty. Winborne describes his own ambitious youth; including his education at Stanford University and his move to Brooklyn, New York, where he developed youth programs. He details his path to serving as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Restoration. Winborne describes cultural changes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn since 1988, many of them ushered in by Restoration. Winborne speaks of an era of financial difficulty, and shares his views on necessary financial and programming measures. At the interview's end, Winborne lists members of Restoration's Board of Directors who have enriched his life, and expresses his enthusiasm for Restoration's next forty years. Interview conducted by Jako Borren.
Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) and Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation (Restoration) partnered on the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral history project in 2007-2008 to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Restoration's founding as the first community development corporation (CDC) in the United States. Nearly sixty interviews were conducted with founding Board members, supporters, activists, artists, tenants, and other community members. Audio clips from these oral history interviews were included in the exhibit "Reflections on Community Development: Stories from Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation" (BHS 2008, Restoration 2009).
Citation
Winborne, Wayne, Oral history interview conducted by Jako Borren, January 16, 2008, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral histories, 2008.030.55; Brooklyn Historical Society.People
- Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation
- Grannum, Colvin W.
- Winborne, Wayne
Topics
- African Americans
- Community development corporations
- Economic development
- Gentrification
- Nonprofit organizations
Places
- Bedford-Stuyvesant (New York, N.Y.)
- Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)
Finding Aid
Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation oral histories