Heartland Center for Leadership Development

E-Visions From the Heartland--December 2011

2011-12-19T09:02:00.000-08:00

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs066/1102873944558/archive/1108882772942.html

Happy Holidays from the Heartland Center

For several years, we've had an account at the Heartland Center that we call the Community Leadership Initiative, or CLI, which is our fancy term for "scholarship fund." The fund is comprised of donations from friends of the Heartland Center who want to support a portion of the cost of community leaders' attendance at our training events. These scholarships typically provide a discount option for participation in our annual training program, Helping Small Towns Succeed, which we started in 1992 with support of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

In some years, such as this one, a third party provides scholarship support, as Rural Partners of Michigan did for in-state participants at our Helping Small Towns Succeed institute in South Haven, Michigan. In many years, we don't enjoy the kind of support we got in Michigan in 2011, and then we are on our own to offer a limited number of scholarships for participants whose budgets can't cover the entire registration fee.

So, we are making our annual pitch for your support for the Heartland Center's Community Leadership Initiative. Our pledge to you is that all of the dollars donated will go into the scholarship fund, which is an account separate from our general fund. Further, as a 501(c)(3), we can assure you that your donation will be tax-deductible. Your donation is just a "click" away by using the PayPal button below. You can also send a check payable to Heartland Center CLI and mail it to us at 3110 N. 40th Street, Lincoln, NE 68504. Or phone our office toll-free at 800-927-1115 and provide us with your credit card information. Every donor will receive a personal thank you note that you can use for tax reporting purposes.

Thanks for your support. And we wish you a joyous Holiday and Happy New Year!

Milan Wall
Co-Director

Vicki Luther
Co-Director

People Attraction Efforts Paying Off
for Nebraska Community

Atkinson, Nebraska, located in the north central part of the state, became involved in HomeTown Competitiveness in 2005 as part of Holt County HTC. During that time, the county worked together on the four Pillars of HTC that include leadership development, energizing entrepreneurs, building community philanthropy and engaging and attracting young people back to their community. The following stories detail two successes in Atkinson when young adults returned.

Investing in Rural Nebraska

It was never his dream to move back to his hometown. So what brought him back to his roots? "The biggest part was familiar faces." Knowing the people around him helped Miles Garwood make the decision to return to Atkinson after only four years away.

Miles grew up in Atkinson, graduating in 2002. He moved back in 2006 from Rapid City, where he attended the National American University (NAU) and received a degree in Business Finance. The Garwood family has been in the Atkinson area dating back to Miles' great-grandfather.

Miles married Jena (Lien) Garwood in 2008. Jena works at West Holt Memorial Hospital in Atkinson. The couple enjoys the rural life very much. They have calves and horses on an acreage outside of Atkinson. Miles also serves on the Holt County Fair Board and the West Holt Memorial Hospital Foundation.

Miles started the Atkinson office of Waddell and Reed, originally founded in 1937 in Kansas City, from scratch. The Atkinson Waddell and Reed office handles investments as well as life, health and long-term care insurance. Miles currently has clients in 13 states across the nation.

As a college student, Miles served an internship with Waddell and Reed and was asked to become a licensed broker. He started working in Rapid City and soon realized that all his contacts were in Atkinson and other rural Nebraska areas. This inspired Miles to move back to Atkinson. He currently employs one other full time employee.

What does Miles feel is his greatest company achievement? Simply stated, surviving! The current trend shows around a 90% dropout rate of new brokers. Miles is proud to be one of the 10% left standing. He greatly appreciates that people are willing to give him the ability to work for them especially through the tough stock market situation. Perseverance is the key!

Craftsman Creek Studio and Gallery

Travis Tobin is the owner of Craftsman Creek Studio and Gallery in Atkinson. Travis is from Winner, SD. Upon high school graduation he attended the University of South Dakota for two years and South Dakota State University for one year. After college, he started working construction for three years with his brother. He is married to Erin Tobin who is a Nurse Practitioner at West Holt Memorial Hospital in Atkinson. They have a son, Gus, who is almost 2 years old. Travis and Erin moved to Atkinson in October 2011. Travis and Erin enjoy the rural life, which they missed in Sioux Falls. They have found that the Atkinson community has been very welcoming and nice.

Western Plains Design Studio was established in 1990 in Sioux Falls, SD. Owner/designer/craftsman Jerry Hauk relocated to Scottsbluff, NE in 1992. He spent nine years designing and building more than 2000 pieces of furniture. He moved back to Sioux Falls in 2001, where he established Craftsman Creek Studio and Gallery. Jerry continued to design and build free-form and organic furniture until November of 2010, when the business was turned over to Travis Tobin.

Travis trained with Jerry for nearly three years, and the past two years completed the vast majority of the designing and building. Following his purchase of Craftsman Creek, Travis moved the business to Atkinson, NE, where he has opened his shop. He has hundreds of slabs for you to choose from to create your one of a kind furniture piece.

Woodworking is at its finest at Craftsman Creek, where 95% of his work comes from custom orders and his work with designers. Many pieces have been sent to tourists across the nation. Travis creates a wide variety of furniture ranging from rocking chairs to tables to fire place mantels. He does admit that he doesn't find joy in building kitchen cabinets. Travis feels that the greatest accomplishment was the creation of a table for South Dakota Game Fish and Parks. It was made from a single slab of wood that had a 66 inch diameter and is now housed in Rapid City. Most of the wood inventory has been shipped from Sioux Falls but he has recently obtained some wood from a local tree service.

Craftsman Creek is located at 107 South Main in Atkinson. The website is http://www.craftsmancreek.biz

Articles reprinted with permission from the Holt County Economic Development Agency

Heartland Hints Webinar Series
Focuses on 5 Strategies for Active Economic Development

Strategy No. 4: Capturing Outside Dollars

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development invites you to participate in our newest offering of webinars entitled "Heartland Hints--Live Online Training for Busy People." This webinar series will covers Strategies for Active Economic Development. The next webinar will focus on the topic, Capturing Outside Dollars.

Each webinar in this series lasts only 30 minutes, enough time to enjoy a lunch break while participating in an online learning atmosphere designed to allow participation through activities and peer learning.

The Heartland Center has a 25-year history and is known as a leader in interactive workshop facilitation. Previous webinars have focused on board effectiveness, strengthening leadership, appreciative inquiry and myths about the future of small towns. The Center also trains other organizations to conduct their own interactive webinars.

Registration is limited to the first 100 people who sign up, so register today! Each webinar cost $35.00 but if you purchase the final two for $70.00, you will receive links to the recordings from the previous three webinars. We appreciate your interest in this webinar series. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact

Kurt Mantonya.

Get More Information and Register

Invitation to Subscribe to the Community Development Society
Vanguard newsletter: Free!

The Community Development Society's (CDS) Vanguard newsletter is available for free to non-members. The e-newsletter not only contains information about CDS, but a timely feature called CDS UpFront that contains links to items of interest and resources for community developers.

If you or your friends and colleagues are interested in subscribing, please send contact information to Lori Landry (lori@assnoffices.com). If you send the contact information of a friend or colleague, CDS will send an invitation letter to secure permission.

You can view a copy of Vanguard at http://www.comm-dev.org/index.php/publications/vanguard A few of the best things in life are free, and this is one of them!

About the Heartland Center

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is an independent nonprofit organization developing local leadership that responds to the challenges of the future. The Heartland Center is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska with a field office in Kerrville, Texas.

Heartland Center for Leadership Development
3110 N. 40th St. Suite A
Lincoln, NE 68504
(402) 474-7667
www.heartlandcenter.info

Webinar Series 5 Strategies for Active Economic Development

2011-10-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development invites you to participate in the the final four webinars utilizing the Center's publication "5 Strategies for Active Economic Development." The first webinar covered strategy number one, "Stopping Economic Leakage" with participants from across the U.S. and Australia in attendance!

Each webinar in this series lasts only 30 minutes, enough time to enjoy a lunch break while participating in an online learning atmosphere designed to allow participation through webinar activities and peer learning.

Traditional Heartland Center webinars run for one hour but realizing the busy times you have, we are bolstering our offerings to include these 30-minute sessions.

The Heartland Center has a 25-year history and is known for our interactive workshop facilitation, our annual institutes, strategic planning, town hall meetings and now our webinars. Previous webinars have focused on board effectiveness, strengthening local leadership, appreciative inquiry and myths about the future of small towns. The Center also actively trains other organizations to conduct their own webinars.

You can register for one webinar for $35.00 (US), or save 20% by registering for the rest of the series by clicking on the link below. You can also receive more information about the dates and times for the webinars by clicking on the "get more information" link. Registration is limited to the first 100 people, so register today. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact Kurt Mantonya.

Get more information

Register Now!

140 Characters Conference: Small Town

2011-09-20T08:45:00.000-07:00

I am delighted to be a part of this year's 140 Characters Conference: Small Town held in Hutchinson, Kansas, September 20, 2011. The link below will take you to the PowerPoint of the presentation. Nine Tips for Successful Social Media Marketing that we learned during or promotion of webinars and getting the message out about them.

9 Tips for Successful Social Media Marketing

2011 Community Capitals Institute--Register Today

2011-07-11T12:42:00.000-07:00

Contact

Kurt Mantonya
Heartland Center for Leadership Development

402-474-7667

When

Monday October 10, 2011 at 8:00 AM CDT
-to-
Tuesday October 11, 2011 at 12:00 PM CDT

Add to my calendar

Where

Embassy Suites Des Moines--On the River
101 East Locust Street
Des Moines, IA 50309

Driving Directions

2011 Community Capitals Institute:

Community Capitals and Measurement;

Evaluating System Change and Sustainability

Monday October 10, 2011 at 8:00 a.m. to Tuesday October 11, 2011 at 12:00 p.m. in Des Moines, IA.

Held in Conjunction with the World Food Prize

Are you currently using the Community Capitals Framework in your work? If so, we would like to learn about your approach and methods. This year's Community Capitals Framework (CCF) Institute will feature several sessions on data collection, coding and analysis using the CCF in addition to small group sessions created by participants' work.

