Peter Cove

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Biographical Information

"Peter Cove... is one of the nation's leading advocates for private solutions to welfare dependency, ex-offender reentry initiatives and for meeting the needs of underserved, marginalized populations....

"After holding key posts in New York City municipal government, he worked for The Community Action Agency in Boston, where he developed grass-roots health, housing and education programs. Later he served as a consultant with Manpower Assistance Project, Inc., a private company partially funded by the Ford Foundation to create community employment systems. He was also a program officer at the New World Foundation in New York City, funding innovative programs in civil rights and education.

"With a developing expertise in jobs creation as the solution to social imbalances, Mr. Cove became Director of the Manhattan Project for Wildcat Service Corp., a program geared to the hard-core unemployable. From 1976 to 1983, he was President of Transitional Employment Enterprises. Inc., a private corporation that specialized in placing welfare recipients, the mentally retarded, and the physically disabled in jobs. In experimenting with alternate approaches to training, he created millions of dollars' worth of private-sector investment for what would otherwise have been a fully government-funded endeavor.

"As the founder of America Works in 1984, Mr. Cove has worked to link private-sector investment and employment with welfare reform....

"In 2005, Mr. Cove founded the Work First Foundation...

"In 1995 The Entrepreneur of The Year Institute gave Mr. Cove its distinguished Socially Responsible Entrepreneur of The Year award for his achievements with America Works. Born in 1940, Mr. Cove holds a BA in sociology from Northeastern University. He is married to Dr. Lee Bowes, Chief Executive Officer of America Works. Mr. Cove is the father of five children. He lives in New York City. "

• Trustee, The Equity Project