Population Resource Center

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Mission of PRC

Our mission is to promote the use of accurate population data and sound, objective analysis of this data in the making of public policy. For more than three decades the Center has been educating policymakers on population trends and their implications for public policy. We recruit leading experts to brief policymakers about important demographic trends—such as immigration, global population growth, and the aging of America—and help policymakers understand how those trends affect issues like the environment, education, the economy, and foreign policy. Through innovative programs and multimedia linking demographic trends to contemporary concerns in the Census, environment, international development, public health, immigration, and the economy, PRC educates policymakers, NGO practitioners, and interested individuals across the United States. Formats range from large public symposiums and policy briefings to one-on-one meetings with policymakers and their staffs. The Center does not lobby; our goal is to inform and educate the policy debate.

History of the Population Resource Center

The Population Resource Center (initially called “Projects for Population Action”) was the product of Henry McIntyre’s visionary concern. McIntyre, who served as the Chairman of the Board until 1982, established the Center in 1975 to stimulate greater foundation interest in funding “population” programs by providing them with professional assistance in understanding and evaluating the relevance of population issues to their own fields of interest. At the time, less than one percent of foundation funding was directed toward population-related activities.

In the 1970’s the Center set up offices in New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC., and established several committees of experts to demonstrate to foundations the relevance of population issues to a variety of broad economic and social concerns, such as health, energy, environment and resources, youth, women, the elderly, urbanization and rural development, economics and business.

Gradually, however, the Center shifted its focus from educating the donor community to educating policymakers about the policy implications of population growth and demographic change. In 1979, the Center entered into a formal partnership with the Population Association of America (PAA), a professional association of demographers. As part of that partnership, the Center monitored Congressional activity to identify areas where demographic analysis could inform and elevate the policy debate. With the cooperation of PAA, the Center each year brought dozens of demographic experts to Washington to brief Members of Congress and their staffs on key demographic trends and their relevance to important economic, environmental, and social issues.

While the partnership with PAA expired in 1988, the Center has continued to elevate and inform Congressional policy deliberations by bringing leading demographic experts to brief Congress on a host of critical issues, including global poverty, reproductive health, the environment, immigration, climate change, and teen pregnancy.

During the late 1980's, with support from the MacArthur Foundation, the Center expanded into the international arena. A sister project was started in Africa: The Environment and Population Centre of Zambia. Similar program development began in Mexico, Costa Rica and Indonesia. The Center also joined the African Development Bank in developing an international conference “Africa in the 21st Century.”

Beginning in 1993, the Center secured funding for programs on new aspects of domestic policy such as the prevention of teen pregnancy and welfare reform. With grants from the Houston Endowment, The Erik and Edith Bergstrom Foundation and the Educational Foundation of America, the Center produced programs to encourage individuals in states with responsibility for implementing welfare reform to increase the expenditure of funds to prevent teen pregnancy. In recent years, the Center has continued working with state and local policymakers in expanding and improving teen pregnancy prevention programs.

In 1997, with the impetus of the United Nations Kyoto environmental conference, PRC received a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to organize a series of programs for members of Congress and staff on the relationship between population growth and increased greenhouse gas emissions. In 1999, the Center received a one million dollar four-year matching grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to organize 20 programs per year for Congressional staff, state and local policymakers and key constituencies on the impact of population growth on health and the environment.

The Center also supports the decennial census and the collection and analysis of demographic data. In preparation for the 1990 and 2000 Censuses, the Center worked closely with regional area foundations to involve state and local organizations in an effort to improve the accuracy of the census and reduce the undercount of minorities and underserved populations. In 2001 and 2002, the Center received funding from the Ford Foundation to educate policymakers about the important demographic data collected by the “long form” used in the decennial census.

The work of the Center has been generously supported by small private donations and foundation grants. Over the years, it has received major support from the Ford Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the W. W. Kellogg Foundation, the John and Catherine MacArthur Foundation, the Educational Foundation of America, and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

In 1989, PRC moved its New York City office to Princeton, NJ and closed its San Francisco Office. The Center’s Washington office has been in continuous operation since 1975. Jane S. DeLung, who served as President for nearly 20 years, retired in 2007 and was succeeded by Robert J. Walker. M. Faith Mitchell, the Chair of the Center’s Board of Directors, succeeded Dr. Wayne Holtzman in 2004, who served as chair since 1999.