We are particularly interested in how the Community Capitals Framework is being using to understand the impact of community change work, leadership development, climate change, sustainability and community readiness and resiliency. We are also interested in strategies to engage communities and organizations using the Community Capitals Framework. Finally, we want to bring great minds together to discuss strategies for collecting and analyzing data that can help us better under successful community and system-level change using the CCF.

If you are interested in participating in the program, please send an abstract of your work (of up to 500 words) along with keywords to Mary Emery by August 15, 2011.

Registration for this year's conference is $150.00 USD which includes refreshments and a catered dinner of local foods on Monday night. Registration and payment can be completed at the bottom of this announcement.

About the World Food Prize

The World Food Prize is the foremost international award recognizing -- without regard to race, religion, nationality, or political beliefs -- the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.

The Prize recognizes contributions in any field involved in the world food supply -- food and agriculture science and technology, manufacturing, marketing, nutrition, economics, poverty alleviation, political leadership and the social sciences.

The World Food Prize emphasizes the importance of a nutritious and sustainable food supply for all people. By honoring those who have worked successfully toward this goal, the Prize calls attention to what has been done to improve global food security and what can be accomplished in the future.

Hotel Registration Information

A block of rooms have been reserved for October 9, 2011-October 10, 2011. The special room rate of $145.00 USD/night will be available until September 9th or until the group block is sold out, whichever comes first. Booking a reservation is simple. Click on this link to be directed to the reservation page for the Community Capitals Institute.

Check out my @constantcontact newsletter

2011-06-29T08:40:00.000-07:00

2011 Community Capitals Institute:

Community Capitals and Measurement;

Evaluating System Change and Sustainability

Monday October 10, 2011 at 8:00 a.m. to Tuesday October 11, 2011 at 12:00 p.m. in Des Moines, IA.

Held in Conjunction with the World Food Prize

If you are interested in participating in the program, please send an abstract of your work (of up to 500 words) along with keywords to Mary Emery memery@iastate.edu by August 15, 2011.

Registration information will be available soon at http://www.heartlandcenter.info/

Also watch for upcoming webinars on CCF.

About the World Food Prize

Helping Small Towns Succeed

2011-04-12T09:21:00.000-07:00

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is pleased to announce that this year's Helping Small Towns Succeed Institute will be held June 6-8, 2011 in South Haven, Michigan.

Helping Small Towns Succeed is the longest running program of the Heartland Center for Leadership Development and covers the range of the Center's focus and expertise with small communities. It has been attended by more than 1,000 people since its introduction in 1992. The content is updated annually and the conference is offered once a year for the Center's national audience. The full institute brochure can be downloaded here.

Monday June 6, 2011

Clues to Community Survival (Afternoon Session)
Bring citizens together to help identify community strengths and opportunities, and create strategies for long- and short-term aspirations and results.

* Explore the characteristics of thriving small towns· Learn techniques for applying this information to back home situations
* Gain a tested, conceptual framework for community development
* Share ideas about community projects within that framework

Appreciative Inquiry (Evening Session)
This positive approach to revitalization is gaining worldwide recognition as a powerful tool for moving communities forward by examining past success.

* Understand the theory of appreciative inquiry
* Explore the techniques and applications of appreciative inquiry as a planning tool
* Learn about the Center's model for a Town Hall meeting using appreciative inquiry
* Practice the four elements of appreciative inquiry
* Consider back home applications of the Town Hall meeting model

Tuesday June 7, 2011

Building Social Capital (Morning Session)
Unleash the power of social capital in your community. The techniques in this session will help you strengthen your community through place-based and virtual networks.

* Learn ways to utilize social media to benefit your community
* Problem-solve on how to change projects to address building social capital
* Analyze back home projects that do or do not address building social capital
* Learn about a survey designed to measure social capital and other community capacities

Branding Your Community (Afternoon Session)
Is your community marketing its attractions to its fullest potential? This workshop will familiarize you with the concept of branding your community and offer tools for effective marketing.

* Use a brand creation approach to community identity
* Apply your brand creation to community identity
* Explore tips for creating community brands
* Market your community

Leadership Styles and Practices (Evening Session)
Features strategies for recruiting and motivating leaders. Personal assessment instrument on leadership skills and styles.

* Review the historical theories of leadership
* Learn a model for practical leadership development
* Test the model within a self-assessment on your leadership skills
* Discuss case studies of community leadership challenges
* Focus on the recruitment of new leaders in a community setting

Wednesday June 8, 2011

HomeTown Competitiveness (HTC) (Concurrent Morning Session)
HTC is rapidly becoming a fixture in community development theory and practice throughout the U.S. This framework relies on four key pillars that can be found or nurtured in every community. This session will be held concurrently with the session on Strengthening Group Effectiveness.

* Build local leadership to mobilize and organize diverse community capacity that can sustain community and economic development
* Expand community philanthropy to use charitable giving and endowment building as a tool for sustaining homegrown community economic development
* Energize entrepreneurs to nurture and network residents who want to start or expand a business
* Engage youth and young people to cultivate a sense of belonging, investment and community involvement so that remaining or returning home is seen as an attractive option

Strengthening Group Effectiveness (Concurrent Morning Session)
Managing effective meetings may seem simple, yet it's often a challenging job for community development practitioners, whose role includes leading diverse groups to consensus and beyond. This session will be held concurrently with the session on HomeTown Competitiveness.

* Review elements of group effectiveness
* Understand the stages of group development
* Learn two major group functions and how they are played out
* Review the characteristics of effective groups

Registration Information
Register either as an individual or as a team online by mail, phone or fax. Registrations will be accepted on a first-come first-served basis, with limited seating available. As the number of participants is limited, registrations accompanied by full payment will receive priority. Full payment is required before training begins.

Workshop Registration Fee $650 per attendee. Community Team rates of $1,800 for three attendees and $2,300 for four attendees will be applied. Additional registrations beyond four from a community are $475 per attendee due by May 9, 2011.

Late Registrations - Add $100 per attendee to the registration fee if received after May 9, 2011.
Cancellation Policy - The registration fee less a $50 service charge is refundable if the cancellation is received by May 9, 2011. Paid participants may substitute another person in their place with advanced notice.

Online Registration opens April 18, 2011

http://web2.msue.msu.edu/hsts/registration.cfm

Credit card payments must be made through the online registration system

To register by phone call (517) 353-3175

Helping Small Towns Succeed: Tools for Community Survival

About the Heartland Center

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is an independent nonprofit organization developing local leadership that responds to the challenges of the future. The Heartland Center is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska with a field office in Kerrville, Texas.

Heartland Center for Leadership Development

3110 N. 40th St. Suite A

Lincoln, NE 68504

(402) 474-7667

www.heartlandcenter.info

Home Town Competitivess Video from Indiana

2011-03-25T08:43:00.000-07:00

Challenge Number 3, The Rapids of Change

2011-01-18T08:39:00.000-08:00

For my posting this week on the Eight Challenges Facing Community Leaders, we examine how rapidly change is occurring in our society and in community leadership. With the advances in information technology and being able to get information on a moments notice, how will community leaders keep up with change?

The late futurist Robert Theobald, who was among the founders of the Heartland Center, wrote that leaders today are like someone riding a boat through a rapids, where little is known about the dangers that lay ahead. The point is that change today comes at an increasingly faster pace and with unpredictable complications, and the patterns of the past are no longer reliable predictors of the future. As Theobald put it, today's leaders need to learn how to "avoid being surprised by unexpected events." Only through some locally driven "future forecasting" will the community leader keep on top of fundamental changes affecting the community and the region.

Madates from Above

2011-01-10T09:39:00.001-08:00

Today, I am posting the second challenge facing new leaders from our publication, "Eight Challenges Facing New Leaders." This challenge, facing mandates from above is about state, federal and local mandates that create headaches for community leadership.

Challenge No. 2: Mandates from Above

Unfunded mandates from state or federal governments further complicate the fiscal challenges that community leaders face, as they are compelled to institute or continue programs for which no additional financing is forthcoming. Yet, refusing to accept such mandates may endanger support for other programs. The community may not object to the program rationale for a particular mandate, but without the accompanying financial support the result is another complication in the tasks that community leaders must complete. To get their message back up the chain of bureaucratic control, community leaders must join with others in similar circumstances to increase the impact of the local perspective.

The Future of Small Towns | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural

2011-01-05T08:42:00.000-08:00

The Future of Small Towns | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural

8 Challenges Facing New Leaders

2011-01-04T09:39:00.000-08:00

To kick off the New Year, the Heartland Center will be posting one challenge each week from its publication "Eight Challenges Facing Community Leaders." As you read through the list and think of these challenges, I ask you, what other challenges to community leaders face? Please feel free to add your comments to this discussion and let's get the dialogue going.

Challenge No. 1: Doing More with Less

Today's leaders often discover that community needs and expectations far exceed available financial resources. And for every taxpayer who clamors for tax cuts, another wants more tax supported services. As a result, community leaders find themselves searching for innovative ways to squeeze more from each available dollar or to increase revenues through innovative financing schemes. Only through careful planning, with a realistic eye on future possibilities and a creative approach to fiscal management, will local leaders be able to walk the fine line that defines "doing more with less."

A Christmas List for Small, Rural Towns

2010-12-22T09:23:00.000-08:00

This blog post is from Mike Kntson's ReImagine Rural blog. Mike asked me as well as others involved in rural and community development. Enjoy the wish list and please feel free to post your ideas as well.

December 22nd, 2010 by Mike Knutson

Last weekend, Jodi (my wife) and I ventured up to Fort Sisseton for a “Frontier Christmas” with some good friends. The historic fort sits out on the wide open plains of Northeastern South Dakota. Each holiday season, they host this nostalgic event, complete with sleigh rides, holiday caroling, and demonstration by period reenactors. It was a lot of fun, and in my opinion, the antithesis of Christmas shopping in Sioux Falls.

While look back at Christmas traditions from years gone by, I couldn’t help but think of my Christmas wish list for small, rural communities.

My Christmas List

Tops on my list is a purchase, rehab, resell housing program based on the model used by the Northeast Housing Initiative (NHI) of Allen, NE. I’ve written about this program previously. In addition to improving the overall quality of the housing stock in rural communities, it helps make home purchases in rural communities more affordable to young families.

