Ten Rural Partnerships Chosen for National Effort to Rethink and Revitalize Economies in Rural Communities

COLUMBUS, Ind., Aug. 20, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ten partnerships have been selected by CivicLab to participate in a three-year incubator to rethink and revitalize their communities by strengthening rural higher education and employment systems. Communities participating in this effort are from states across the country, including Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Montana, North Carolina, Ohio, and South Carolina. Supported by Ascendium Education Group and ECMC Foundation, the $2.6M grant initiative provides training, technical assistance, and direct financial support for system-level strategies that create stronger education-to-employment pathways aligned to future economies. After a national call for proposals, ten rural partnerships were selected through a rigorous review process. The communities selected showed a readiness to focus on rural redevelopment in order to strengthen the communities they call home for the future. Each partnership includes higher education institutions, nonprofit organizations, employers, public agencies, economic development agencies, and other local stakeholders that work together to improve education and workforce outcomes. To be selected, partnerships were required to submit prior work and future plans that demonstrate the community's readiness to achieve systems change. "We were fortunate to receive many strong applications from interested communities," said Amber Fischvogt, director at CivicLab. "The ten that were selected brought together the necessary partners in their community and demonstrated their readiness for a new type of conversation about rural talent development and systems building." The rural partnerships selected for the initiative include: Berkeley Chamber Rural Initiative – Berkeley County, S.C.Convening Organization: Berkeley Chamber Educational OutreachFocus: Berkeley, Charleston, & Dorchester Counties Community Education Coalition – Bartholomew County, Ind.Convening Organization: Columbus Learning Center Management CorporationFocus: 8-county region in south central Indiana Expect More Tehama – Tehama County, Calif.Convening Organization: Expect More TehamaFocus: Tehama County FutureMakers Coalition at Collaboratory – Southwest Florida, Fla.Convening Organization: CollaboratoryFocus: Hendry and Glades Counties IMPACT Independence – Independence County, Ark.Convening Organization: IMPACT Independence Focus: Independence County