Giving minorities a political primer
Program aims to make government accessible
By Alison O'Leary Murray, Globe Correspondent | July 8, 2004

Since immigrating to the United States from Colombia 16 years ago, Jany Finkelstein has sought ways to aid other minority residents.

She put aside pursuing a PhD to teach science, then scaled back that responsibility to become minority outreach coordinator at the Framingham Community Charter School.

Earlier this year, she took the next step, becoming one of the first 100 graduates of a new six-week training session, the Commonwealth Legislative Seminar, that aims to make state government accessible to a more diverse population.

Getting help from a government official was unthinkable to most people in her native country, Finkelstein said. Here, her primer on Beacon Hill has buttressed a conviction that education is the best way for immigrants and minorities to succeed.

"Perhaps [the seminar] reinforced to me the importance of educating minorities, whether on political issues or the education of their children," said Finkelstein, of Newton.