Many of the rural towns that I drive through are blessed to have lower housing costs. Unfortunately, many of the cheaper homes also require considerable renovations. The level of work needed sometimes makes financing the purchase and rehab difficult - especially for young families. A purchase, rehab, resell program like that of NHI brings together the renovation and the financing in a process that eliminates many of those barriers. For that reason, it is at the top of my Christmas List for small, rural towns.

As I wrote a few additional ideas down, I thought, “Wouldn’t it be fun to see what other people would put on their lists?” For that reason, I fired off a quick e-mail to several friends asking, “What would you put on a Christmas list for your hometown?” Below are a few of their responses.

More Christmas Wishes

Kurt Mantonya, Senior Associate at the Heartland Center for Leadership – The one item that is on the top of my wish list for rural communities is working on ways to retain youth and welcome newcomers to these communities. I remember when I was a kid, I heard the old saying “get your education and get out of here, there is nothing for you in this town.” To this day, I long to find a way to move back home because that is where I want to raise my kids. I didn’t have the x-box, swim lessons, karate, 24 hour shopping and other amenities that urban communities have but I survived and have many fond memories of my childhood and would not change a thing if I could.

When I do get the chance to go back home, I “scold” those same people that told me to get out and just come back here to visit. This sends such a wrong message to our youth, the same youth who, like me, would love to move back home after getting some world experience. In order to retain and grow population we must reverse this message and encourage those youth to return and find ways to attract newcomers.

Joel Price, Superintendent of the Faulkton (SD) School District – Number one on my wish list for Faulkton is the ability to build more affordable single and multiple family dwellings in Faulk County to fill a need that is evident and necessary for further growth. (Note: Joel’s an overachiever. He actually sent me a top 10 list for Faulkton. I think he’s been thinking about it for a while!)

Lori Hintz, Executive Director of BASEC — This year, BASEC, wants an updated website for our organization that is user friendly, informative and something that really increases and improves our communication to others.

Sheri Booms Holmes, Communications Director of the West Central Initiative Foundation – Fergus Falls’ Christmas list includes 100 jobs or more each year for the next five years, and a million-dollar angel venture fund, to help create and sustain a healthy economy. Speaking of health, city leaders hope to find an expanded river walk winding its way around the base of the Christmas tree, as part of an initiative to provide more awareness and opportunities for physical activity in the area. Fergus Falls actually has 16 items on its wish list and you can read them all at the Forward Fergus Falls Blog.

It’s a good start…

I think my friends have some pretty good ideas, but I’d like to see that list expand a bit. What’s on your Christmas list for your small town?

Visions from the Heartland--December 2010

2010-12-21T09:10:00.000-08:00

The latest edition of Visions from the Heartland has just been published. In this issue we have reflected on 2010 and all of the changes and achievements we have been a part of. Learn about our upcoming webinar series as well as our training on conducting effective webinars. Finally, you can download Strengthening the Rural-Suburban-Urban Connection for free! All of this and more can be found at http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs066/1102873944558/archive/1104055498633.html

Have a joyous holiday season

2010-12-15T13:45:00.001-08:00

On the Eve of a White House Conference, Tribal Leaders Meet at USDA

Group Discusses How to Grow Rural Nebraska

2010-11-15T09:30:00.000-08:00

Group Discusses How to Grow Rural Nebraska

Sixth Community Capitals Framework Institute: Using the Community Capitals Framework for Assessment, Community Organizing and Evaluation

2010-09-13T14:17:00.000-07:00

The Sixth Community Capitals Framework Institute, sponsored by the Heartland Center for Leadership Development, will focus broadly on issues related to mapping impact and understanding change processes employing the Community Capitals Framework.

Who should attend? We invite those using the CCF in their practice, research and evaluation work as well as those who want to know more about the framework and how they might use it. Those who attend will have an opportunity to share their work and experiences with others and to develop strategies for applying the CCF to current research, practice and evaluation efforts.

The Institute will start Friday, October 15, at 8 a.m. and end at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 16. To register, please contact Kurt Mantonya at kmantonya@heartlandcenter.info. Please also share the invitation to participate with others who have an interest in community and organizational vitality.

Your registration fee of $68 will include materials, one lunch and a local foods dinner at. The hotel offers a hot breakfast.

Location
The Sixth Community Capitals Framework Institute-Using the Community Capitals Framework for Assessment, Community Organizing and Evaluation will be held at Country Inn and Suites, 2605 S.E. 16th St., Ames, Iowa.

Participants are responsible for making their own hotel reservations. A block of lodging rooms is being held under the name "Community Capitals Workshop" until October 4 at $75 per night. To make your reservations contact:

Country Inn & Suites
2605 S.E. 16th St.
Ames, IA 50010
(515) 233-3935, (515) 233-1515 fax http://www.countryinns.com/amesia

Special Requirements We will make every effort to accommodate any special needs. Please list any special dietary or accessibility requirements:

Visions from the Heartland--September 2010

2010-09-02T13:53:00.000-07:00

News from the Heartland Center

The Heartland Center is continuing to add to its international reputation for high-quality interactive learning in traditional face-to-face workshops with equally valued interactive webinars in the age of on-line learning. In October we will complete our second series of webinars in this calendar year, and soon we will announce a three-part series starting later in October and ending in December. Our intent is to deliver four three-part webinar series annually, plus occasional one-time offerings on new subjects that we think may be of special interest to our workshop and webinar participants in the U.S. and abroad.

In the current webinar series on Leadership Development and Board Effectiveness, we've had as many as 129 participants in 13 states joining us for a one-hour, live session. Participants get advance reading materials and the opportunity, on-line, to join in at least three interactive learning sessions. Once each webinar closes, we post a link to an archival recording, which participants may re-visit on their own time or tune in if they missed the live session.

Recently, we've been asked to share what we know about interactive learning on-line with other organizations that are just beginning to explore what it means to do training by webinar. If you are interested in this service, contact Senior Associate Kurt Mantonya to learn more. Kurt's address is kmantonya@heartlandcenter.info.

--Milan Wall & Vicki Luther, Co-Directors
Heartland Center for Leadership Development

Midwest Rural Assembly Attracts 120 Participants

The Heartland Center was a sponsor and coordinating organization for this year's Midwest Rural Assembly, held August 16-17, 2010 in South Sioux City, Nebraska. Milan Wall, one of the Center's co-directors, helped open the assembly with welcoming remarks. Milan also facilitated a round table discussion on Innovative Strategies for Community Change. This session was one of 22 round tables designed to bring people together to discuss ways of sharing information and addressing priorities.

A critical topic at the assembly was reversing the trend of exporting young people. Five young leaders focused on how rural communities can, instead, welcome and sustain the next generation. Their priorities include:

* Helping young adults get started in sustainable agriculture
* Promoting a broader vision of health
* Preserving working lands
* Providing more educational options in rural areas
* Promoting asset development for people with low incomes
* Attracting young people who care about the environment

Victor Vasquez, U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Undersecretary for Rural Development, outlined key priorities for the department over the next few years:

* Local and regional markets for farmers through the Know your Farmer, Know your Food program. "We've seen nothing but success."

* Expanding broadband access to make rural communities more competitive economically. "It's not just about technology. It's going to change the nature of education for children who live in poor, rural communities. It will change how they perceive education and the world."

* Renewable energy. The USDA is working closely with the Department of Energy and other partners to reduce and eliminate U.S. dependence on foreign oil. "Ultimately, this is how we view our natural resources and the environment and do things in a better way," said Vasquez. He anticipated an enhanced level of collaboration with DOE that could result in more announcements supporting energy efficiency in the months to come.

* Better land management. USDA oversees tens of thousands of acres of public land. The agency is studying how it can work better with the communities around that land, along with state and local governments, to increase economic development and better manage the natural resources.

"This year's assembly was well attended and the variety of information from the speakers and round tables was remarkable," said Wall. "I am glad that the Heartland Center was a sponsor and host organization. It's venues like this that will make a difference in rural America."

Heartland Center has a Major Presence at the Community Development Society

Heartland Center staff members Milan Wall and Kurt Mantonya attended the annual meeting of the Community Development Society in New Orleans, Louisiana, July 26-29, 2010.

Kurt presented a paper and Power Point presentation entitled "Utilizing the Community Capitals Framework in an Ethnohistorical Context," which focused the Community Capitals Framework developed by Heartland Center board member Cornelia Butler Flora and her husband Jan Flora. Kurt placed this framework into societies such as Chaco Canyon in New Mexico that collapsed or were abandoned.

Milan facilitated a session on Innovative Strategies for Community Change that brought together practitioners from the field of rural and community development to identify best practices. This session was created based on convenings of practitioners held in Minnesota and Illinois and led to regional venues such as the Midwest Rural Assembly. Once these best practices have been synthesized, they will be disseminated through a variety of media.

Community Capitals Framework Institute--
Call for Participation

Are you currently using the Community Capitals Framework (CCF) in your work? If so, we would like to learn about your approach and methods. This year's CCF Institute will feature several sessions on data collection, coding and analysis using the CCF in addition to the work sessions created by participants' practice.

We are particularly interested in how the Community Capitals Framework is being used to understand the impact of community change work, leadership development, and climate change. We are also interested in strategies to engage communities and organizations using the Community Capitals Framework. Finally, we want to bring great minds together to discuss strategies for collecting and analyzing data using the CCF.

If you are interested in participating in the program, please send an abstract of your work (500 words) along with key words to Mary Emery at memery@iastate.edu by September 15.

The Heartland Center is a co-sponsor of this year's CCF Institute.

On the Calendar at the Heartland Center

September 2010

* The Heartland Center's webinar on Stewardship Essentials will take place on the 14th.
* The Heartland Center, in collaboration with the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship and the Nebraska Community Foundation, will be presenting HomeTown Competitiveness at the CFED Assets Learning Conference in Washington, D.C. on the 22nd.