Board of Directors

M. Faith Mitchell, Ph.D. (Chairman), Grantmakers in Health

Robert A. Diamond, M.D. (Vice Chairman), Minneapolis, MN

The Hon. Thomas C. Sawyer (Vice Chairman), State Senator, Akron, Ohio

Jane S. De Lung (President and Treasurer), Population Resource Center

The Honorable Anthony C. Beilenson, former Member of Congress

Richard Elliot Benedick, Joint Global Change Research Institute

Julie DaVanzo, Ph.D, The RAND Corporation

The Honorable Danny Davis, U.S. House of Representatives

William A. Davis, Jr., Esq., Davis Developments , Inc.

Robert Engelman, Vice President for Programs, Worldwatch Institute

Oscar Harkavy, Ph.D., New Rochelle, NY

The Honorable Rush Holt, U.S. House of Representatives

Matt James, Senior Vice President, Kaiser Family Foundation

Elise F. Jones, Ph.D. (Secretary), Newtown, PA

The Honorable Mark Steven Kirk, U.S. House of Representatives

Jeffrey Stewart, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Michael Teitelbaum, Ph.D., Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Charles F. Westoff, Ph.D., Princeton University

PRC Staff

Jane S. De Lung

President

Jane S. De Lung has served as President of the Population Resource Center for 20 years. She has 35 years of experience in demographic research in the health and human services fields, public policy, and family planning. Prior to joining the Center, Ms. De Lung was President of Public Solutions where her work focused on the impact of population change on health and welfare programs. She was responsible for population forecasting, long-range planning and data system design. Her experience also includes serving as Assistant Commissioner for Finance at the Chicago Department of Health. As Vice-President of Illinois Family Planning Council, Ms. De Lung supervised 72 family planning clinics throughout the county. Ms. De Lung has written numerous articles on family planning and population. She holds a B.A. from Emory University and an M.A. from Roosevelt University. Ms. De Lung will provide overall management oversight to the project.

jdelung@prcdc.org

Juliane Baron

Director of Washington DC Office

Juliane Baron, is the director of the Population Resource Center DC office. Before joining the Population Resource Center, Ms. Baron was the Deputy Director of the Social Policy Action Network

Previously, Ms. Baron worked in the Texas Legislature, first as a legislative assistant and later as a committee clerk for the House of Representatives Committee on Pensions and Investments. Ms. Baron also was the project manager of Welfare, Children and Families: A Three-City Study at Johns Hopkins University.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a master’s in public affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.

jbaron@prcdc.org

Namita Koppa

Program Officer

Prior to joining PRC in 2008, Namita was employed by Grameen Foundation USA and the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, where she conducted GIS research and community outreach relating to state water quality. She completed internships with the Jane Goodall Institute’s Africa Programs and the World Resources Institute, where she gained first-hand experience in international environmental development.

Her interests in poverty alleviation, issues of migration, environmental justice, and women’s socioeconomic empowerment spring from formative community development experiences in Karnataka, India; Leeds, UK; and the southeastern United States. She is a 2003 graduate of Duke University, a recipient of the Benjamin N. Duke Leadership Award, and a 2005-2006 Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar.

nkoppa@prcdc.org

Larry Von Wilcher II

Program Associate

Larry Von Wilcher II, program associate, came to the Population Resource Center with experience working at social service and health centers in the Washington D.C. region. Mr. Wilcher previously worked as an intern at George Washington University Cancer Center in Washington, D.C., where he provided support and crisis intervention to patients and families dealing with cancer. At Annandale Assisted Living in Annandale, Va., he was employed as an intern who designed and carried out support groups for seniors. And at Lutheran Social Services in Falls Church, Va., Mr. Wilcher created individual plans for refugees and asylees aimed at making them self-sufficient.

A graduate of George Mason University College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences in Fairfax, Va., Mr. Wilcher earned a bachelor's degree in social work in December 2006. There, he also volunteered as treasurer of the Student Social Work Association.

lwilcher@prcdc.org

Stephanie Nazario

Financial Administrator

Stephanie Nazario has been with the Center since 1992. Ms. Nazario has earned her degree in Finance from Rider University. In addition, Ms. Nazario is in charge of Human Resources and other administrative duties. She has extensive work experience in Non-Profit financial management. She has also worked as an auditor for corporate financial institutions

Annual Reports and Audits

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Photo by: Maciej Dakowicz
(for Need Magazine) Email: www.needmagazine.com