To the extent President Bush has any legacy beyond Iraq, it may very well be the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (FBCI). Originally established by Executive Order in late January 2001, the FBCI overcame initial critics and slowly but quietly has gone about the business of expanding its influence in government over the last six years. There are now about 70 employees across a number of federal agencies who work with the FBCI to coordinate and execute programs - a group that Jay Hein, the new Director of FBCI, refers to as the "tip of the compassionate arrow."

I spoke with Hein on the phone yesterday morning about the FBCI's newest initiative: a series of roundtable discussions his office is calling "Compassion in Action." Every month the FBCI plans to bring together a group of people across a wide spectrum (from activists to think tankers to private philanthropists) to focus on a particular issue. The first roundtable convenes this morning in Washington D.C. to discuss "Grassroots Solutions for Reducing Youth Violence." Robert Woodson, founder of the Center for Neighborhood Enterprise, will give the keynote address and talk about his organization's Violence Free Zone Initiative in cities across the country.

Next month's roundtable will cover the topic of combating malaria in Africa. Last June President Bush announced a $1.2 billion initiative to fight the disease, and Hein says the FBCI is looking to match that amount in private contributions and to continue building a high level public-private partnership.

In March, the Compassion in Action roundtable will tackle the issue of reintegrating prisoners into society and decreasing recidivism. Hein noted that 700,000 prisoners are released every year (primarily into 65 major metros across the country) so the issue is of great concern at the local, state and federal level. The roundtable will include the release of results from a three-year "demonstration project" covering 4,500 prisoners in eleven cities. Hein said the project was a good example of how the government can work as a type of "venture capitalist" by locating and expanding successful, innovative community-based programs in cooperation with the help of foundations and the private sector.

As the interview came to an end, I asked Hein what he thought was the FBCI's greatest accomplishment over the last six years. He said that the office's biggest successes have been mostly behind the scenes in changing the way the government works: sixteen federal rules and regulations have been revised over the last six years to create a "more level playing field" for faith-based organizations to compete for federal funding. The result, according to Hein, is a "healthier marketplace" with more innovation and a more robust working relationship between the public and private sectors.