October 2010

*
Milan Wall is presenting at the Community Matters 2010 Conference in Denver sponsored by the Orton Family Foundation on the 5th through the 8th.
*
The Heartland Center will be co-sponsoring the Community Capitals Framework Institute in Ames, Iowa, on the 15th and 16th. Kurt will be presenting Utilizing the Community Capitals Framework in an Ethnohistorical Context.
*
The Heartland Center's webinar on Governance Effectiveness will take place on the 19th.
*
Milan is presenting a keynote on Clues to Rural Community Survival in Ontario at the Rural Revitalization Summit on the 20th.

About the Heartland Center

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is an independent nonprofit organization developing local leadership that responds to the challenges of the future. The Heartland Center is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, with a field office located in Kerrville, Texas.

Heartland Center for Leadership Development
650 J St. Suite 305-C
Lincoln, NE 68508
(402) 474-7667
www.heartlandcenter.info

Ord Graduate Finds Opportunities Back Home

2010-09-01T11:13:00.000-07:00

A thriving community of more than 2,000 people in the Nebraska Sandhills, Ord has seen its ups and downs throughout the years. But recently the town has been on an upswing. With the growth of new businesses and facilities, several people who grew up here have moved back, including Matt Eppenbach.

Eppenbach was your typical rural farm boy. He worked on a cattle ranch north of Ord during high school and grew to love the land. "I learned my love of cattle at a young age helping my dad and grandpa with their cattle herds, from birth all the way through until the cattle went to market," he said. "I now own my own herd of cows."

Eppenbach's passion for rural life motivated his move back to his hometown. He said he had always hoped that one day he would return to Ord--he just needed the opportunity to do so. "I always kind of knew that one day I wanted to move back," Eppenbach said. "I like the area a lot. I like the agricultural aspect, and it's a good place to raise kids."

After graduating from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with an accounting degree in 2006, he married his wife, Janet. They moved to her hometown of Omaha and lived there for almost three years. In June 2009, he got the opportunity he had been looking for: A job offer from an accounting firm back home.

Eppenbach has known his current boss since he was in high school, so accepting the job was not a tough call. His wife has also adjusted well to the area, working as a graphic designer for Valley County Hospital, one of the local institutions that is expanding.

Ord's prospects have been improving since the community affiliated with HomeTown Competitiveness, or HTC, a community revitalization program sponsored by the Heartland Center for Leadership Development, the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship and the Nebraska Community Foundation. HTC has been implemented in communities across the country since it was piloted in Ord in 2002. Many of these communities have experienced new successes when applying the HTC strategy of Engaging Youth and Young People, Expanding Community Philanthropy, Energizing Entrepreneurship, and Building Local Leadership.

Since implementing HTC, Ord has seen the creation of 73 new businesses, 10 business expansions, over 330 new jobs and $90 million in new investment. Per capita income is growing at more than twice the state average, and people like Eppenbach have helped curb the trend of out-migration: Ord's population is increasing for the first time since 1930.

Eppenbach is proud of his community, and hopes to take advantage of everything it has to offer.

"Ord is a good, progressive town," Eppenbach said. "The community boards get new things going and are constantly looking into the future."

Above all, Eppenbach said, it is the people of Ord who make it such a great place to live.

"Everybody has treated me with respect since I've moved back," Eppenbach said. "The people are all willing to work to keep Ord alive. They have everybody else's interests at heart."

Register now for the CFED Pre-Conference Workshop on HTC

2010-08-27T11:41:00.000-07:00

Transforming Rural America:
HomeTown Competitiveness Workshop
September 22, 2010
Washington, D.C.

A free pre-conference workshop on HomeTown Competitiveness, winner of the Innovative Program of the Year Award from the Community Development Society, has been scheduled just prior to CFED's 2010 Assets Learning Conference in September. HomeTown Competitiveness, or HTC, is a rural community development strategy that focuses on four Pillars: Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Youth Engagement and Community Philanthropy. HTC is in widespread use in nearly a dozen states and is producing remarkable results for small towns facing population decline and economic distress.

The pre-conference workshop is sponsored by the Heartland Center for Leadership Development and the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship. It will be held from 9:00 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, September 22, at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., just prior to CFED's conference, which begins at the same hotel just after lunch. CFED is expecting more than 1,000 leaders in community practice, government, philanthropy and academia to attend the conference.

The HTC workshop will be led by Marcia White, Director of Community Development Philanthropy for the Nebraska Community Foundation, Milan Wall, Co-Director of the Heartland Center, and Craig Schroeder, Senior Associate with the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship. All three are members of the HTC leadership team in Nebraska.

For more information on the pre-conference workshop or to register, visit the Heartland Center's Workshops and Institutes page at http://www.heartlandcenter.info/institutes.htm or contact the Heartland Center at 800-927-1115 or 402-474-7667. You can also visit the CFED Pre-Conference website for additional details as well at http://cfed.org/knowledge_center/events/alc2010/pre-conference_sessions/ This is an opportunity to learn about a rural development framework that is transforming communities across the heartland of America.

2010-08-04T13:58:00.000-07:00

Midwest Rural Assembly

2010-08-02T12:10:00.000-07:00

The Midwest Rural Assembly is quickly approaching. The Heartland Center is a sponsor and coordinating organization for this year's assembly. Milan Wall, Co-Director will be sharing a welcome message on the first day. Milan will also be facilitating a roundtable discussion on Innovative Strategies for Community Change.

June Edition of E-Visions from the Heartland

2010-06-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

The June edition of E-Visions from the Heartland has just been published. Checkout this edition for an invitation to attend the Midwest Rural Assembly, read about our upcoming webinar series and learn about the Center's summer scholarship drive.

Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders, Number 6, Define the Task

2010-05-28T09:30:00.001-07:00

Recruiting new leaders by asking for help on a community project becomes very effective when a task is very clearly defined. This means describing the skills needed as well as the time commitment required.

It’s also a good motivational technique to describe a task in terms of what the expectations are, perhaps even including a final product. For example, if a leader is asked to manage a town hall meeting, the expectations will certainly include speaking to the assembled group and introducing others. It might also involve helping with advertising the meeting or designing the agenda. The difference in time commitment is obvious.

Finally, defining the task should also cover some ideas about how the special task fits into the whole scheme of community improvement. That understanding of how a contribution makes the whole effort stronger is an important motivational tool.

Onaga, Kansas

2010-05-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

This posting comes from one of the many case studies in the Heartland Center's publication, "Clues to Rural Community Survival."Clues was recently updated with updates from the original Clues communities as well as the addition of other communities who have been successful in their community development efforts.

Leadership, entrepreneurship, wealth retention and youth development are all pieces of the recent successes of Onaga, Kansas, a very rural community of 704 people. Driving down Kansas Highway 16 and seeing the sign “Onaga, next five exits” would make you think it’s a fairly large town. Indeed it isn’t. But it’s the brainstorm of community developers who propose that adding such a series of signs would encourage more travelers stopping by their small community.

“Onaga has a lot of assets that other communities would die for!” That is the sentiment of the part-time community development specialist for Onaga. This kind of sentiment is reflected in the philosophy of HomeTown Competitiveness (HTC). HTC is a collaboration between three partnering organizations in Nebraska, including the Heartland Center for Leadership Development, the Nebraska Community Foundation and the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship. This philosophy is embedded in four “pillars” of youth, entrepreneurship, leadership and community philanthropy and is what prompted several people from Onaga to participate in an HTC Academy in Wamego, Kansas. County-wide, the HTC initiative has taken root in each of the pillar areas. In fact, a foundation has been established that has raised over $1 million dollars in only 20 months, with 13 affiliated local funds.

Nestled in the beautiful Flint Hills of north central Kansas, the community of Onaga is one that has grasped the HTC framework and run with it. Since taking part in the HTC Academy, leaders in this community have been busy implementing a plan for the future.

After many attended the HTC Academy, a group of Onaga citizens banded together to establish “Goals for 2010” with the assistance of the Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation. Goals were identified in eight categories including transportation, communications, quality of life, business and industry, agriculture, housing, population/school enrollment and tourism.

One unique outcome of this goal-setting exercise was a financial partnership between Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation, Community Health Care Systems, the City of Onaga, the Chamber of Commerce, downtown businesses and the Morrill & James Bank. The corporation, the city, the bank and the hospital each invested $5000, downtown businesses added $1800 and the Chamber added $1000. Combined, the $22,800 has been used to fund the part-time services of the community development specialist for the community. It is the development specialist in turn, who has helped implement a neighborhood revitalization program, organized volunteers and fundraising for a playground project and secured funding for streetscape renewal. Other leaders in the community have taken on several other critical community improvement projects.

Some of the goals established included growing Onaga by 500 people, ensuring enough student enrollment to maintain 2A school status, identifying value-added agricultural opportunities as well as agri-tourism ideas and creating a local “homestead” program.

The homestead program is in place with 10 free lots currently available that also qualify for the city’s neighborhood revitalization program, a 10-year sliding scale tax rebate for improvements to existing residential and commercial properties, as well as new construction.

The community has applied for and received more than $4 million in state and federal grant funding to support new infrastructure and downtown revitalization, including sewer, water, and street-scaping. Funding for a new fire truck and fire fighting equipment was also received.

Community volunteers constructed a new senior center with the help of a state grant and hundreds of hours of volunteer time. The city purchased a nine-hole golf course (and club house) that also has room to add another nine holes in the future. The community found a new business to replace a failing enterprise and the local school system has been retained.
Blue Valley Telecommunications Cooperative purchased the area telephone exchange from Sprint and then promptly invested millions of dollars to install fiber optic cable to homes and businesses in Onaga and the surrounding area. Now, homes and businesses in the community and nearby farmsteads are served by high-speed broadband interconnectivity.

The regional Farmers’ Cooperative built $2 million dollars in new grain storage and processing facilities, while agreeing to have the facilities immediately annexed into the city in order to increase the city’s property tax base.

Besides a vision for the future, Onaga takes pride in its past to build aspirations for the future. Case in point, Onaga has one of only an estimated eight 8-sided fair pavilions in the state. The pavilion, built in 1921, is modeled after one built during the Chicago World’s Fair. Fears of collapse and disrepair almost led to the demise of the pavilion until a group of concerned citizens formed “Friends of the Fair Pavilion” to restore this unique architectural feature. The building is now registered on the State and National Registers of Historic Places, reconstruction of the building’s unique truss system and supporting walls and roof is complete, replacement of all its windows, exterior paint and replacement of its interior concrete floors are also finished. This restoration was accomplished with Kansas Heritage Trust Grants from the Kansas State Historical Society and many private donations.

