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Understanding and Surviving: Community Economic Development in Kansas. Carol A. Gould Kansas Center for Rural Initiatives Kansas State University. KCRI Mission.
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Understanding and Surviving: Community Economic Development in Kansas Carol A. Gould Kansas Center for Rural Initiatives Kansas State University
KCRI Mission The Kansas Center for Rural Initiatives (KCRI) links the resources of Kansas State University with rural communities in Kansas. KCRI serves the needs of communities and supports the rural development activities of K-State faculty, staff, and students, by accomplishing the following objectives:
Serving as a point of entry to K-State for policymakers, practitioners, and other institutions interested in community and rural development. • Facilitating communication and collaboration among community and rural development research, extension, and teaching programs at K-State. • Identifying current and emerging community needs and opportunities for K-State faculty staff and students to work with Kansas communities in mutually beneficial collaborative partnerships. • Participating in collaborative rural development efforts with other educational institutions, government agencies, and regional, state, and local organizations.
Why are some rural communities coping with fundamental restructuring when others seem to have surrendered to crisis?
For More Information… • Economic Research Service http://www.ers.usda.gov/ • U.S. Census Bureau http://www.census.gov/ • Bureau of Economic Analysis http://www.bea.doc.gov/ • KCCED http://www.ku.edu/pri/kcced/
20 Clues to Rural Community Survival Milan Wall Vicki Luther
20 Clues 1.Evidence of Community Pride • Successful communities are showplaces of community care and attention. • Emphasis on Quality in Business and Community Life • People in successful communities believe that something worth doing is worth doing right.
20 Clues 3. Willingness to Invest in the Future • Some of the brick and mortar investments are most apparent, but communities also invest in their future in other ways. • Participatory Approach to Community Decision Making • Power is deliberately shared and leaders build consensus for what they want to do.
20 Clues 5. Cooperative Community Spirit • Successful rural communities devote more attention to cooperative activities than to fighting over what should be done and by whom. • Realistic Appraisal of Future Opportunities • Successful communities build on their assets and minimize their weaknesses.
20 Clues 7. Awareness of Competitive Positioning • The thriving communities know who the competition is and so do the businesses in towns. • Knowledge of the Physical Environment • Successful communities have a long-term approach to both environmental preservation and economic development.
20 Clues 9. Active Economic Development Program • Successful communities have an organized and active approach to economic development that depends on public and private sector resources working hand-in-hand.
20 Clues 10. Deliberate Transition of Power to a Younger Generation of Leaders • Young leadership is more the rule than the exception in thriving rural communities. 11. Acceptance of Women in Leadership Roles • Women hold positions of leadership and those roles extend beyond the traditional positions.
20 Clues 12. Strong Belief in and Support of Education • Rural community leaders are aware of the importance of schools and life-long learning that puts education at the center of many community activities. 13. Problem-Solving Approach to Providing Health Care • Local health care is a common concern but strategies should be targeted depending on community needs.
20 Clues 14. Strong Multi-Generational Family Orientation • These are family oriented communities that include younger as well as older generations and people new to the community. 15. Strong Presence of Traditional Institutions that are Integral to Community Life • Churches are often the strongest force but other types of institutions such as newspapers hospitals, and schools are important also.
20 Clues 16. Sound and Well-Maintained Infrastructure • Thriving rural communities understand the importance of physical infrastructures and efforts are made to maintain and improve them. • Careful Use of Fiscal Resources • Frugality is a way of life in successful small communities and expenditures are made carefully and seen as investments in the future
20 Clues 18. Sophisticated Use of Information Resources • Rural community leaders recognize and use information resources outside the community. 19. Willingness to Seek Help from the Outside • Thriving communities willingly seek help from outside resources.
20 Clues 20. Conviction that, in the Long Run, You Have to Do it Yourself • Although outside help is sought when appropriate, it is nevertheless true that thriving small towns believe that their destiny is in their own hands.
Lesson Learned Success is dependent on characteristics that community leaders and active citizens can control.
For More Information… • Kansas Center for Rural Initiatives 785-532-6868 cgould@ksu.edu www.ksu.edu/kcri • Heartland Center for Leadership Development 800-927-1115 or 402-474-7667 info@heartlandcenter.info941 "O" Street, Suite 920Lincoln, Nebraska 68508Fax: 402-474-7672 http://www.heartlandcenter.info/