The Dough Boy, a World War I memorial purchased by the American Legion and unveiled on November 11, 1920, is another one of the community’s treasures. The statue originally stood in an intersection downtown but due to highway repairs, the state roads had it moved to the town cemetery. After a number of years, the Doughboy found a final resting place again downtown.

This community understands the value of working together and volunteering in order to get the job done. The new senior center was built in part from proceeds of a Kan-Step grant that amounted to $168,000 of the $400,000 project. But it was the 110 volunteers mustered by the leadership of a former mayor and retired banker who put in over 7,000 volunteer hours of work that saw the center come to fruition within one year of breaking ground.

One would think that a tiny town like Onaga would not be a center of financial wealth, but First Trust Company of Onaga is just that. First Trust acts as a custodian for a multitude of self-directed Individual Retirement Accounts. Established in 1978, First Trust now performs all the administrative work required to support thousands of individually managed IRA’s with over $50 million in assets in all 50 states and many foreign countries. Based on the results of a marketing study completed by a team of graduate MBA candidates from Kansas State University, and with financing from a USDA Rural Development loan, the bank recently built a new building and moved its 35 people to the new facility where it continues to expand.

While Pottawatomie County and the surrounding region braces for the return of the 1st Infantry Division and other troop expansions at nearby Ft. Riley, communities like Onaga are hoping that some of the new troops and civilian employees will opt to call Onaga their home. A related target market for new residents is people leaving the service who are looking for a place to settle down. With this much of a regional population increase economic opportunities abound, but challenges such as a lack of housing, childcare and healthcare create roadblocks. Roadblocks like these are being overcome with Onaga’s homestead program, which displays a model home in a dedicated housing area that prospective owners can tour. The health care system, the excellent school system, affordability, safety and recreation offer a small town quality of life that is a major selling point for those interested in moving here.

The hospital and its clinics are an excellent example of long term sustainable growth. In the early 1980s, the hospital governance and leadership conducted a market and service assessment to study the viability and sustainability of the hospital in its current configuration. The market study focused on those communities where the hospital had existing patient and community relationships. Because of its emphasis on communities, the transition included a name change that has evolved to today’s Community HealthCare System, serving a regional area. Family practice clinics and hospital inpatient and outpatient services have been established in Centralia, Frankfort, Holton and St. Marys.

So many rural communities face challenges and obstacles because of lack of opportunities, loss of youth and competition from urban centers. Many people in this community want to see Onaga succeed and this sentiment is echoed by the local newspaper publisher who says “you have to progress or you die.” Further evidence that supports the claim that Onaga is on the right track includes being chosen as one of only three communities in Kansas to take part in the pilot projects of the Governor’s Rural Life Task Force. This designation resulted in all the available rural housing program and financial resources offered by the Kansas Department of Commerce and USDA Rural Development being targeted on Onaga simultaneously. This has resulted in financing for several residential renovation projects as well as financing for purchases of existing homes and new home construction.

A family in Onaga recently discovered that its children had contracted a chronic deteriorative disease. Another group of leaders in Onaga immediately formed an action group to help this family and any others in the future similarly situated. They used the new community foundation created by the Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation and others as the vehicle for creation of a special purpose fund, and have so far raised in excess of $40,000 dollars in private donations.

The mayor, the Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation and other local advocates were recently successful in clearing away the legal and financial “debris” from a failing composites plant in Onaga to make it possible for the plant to be acquired by MGP Ingredients, which is headquartered in Atchison, Kansas. MGP Ingredients’ Onaga R and D facility has since been experimenting with the manufacture of combinations of wood composite resins and plant-based biopolymers in order to produce biodegradable dinnerware for use by the military and the outdoor recreation industry. These starch and protein based products derived from agricultural products are made into pellets which are then processed into biodegradable products.

With its homestead neighborhood revitalization program, Onaga is recruiting new people to its community and young people are also returning. A banker came back after going to school and gaining some world experience. Like so many others, he sought the quiet and solitude that reflects Onaga and he wanted a safe community to raise his children.

But Onaga is not relying solely on recruiting younger people to help the community thrive. Several older citizens have returned because of the peacefulness and the full range of services provided by the hospital and the numerous assisted living and long-term care services. The community development specialist and her husband retired but through serendipity, her experience with Main Street communities and timing of HTC, she was lured out of retirement to take on a new community development role with even greater responsibilities.

Onaga, like many rural Kansas towns, flourished as a regional agricultural and railroad center for many decades and still plays a large part in agriculture. With the new manufacturing plant, an ever-growing Trust company and several value-added agricultural producers, fiber-optic cable, regional health care system, golf course, K-12 school district and home to the county fair, Onaga like the Kansas motto can aspire “to the stars through difficulties.”

Onaga exemplifies the power of the application of the “four pillars” of leadership, entrepreneurship, use of charitable assets and youth development. It is well on its way to becoming a sustainable rural community which many thought had a “duty to die.”

Summer Webinar Series on Leadership Development and Board Effectiveness

2010-05-14T09:26:00.000-07:00

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is pleased to announce its new Leadership Development and Board Effectiveness series. These five webinars on developing community leadership and building board member capacity will begin in June and conclude in October, 2010. Each webinar will be designed to provide interaction, discussion and feedback. Webinar participants will receive a packet of downloadable training materials that include session powerpoints and readings. Registrants will also be able to view the webinar via recording, so you can refresh your learning experience at any time. Webinars will last 60 minutes and will be hosted by an experienced team of Heartland Center trainers. This summer's topics include:

* Leadership Styles and Practices: Learn what it means to be an effective leader. Assess your own leadership strengths and aspirations and create an action plan for building new skills and practices.

* Working with Groups: Managing effective meetings may seem simple, yet it's often a challenging job for community development practitioners, whose role includes leading diverse groups to consensus and beyond.

* Engaging the Community: Outlines practical strategies for strengthening your organization through community participation and volunteerism. Once a project is off the ground and you have enough people engaged, this session will also help you maintain momentum.

* Stewardship Essentials: Explains the essential concepts of board stewardship and how stewardship applies to the board's role in interpreting and updating an organization's mission, strategy development, evaluation, resource development and being an effective emissary.

* Governance Effectiveness: Provides an introduction to tools, techniques and processes that effective boards use to plan and manage their meetings, document their decision-making, successfully navigate conflict, recruit and orient new members to board service. The webinar will also help clarify the dual governance roles of staff and board for developing organizational strategies and documenting progress.

Each webinar will start at 12:00 p.m. (Central) and end at 1:00 p.m. The training team includes Milan Wall, Vicki Luther and Kurt Mantonya from the Heartland Center staff and Gordon Goodwin, a former Heartland Center board member with expertise in building board capacity. The cost of each webinar is $59.99, or purchase the entire webinar series at one time for is $250.00, a savings of $49.99. Each registration entitles a single user to have more than one person attend at their computer in one site. Additional registrations from the same organization will be treated as another single registration.

For more details and registration information about this exciting webinar series, please visit the Heartland Center's webinar page. You can also contact Kurt Mantonya at kmantonya@heartlandcenter.info for additional information.

Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders, Number 5, Use a Wide-Angle Lens

2010-05-14T09:00:00.000-07:00

While the effort to bring new people into the leadership arena is important to community improvement projects, it’s also important to recognize that even the smallest and most limited volunteer contribution can be part of the leadership activities of a community.

Planting flowers in a park or helping with a mass mailing may seem like small efforts, but they still are part of the whole picture of what makes up a healthy and vital community. What’s important is seeing how each contribution fits into the whole picture.

Recognizing and encouraging any and all contributions to community survival requires a sense of the big picture. And, by never discounting any effort, no matter how small, the door to increased involvement remains open.

May, 2010 edition of E-Visions from the Heartland

2010-05-07T12:20:00.001-07:00

The May issue of E-Visions from the Heartland has just been released. Take a few minutes to see what the Center has been up to, learn about our upcoming five-part webinar series entitled Leadership Development and Board Effectiveness and read about a recent graduate who returned to his home town.

Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders, Tip #4, Appeal to Self Interests

2010-04-30T08:52:00.000-07:00

Our weekly idea to recruit new leaders into your organization or volunteer group is to appeal to self interests.

A standard approach to recruiting new volunteers is to try to understand the personal motivation of others. The realization that others see rewards in community service is a vital step to both identify and recruit new leaders.

Active self-interest may be intellectual or altruistic or even social. Individuals may wish to help others, to pay back a debt to the community that fostered them, or to receive the approval of friends or neighbors.

It is, essentially, the personal drive that brings a new leader to the point of taking a risk and trying to accomplish some task. By understanding how a person sees the rewards of community service, the appeal to take on a leadership role can be tailored to be most persuasive.

Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders, Tip #3

2010-04-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

AS you know, about once each week, I have been adding one of the Heartland Center's ideas to recruit new leaders. The third idea is Trying Involvement by Degrees. In other words, when involving new leaders, let the grow into more responsible roles as they acquire the skills and knowledge base.

Idea 3: Try Involvement by Degrees

One of the most successful techniques for helping new leaders develop is to offer ways in which individuals can become involved on a limited basis and then “grow” into a larger and more prominent role.

Asking for help with a small and simple task makes it easier for an individual to respond with a yes while presenting the chance to increase the commitment as time goes by. In fact, there often seems to be a natural progression from helper to leader.

It’s important to remember, though, that many people do need a strong push to the front to take on a leadership role. Often history and cultural influences can keep talented individuals in the background. However, gaining experience working within a group usually bolsters confidence to take on more responsibility.

10 Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders

2010-04-13T08:34:00.001-07:00

Idea 2: Look for Skills, Not Names

One of the problems caused by relying on the same people for the same tasks over and over again is that those people will eventually tire of making the same contribution. Burnout is a phrase that is all too familiar to most community leaders and volunteers.

A simple way to identify new people to recruit is to focus on the skills needed for the task, not on the person who last did it. By listing the skills required for a task and then attempting to match those needed skills with an individual’s experience, it’s also possible to identify a whole new group of people who can help with a community project.

It might turn out that the person with the necessary organizing skills for the community picnic is a retired farmer or an elementary school teacher who’s never before been asked to help out with a project. By looking at skills rather than names, you can discover leadership potential and involve new people.

10 Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders

2010-04-08T07:52:00.000-07:00

These ideas represent a synthesis of theory and experience. Working at community development in small towns throughout the United States has provided a source of examples and anecdotes that offer real life applications of the theories about leadership and motivation. None of these ideas is original: all of the examples are based on the actions of community leaders dealing with the very real problem of recruiting new and emerging leaders to join in the improvement of a community. Nor is the list by any means exhaustive, since ideas for recruiting new leaders are really only limited by personal creativity and circumstances. However, these are proven approaches to the recruitment problem and can be considered with confidence. I will be placing one of the ideas on the blog periodically, so be sure to check back often for additional ideas.

Kurt

Idea 1: Ask the Question: “Who’s Not Here?”
In order to answer this question, members of a community group have to understand the composition of their community. What groups or individuals should be involved in order to have a truly representative community organization? Which groups are missing from the organization (or the meeting or the project)?

Understanding the make-up of the community helps in analyzing the leadership pool so that certain segments of the community can be targeted for special recruiting efforts.

This can also be considered as an “insurance policy” for a community action project since making sure that the group is inclusive is the best way to build in cooperation from the beginning.

Answering this question assumes, of course, that efforts will be made to involve those not present, as a way of making sure that all parts of the community are well represented.

Check out my @constantcontact newsletter

2010-04-07T08:40:00.000-07:00

The latest edition of E-Visions from the Heartland has just been published. Take a few minutes to see what the Center has been up to this spring. There is also a promotion to receive a free copy of the Clues to Rural Community Survival when you purchase the companion text of the same name.

Check out my @constantcontact newsletter

Summer Webinar Series on Leadership Development

2010-03-12T13:42:00.000-08:00

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is pleased to announce a series of three webinars on developing community leadership in June, July and August of 2010. Each webinar will be designed to provide interaction, discussion and feedback. Webinar participants will receive a packet of downloadable training materials that include session powerpoints and readings. Registrants will also be able to view the webinar via recording so you can refresh your learning experience at any time. Webinars will last 60 minutes and will be hosted by an experienced team of Heartland Center trainers. Exact dates and times are still being determined so please check back often. This summer’s topics include:

• Leadership Styles and Practices: Learn what it means to be an effective leader. Assess your own leadership strengths and aspirations and create an action plan for building new skills and practices.
• Working with Groups: Managing effective meetings may seem simple, yet it's often a challenging job for community development practitioners, whose role includes leading diverse groups to consensus and beyond.
• Engaging the Community: Outlines practical strategies for strengthening the membership in your organization through community participation and volunteerism. Once that project is off the ground and you have enough help, this session will also help you maintain momentum.

Tips for Leaders

2010-03-11T14:18:00.001-08:00

Is Your Organization, Volunteer Group or Committee Having a Hard Time Getting New Leaders Involved?

Ask the question: "Who's Not Here?"
In order to answer this question, members of a community group have to understand the composition of their community. What groups or individuals should be involved in order to have a truly representative community organization? Which groups are missing from the organization (or the meeting or the project)?

Understanding the make-up of the community helps in analyzing the leadership pool so that certain segments of the community can be targeted for specific recruiting efforts.

This can also be considered as an "insurance policy" for a community action project since making sure that the group is inclusive is the best way to build in cooperation and ownership from the beginning.

Answering this question assumes, of course, that efforts will be made to involve those not present, as a way of making sure that all parts of the community are well represented.

This is idea number one from the Heartland Center's "10 Ideas for Recruiting New Leaders," which is in what we call our "Number Series," geared as a short synthesis of ideas from practice and research in rural and community development. To purchase 10 Ideas or any of our books, please visit our publications page.

2010 Nebraska Marketplace

2010-02-19T07:38:00.000-08:00

Heartland Center staff will be presenting at the Fourth Nebraska Marketplace: Opening Doors to Success. This year's conference will be held on Tuesday, February 23, 2010 and Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at the Ramada Convention Center in Kearney, Nebraska. Our session is entitled, Start a Leadership Development Program that Maintains Momentum" and will be presented on Wednesday from 9:45 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. The following is the description of the session.

Community leadership programs are an effective means to renew a community's leadership base, especially when youth are engaged in the process. This session will explore ways to develop a community leadership program and methods of reaching out to those in the community you may not have considered. Session participants will also learn ways to maintain momentum in order to carry the leadership program into the future. Session participants will also go through a leadership assessment that will give them indicators of their leadership characteristics.

We will also have a booth in the exhibit hall so if you are in the area or in attendance at the conference, stop by and say hi. For more information on Nebraska Marketplace as well as information on other sessions and presentations, click on the link below.

http://www.cfra.org/marketplace/agenda-nebraska

Attendance Impressive for Community Strategic Planning Sessions

2010-02-12T12:16:00.001-08:00

As you may recall in the last e-Visions, the Heartland Center was conducting community assessment and strategic planning for Henderson, Nebraska, a community of 986 people located 65 miles west of Lincoln. Three data collection efforts were utilized, including key informant interviews, an online Community Capacity Questionnaire and three focus groups, one composed entirely of youth.

Two town hall meetings were facilitated by Milan Wall and Kurt Mantonya of the Heartland Center in order to guide Henderson and rural York County residents through a strategic planning process. These town halls were grounded in Appreciative Inquiry where participants go through the four phases of Discovering their past, Dreaming about their future, Designing a preferred future and Delivering results. The first town hall, held in November, 2009, with approximately 86 people in attendance, served as the kickoff and took participants through the first two phases.

In January, 2010, Heartland Center staff facilitated a second town hall, with approximately 70 people in attendance to present the findings from the data collection. After the presentation, the final two phases of Appreciative Inquiry process were completed. At the end of the evening, four community priorities were established that included: Attracting and retaining young people, housing development, business development and building a community center. A task force made up of town hall participants was established for each of these priorities and discussion on next steps and adding additional members concluded the evening.

The Heartland Center has conduct these town halls for the past five years in several communities in Nebraska, helping them identify priorities for community betterment projects. The process requires only a few hours and brings a lot of energy and excitement into a community. If your community would like to explore such a process, please contact Kurt Mantonya at kmantonya@heartlandcenter.info.

Community Assessment and Strategic Planning in Henderson, Nebraska

2010-02-12T12:15:00.001-08:00

The strategic planning process began in November and is based on an Appreciative Inquiry model of Discover, Dream, Design and Deliver. During a November town hall meeting, Heartland Center staff guided 86 people, ten percent of this community's population, through the first two phases, Discover and Dream. A report back on the interviews, focus groups and online survey will be presented to Henderson in January, 2010 along with the final two phases (Design and Deliver), forming the basis for the strategic plan.

2010-02-12T09:51:00.001-08:00

The latest edition of Visions From the Heartland has been sent. To view the February edition, click on the link below.

'E-Visions From the Heartland, February 2010'

6 Myths About the Future of Small Towns

2010-02-08T13:10:00.001-08:00

In this discussion I have added the research that the Heartland Center has conducted over the years to formulate "6 Myths About the Future of Small Towns." This is by no means an exhaustive listing but we have found these emerging themes time and time again. My discussion question for you is "which myth resonates the most with you and why?" I would also like to hear about some examples from your community.

Thanks
Kurt

6 MYTHS ABOUT THE FUTURE OF SMALL TOWNS

1. Towns that are "too small" have no future.
Mythology about small towns says that there is a certain population number that can support a community and no less. That number may be 2500 or 1000 or 500, depending on whose "expertise" is being quoted.
The truth is that there is no magical number at which a town can survive. Heartland Center research has shown that even very tiny towns, with populations as small as 100 or less, manage to survive through thoughtful planning, entrepreneurial genius and hard work. No community should perceive itself as "too small" to survive.
In fact, small towns can use size as a competitive advantage. As with a small business, the smaller community can retain certain flexibility. Without the disadvantages of city bureaucracy, it can respond faster to new trends and changing marketplace opportunities. Like a small business, it can seek its own unique niche.

2. A community's location is key to its survival.
Dependence on proximity to a major highway, a large metropolitan area or a significant natural resource is typical of industrial-age thinking that believes a community's success hinges on location.
This type of thinking may have been more important in the past, when industry and agriculture employed most rural jobholders. Today, however, with growth in the service, information and government sectors, the old industrial age factors bear lesser importance.
Now, the key is "what community leaders do with what is available." This translates as attitudes and behaviors of people in leadership. In other words, in an Information Age, leadership, not location, is the most important factor in community survival.

3. Industrial recruitment is the best strategy for economic development.
Recruiting new industries is still the strategy of choice among many small towns and economic development experts, even though study after study suggests that industrial recruitment, alone, is not a realistic long-term answer.
Too often, small towns have wasted all their time, energy and money trying to attract new industry, only to learn that they should have been working harder to keep the employers they already have.
Small towns that throw all their eggs into the industrial recruitment basket are taking a big risk. They're competing for a few expansions or relocations against thousands of other small towns just like themselves nationwide. They should be working on a broader strategy that emphasizes growing from within, first, then recruiting from the outside.

4. Small towns can't compete in the global economy.

Too many people seem convinced that small towns can't compete in a global economy. Yet small towns throughout America are home to an amazing variety of highly sophisticated, entrepreneurial successes.
Many rural communities have small manufacturers that are producing high-quality products for a unique marketing niche, which extends beyond the local area to a regional, national or even international market.
With access to toll-free incoming telephone lines and over-the-road package shippers, businesses can compete in the global marketplace. Because they are located in smaller and often less complex local business environments, they may be able to compete by moving quickly to take advantage of fast-moving marketplace opportunities.

5. The "best people" leave small towns as soon as they can.
The continuing decline of population in most rural areas remains a problem. But this fact is often described in inaccurate and unproductive ways.
Too often, even rural people use the term "brain drain" as if it meant that anyone with brains would get out. They act as if the "best and brightest" should leave to seek better opportunities in the cities or to get a higher education, never to return.
It is true that many people find opportunities elsewhere, but it's also true that many capable people stay in small towns or return to them. As small town leaders, they make priceless contributions to local quality of life, giving time and attention to civic affairs, service clubs, school events and family matters.
State and local leaders should stop acting as if the "brain drain" means that no talent is left.

6. The rural and urban economies are not interdependent.
Another myth about rural communities says that larger metropolitan areas are more important than smaller communities in our nation's economy.
It's not really news that rural industries such as agriculture, mining or land management are playing a smaller role in the rural-urban economic mix. This doesn't mean, however, that cities and counties could maintain their quality of life without farm products, coal, oil and the natural resources available to the city and country person alike.
Many city residents are nostalgic or sentimental about small towns, but they often forget that our essential raw materials need dynamic rural infrastructures to get from rural to urban markets.

Understanding myths like these is key to stopping the negative influence on community survival. Focusing on the positive aspects of small towns and maintaining a creative outlook on all development strategies will insure community vitality for years to come. Total community involvement and a strong sense of pride can put an end to the myths and pave the way for successful rural community living.

Community Almanac

2010-01-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

This unique online tool helps users create lasting records of the places they love. Community Almanac's non-profit sponsors (Orton Family Foundation and The Open Planning Project) want to help communities articulate, implement and steward their heart & soul. It's a lasting record of the place you love—the place you call home. Anyone can contribute! And it's free! Just find your community and start adding to its almanac—written stories, photos, videos—anything you'd like to share. Visit http://www.communityalmanac.org/ and put your town on the map!

USDA Blog : weblog

2010-01-06T11:08:00.000-08:00

USDA Blog : weblog

Community Assessment and Strategic Planning in Henderson, Nebrakska

2009-12-22T08:34:00.000-08:00

Henderson, Nebraska, a community of 986 people located 65 miles west of Lincoln, recently hired the Center to conduct community assessment work in preparation for the development of a strategic and long-term master plan. The Heartland Center is assisting with the assessment and strategic planning. Assessment work will be conducted through the Center's Community Capacity Questionnaire (online), key informant interviews and focus groups.

The strategic planning process began in November and is based on an Appreciative Inquiry model of Discover, Dream, Design and Deliver. During a November town hall meeting, Heartland Center staff guided 86 people, ten percent of this community's population, through the first two phases, Discover and Dream. A report back on the interviews, focus groups and online survey will be presented to Henderson in January, 2010 along with the final two phases (Design and Deliver), forming the basis for the strategic plan.

Another Helping Small Towns Succeed Success

2009-12-11T12:34:00.000-08:00

The Heartland Center's annual institute was held in Fredericksburg, Texas with participants from five states in attendance. This training program, offered annually since 1992, is the Center's signature training event for community development practitioners and community leaders.

The Texas Department of Rural Affairs and the Texas Rural Innovators Forum provided scholarships and co-sponsored this year's institute. The participant group included state and city staff, university faculty, economic development personnel, community development staff, representatives from foundations and Heartland Center board members. This years three-day institute covered the following topics:

Clues to Community Survival
Leadership Styles and Practices
Appreciative Inquiry
Branding Your Community
Building Social Capital
HomeTown Competitiveness

As with all Heartland Center programs, each day was evaluated by participants, and the following day began with a report on that evaluation and adjustments if needed. The curriculum and materials were highly rated by the participants and trainers Milan Wall, Vicki Luther and Kurt Mantonya were pleased with the entire event. "We are very happy with the feedback we received and the number of people that indicated that they will be using the tools and lessons gleaned from this workshop back home," commented Milan Wall.

New Webinar Series

2009-11-24T13:55:00.000-08:00

The Heartland Center in collaboration with the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship is pleased to announce a new webinar series with the theme Strategies for Community Prosperity. The five-part webinar series will begin in January and conclude in May with the following schedule and topics:

January 21, 2010 Rural Communities Can Thrive in the 21st Century
February 18, 2010 Entrepreneurial Coaching--From Crisis to Economic Growth
March 18, 2010 Plowing New Ground--Refreshed Leadership Development for
Revitalized Economies
April 15, 2010 Energized Youth--Energized Communities
May 20, 2010 People Count--Rebuilding Rural Communities with People Attraction Strategies

Each webinar is will start at 12:00 p.m. and end at 1:00 p.m. The training team includes Milan Wall and Kurt Mantonya from the Heartland Center and Don Macke and Craig Schroeder from the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship. The cost of each webinar is $59.99 but if you purchase the entire webinar series at one time, the cost is $250.00, a savings of $49.95.

For more details and registration information about this exciting webinar series, please visit the Heartland Center's webinar page at http://www.heartlandcenter.info/webinar_reg/

Rural-Suburban-Urban Community Conversation

2009-10-20T14:39:00.000-07:00

How have Nebraska communities changed over time? Are there any similarities among our rural and urban places? Where do the suburban Nebraskan communities fit into our history? These questions will be answered at a special community conversation on Thursday, October 22, at Riverside Lodge at Mahoney State Park. The program will run from 4:30 pm. to 6:00 p.m. and will feature John Carter, senior research analyst with the Nebraska State Historical Society. There is no charge for the program, which is supported by the Nebraska Humanities Council.

The community conversation will focus on how Nebraska’s rural, suburban and urban communities share a connection that bridges who we are and how we rely on one another. Participants will take home materials to replicate the conversations in their own communities. Those materials will also be accessible on the Heartland Center’s website at www.heartlandcenter.info.

The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is helping community leaders prepare for the challenges of the future. The Nebraska Humanities Council promotes a better understanding of Nebraska—who we are and where we have been—to build a better future. The council is an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, which was chartered by an act of the U.S. Congress.

Persons interested in attending the Rural-Suburban-Urban Connection community conversation are invited to contact the Heartland Center for more information on how to register. Phone 402-474-7667 or 800-927-1115 and ask for Carmen or Betty or send an email to info@heartlandcenter.info.

The community conversation is free to anyone wishing to attend.

Midwest Rural Assembly Convening

2009-08-05T13:28:00.000-07:00

The Midwest Rural Assembly is a group of people and organizations who were already working hard on our own to make a difference for rural through policy change. Now we’re doing it together, with people like you.

The goals of the Midwest Rural Assembly include:

1.Build the capacity and network needed in the Midwest and Great Plains region to move forward the rural policy goals identified in the Rural Compact (ruralcompact.org) and in our regional planning meeting.
2. Within the four areas of the Rural Compact—health, education, natural resources and agriculture, infrastructure/investments – share strategies for addressing regional key concerns and capitalizing on opportunities
3. Include a strong focus on the next generation of rural leaders and citizens, democracy, diversity and social justice.

You can learn more about the Midwest Rural Assembly at http://www.midwestruralassembly.org/

This year's Assembly will be held August 10-11, 2009 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota with two days of workshops and speakers such as Maxine Moul, Nebraska State Director of Rural Development, USDA, Dallas Tonsager, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development, USDA, Dr. Jim Beddow of the Rural Learning Center and Dr. Cornelia Butler Flora, Iowa State University. Milan Wall of the Heartland Center for Leadership Development will be presenting an interactive workshop entitled "Community Leadership and Change."

Community Development Society Annual Meeting

2009-07-27T12:19:00.000-07:00

Milan and Kurt are at the Community Development Society's 41st Annual International Conference in Memphis, Tennessee. We arrived in Memphis on Saturday and the first few days of the conference have been outstanding! Our session on Sunday, July 26th was intensive and included thought provoking conversation and strategy sharing an attracting people to rural areas. See the previous post for detailed information about this session. If you are interested, get in touch with us at the Center and we can provide the session materials.

Once our session was over, it was time to start enjoying what other people were sharing in the field of community development. A sampling of the sessions include titles such as "Engaging Youth in Making Communities Better Places for Young People," "Know Your Region," "A Community Capitals Analysis of Regional Change Initiatives: The South East Alberta Technology Strategy" and "Making Community Visioning Programs More Effective."

Tonight's venue includes and evening at the national Civil Rights Museum, located at the Lorraine Motel, the assassination site of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This museum chronicles key episodes of the American Civil Rights movement and the legacy of this movement to inspire participation in civil human rights efforts globally, through the museum's collections, exhibitions and educational programs. The keynote speaker is Dr. Robert P. Moses, a pivotal organizer for the civil rights movement.

On tomorrow's agenda, we will be attending sessions until 10:30 a.m. At 11:00, buses will be taking people out to the Arkansas Delta for an interactive tour of this unique area that has world class agriculture, vast outdoor recreational activities and is one of the nation's leading logistical centers and producers of steel.

Tucumcari, New Mexio

2009-07-16T12:52:00.001-07:00

Milan and Kurt have conducted some community assessment work for the community of Tucumcari, New Mexico. Tucumcari is located in eastern New Mexico on Interstate 40 and historic route 66. This work consisted of an online community capacity questionnaire, interviews with community residents, a radio interview, a public luncheon and a town hall meeting. The following links from the Quay County Sun discuss this project.

http://www.qcsunonline.com/news/wall-7224-small-towns.html

http://www.qcsunonline.com/news/wall-7230-development-tucumcari.html

http://www.qcsunonline.com/news/tucumcari-7175-survey-economic.html

Rural Tour Blog : weblog

2009-07-14T13:40:00.001-07:00

Rural Tour Blog : weblog

Shared via AddThis

Visions from the Heartland

2009-07-01T13:58:00.000-07:00

The summer 2009 issue of the Heartland Center's quarterly newsletter, Visions from the Heartland is now available. The summer 2009 issue can be accessed at http://h eartlandcenter.info/visionssite/Summer2009/VisionsSum09.pdf

You can also catch up on all of our back issues by clicking on the following link. http://heartlandcenter.info/visionssite/visionstoc.html

2009-06-12T12:29:00.000-07:00

Presenting at Community Development Society Annual Conference

Milan and Kurt will be presenting at pre-conference workshop at the 41st CDS Annual International Conference in Memphis, Tennessee on July 26th, 2009. The full details about this workshop follows.

Workshop Title: Attracting People to Rural Places: What We Know and What Works

In an effort to increase leadership capacity related to a critical issue facing many rural communities, this workshop will address both research and best practices relating to responding pro-actively to rural population decline through “people attraction.” The session will begin with a description of the problem, specifically the long-term and continuous outmigration of, especially, younger people from rural to urban/suburban places. Workshop participants will be asked to share their own stories of outmigration from rural places and its impact on community vitality.

The workshop will continue with a review of recent research indicating what is known about people who are moving to a very rural region of the Northern Great Plains (the Panhandle of Nebraska), what attracts them to this region and what would keep them there. This session of the workshop will be introduced through an interactive design that invites workshop participants to share their personal experiences or information they have gleaned about what brings people to their rural areas and what might motivate them to stay.

The final session in this workshop will share information about best practices, that is, what communities are doing to attract and retain new residents, how alumni lists are being used and what website strategies are being utilized to promote area assets and to target specific audiences of people who are most likely to re-locate to a rural area.

This workshop is proposed as a half-day, interactive experience for workshop presenters, who will take home valuable information they can use to examine their opportunities for attracting new residents to rural areas and for implementing affordable strategies in their communities or regions. It will be designed to increase leadership capacity by strengthening both skills and confidence in the area of people attraction. It will help community development professionals develop the capacity to guide communities in their design and implementation of workable plans to address the problem of rural outmigration.

For more information about the Community Development Society and the rest of the conference, visit their website at comm-dev.org

2009-06-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

Helping Small Towns Succeed
Tools for Community Survival

Barons Creek Conference Center
Fredricksburg, Texas

December 1-3, 2009

This year's content will cover:

Clues to Community Survival
Leadership Styles and Practices
Appreciative Inquiry
Branding Your Community
Building Social Capital
HomeTown Competitiveness

For more information and the full training brochure, visit this site.

http://heartlandcenter.info/documents/HSTS09flyer5-1-09edit_001.pdf

New Edition of Clues to Rural Community Survival

2009-01-15T13:37:00.000-08:00

In this new edition, The Heartland Center updates its classic study of thriving small towns, including the widely cited "20 Clues to Rural Community Survival," a list of characteristics these winning communities emanate. The soft cover edition also features an in-depth profile of 14 communities in 13 states and 2 reservations, and includes a new "how-to" section on using the Clues list in local development efforts.

The Clues are as follows:
1. Evidence of community pride.
2. Emphasis on quality in business and community life.
3. Willingness to invest in the future.
4. Participatory approach to community decision making.
5. Cooperative community spirit.
6. Realistic appraisal of future opportunities.
7. Awareness of competitive positioning.
8. Knowledge of the physical environment.
9. Active economic development program.
10. Deliberate transition of power to a younger generation of leaders.
11. Celebration of diversity in leadership.
12. Strong belief in and support for education.
13. Problem solving approach to providing health care.
14. Strong multi-generational family orientation.
15. Strong presence of traditional institutions that are integral to community life.
16. Attention to sound and well-maintained infrastructure.
17. Careful use of fiscal resources.
18. Sophisticated use of technology resources.
19. Willingness to seek help from the outside.
20. Conviction that, in the long run, you have to do it yourself.

Some of our upcoming trainings

2008-06-18T11:15:00.000-07:00

In addition to programs and services delivered on site in your community, the Heartland Center has offered annual institutes for a national audience of community builders since 1992. These are multi-day events that include lots of interaction, practical hands-on learning and networking.

Helping Small Towns Succeed

Tools for Community Survival

October 21-23, 2008

Billings, MT

Leadership Development
Clues to Community Survival
Appreciative Inquiry
Diversity as an Opportunity
Six Building Blocks of Community Development and Measurement
Building Social Capital

2008-06-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Heartland Center for Leadership Development Blog site. The Heartland Center for Leadership Development is an independent, nonprofit organization developing local leadership that responds to the challenges of the future. You can see more about us at http://www.heartlandcenter.info. It is our hope to use this blog as a venue for discussion, update you on upcoming training and create new and innovative ways in rural and community development.

In commemoration of our latest edition (Summer 2008) of our landmark publication, Clues to Rural Community Survival we are listing the "clues"

1. Evidence of Community Pride

Successful communities are often showplaces of community care and attention, with neatly trimmed yards, public gardens, and well-kept public parks. But pride also shows up in other ways, especially in community festivals and events that give residents the chance to celebrate their community, its history and heritage.

2. Emphasis on Quality in Business and Community Life

People in successful communities believe that something worth doing is worth doing right. Facilities are built to last, and so are homes and other improvements. Newer brick additions to schools are common, for example, and businesses are built or expanded with attention to design and construction detail.

3. Willingness to Invest in the Future

Some of the brick and mortar investments are most apparent, but these communities also invest in their future in other ways. Residents invest time and energy in community improvement projects, and they concern themselves with how what they are doing today will impact on the lives of their children and grandchildren in the future.

4. Participatory Approach to Community Decision Making

Authoritarian models don’t seem to exist in these communities, and power is deliberately shared. People still know who you need on your side to get something done, but even the most powerful of opinion leaders seem to work through the systems–formal as well as informal–to build consensus for what they want to do.

5. Cooperative Community Spirit

Successful rural communities devote more attention to cooperative activities than to fighting over what should be done and by whom. The stress is on working together toward a common goal and the focus is on positive results. They may spend a long time making a decision, and there may be disagreements along the way, but eventually, as one small town leader put it, “stuff does get done.”

6. Realistic Appraisal of Future Opportunities

Many of the communities have already learned an important strategic lesson, namely building on your assets and minimizing your weaknesses. Few small communities believe that they are likely to land a giant industry. Many of them say they wouldn’t want one if it came along, fearing too much dependence on one employer would be dangerous. The successful communities know that a more realistic approach considers the community and the region as the context for future opportunities.

7. Awareness of Competitive Positioning

The thriving communities know who the competition is and so do the businesses. Everyone tries to stress local loyalty as a way to help, but many businesses also keep tabs on their competitors in other towns–they don’t want any of the hometown folks to have an excuse to go elsewhere. This is an area in which the recognition of community assets–people, associations and institutions–is vitally important. The comparison of one town to another is a significant means to spur improvements.

8. Knowledge of the Physical Environment

Importance of location is underscored continuously in local decision-making, as business and civic leaders picture their community in relation to others. Beyond location, however, communities must also be familiar with what they have locally. For example, the issue of preservation and protection of natural resources must be balanced with development options. Communities that manage this balance have a long-term approach to both environmental preservation and economic development.

9. Active Economic Development Program

An organized and active approach to economic development is common in successful communities. This type of approach depends on public and private sector resources working hand in hand. Private economic development corporations are common, either as a subcommittee or an outgrowth of a Chamber of Commerce or commercial club. However, it’s clear that the most successful towns emphasize retaining and expanding existing businesses as well as trying to develop new businesses. This is a “gardening not hunting” model of economic development

10. Deliberate Transition of Power to a Younger Generation of Leaders

Young leadership is more the rule than the exception in thriving rural communities. In many cases, these young people grew up in town and decided to stay or returned later to raise a family. In just as many situations, they are people who have decided to make a life in the community even though they grew up elsewhere. However, it’s typical in a successful community to have a formal or informal means for established leaders to bring new recruits into public service.

11. Celebration of Diversity in Leadership

Women, minorities, youth and newcomers are encouraged and welcomed into leadership circles where their ideas are treated as opportunities for exploration of new ways to improve community-building, not as threats to the “way it’s always been done.” The community welcomes new people, new ideas and new ways of doing things as it moves along a strategic path to greater success and enhanced sustainability.

12. Strong Belief in and Support of Education

Good schools are a point of pride as well as a stable employment force, and rural community leaders are very much aware of their school’s importance. However, this characteristic goes beyond the K-12 system to include an approach to life long learning that puts education at the center of many community activities. Whether adult education is targeted at skills and job performance or hobbies and recreation, the successful community makes the most of education at all levels.

13. Problem-Solving Approach to Providing Health Care

Local health care is a common concern in rural communities, but strategies for delivery vary, depending on community needs. While one community may decide that keeping a doctor in residence should be the priority, another may choose to train as many people as possible as EMTs or to use telecommunications to augment a clinic. The point here is the variety of solutions to a common problem.

14. Strong Multi-Generational Family Orientation

These are family-oriented communities, with activities often built around family needs and ties. But the definition of family is broad, and it includes younger as well as older generations and people new to the community. A typical example of this attitude is the provision of child care for community town hall meetings, thus allowing young families to attend.

15. Strong Presence of Traditional Institutions that are Integral to Community Life

Churches are often the strongest force in this characteristic, but other types of community institutions such as newspapers and radio stations, hospitals and schools fill this role also. Service clubs retain a strong influence in social activities as well as in community improvement efforts.

16. Sound and Well-Maintained Infrastructure

Thriving rural communities understand the importance of physical infrastructures–such as streets, sidewalks, water systems, sewage treatment plants–and efforts are made to maintain and improve them. In these communities, a clean-up day includes public parks and playgrounds, business owners keep sidewalks repaired, and volunteer labor and donated materials go a long way to maintaining public buildings.

17. Careful Use of Fiscal Resources

Frugality is a way of life in successful small communities, and expenditures are made carefully. People aren’t afraid to spend money, when they believe they should, and then, typically, things are built to last. But neither are they spendthrifts. Expenditures are often seen as investments in the future of the community.

18. Sophisticated Use of Technology Resources

Rural community leaders are knowledgeable about their communities beyond the information base available in the community. In an increasing number of places, high-speed Internet access is revolutionizing all types of information access. Today, the applications of technology are so widespread in business, health care, education and recreation that the capacity of small towns to make use of these resources seems to be a strong indicator of success.

19. Willingness to Seek Help from the Outside

There’s little reluctance to seek help from outside resources. These communities understand the system of accessing resources, ranging from grants for infrastructure improvement to expertise about human service programs. Competing for such resources successfully is a source of pride for local leaders.

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. They are not waiting for some outsider to save them, nor do they believe that they can sit and wait for things to get better. Making a hometown a good place to live for a long time to come is a proactive assignment, and these local leaders know that no one will take care of a town as well as the people who live there.

650 J Street, Suite 305-C

Lincoln, NE 68508

Telephone: 402-474-7667