Latest Updates from ruralprosperityne.unl.edu

Each summer, college students from around the Midwest live and work in rural Nebraska communities as part of the Rural Fellows program. During the 10-week program, students work with local leaders and business owners to meet locally identified goals for community improvement. Applications are now open for communities to host Rural Fellows for summer 2022.

Lincoln, Nebraska, Sept. 22, 2021—On any given weekend in Nebraska, one can visit 100-plus farmers markets and purchase dozens of varieties of locally grown fruits and vegetables. Or stop by one of hundreds of roadside stands or dozens of you-pick operations. Nebraska grows a lot more than cattle and corn. But most of what Nebraska students eat doesn’t come from the state.

The decision to form a cooperative has been made. While the Nebraska Cooperative Development Center encourages the engagement of legal counsel to guide this process, the steering team and future board of directors should know which questions to ask to ensure that the cooperative is legally structured, and that legal procedures are followed as the cooperative begins operations and policy decisions are made.

What are the legal documents required in Nebraska to establish your cooperative?

One community is innovative in addressing long-term issues and situations related to quality of life, economic impact, and demographic renewal.  Another community is not. What is the difference? What can communities do to be ready for change?  What role can Extension play in helping a community address complex situations such as identifying new leaders, being competitive in a digital economy, creating healthy communities, or attracting new populations and retaining exciting community members? One key to success is assessing community readiness for change.

Rural Prosperity Nebraska is offering 10 grants, up to $5,000 each, focused on community development. By coupling University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty with Husker students, the RPN Competitive Grants Program continues a tradition of faculty- and student-led community engagement and service-learning programming.

“Community engagement and service-learning efforts foster opportunities to establish partnerships among faculty, students and community organizations,” said Dave Varner, interim dean of Nebraska Extension.

For many Nebraskans, life during the pandemic slowed down. But not in Schuyler. During the past year, Schuyler residents teamed up with Rural Prosperity Nebraska educators to breathe new life into their community.

 

Cheryl Brandenburgh, Schuyler’s economic development director, connected with Kurt Mantonya, a Nebraska Extension educator. Mantonya runs the Leading Locally program, aimed at strengthening rural communities, and Brandenburgh felt like it was a natural fit for Schuyler.

Tori Pedersen, a senior in Agricultural Leadership at the University of Lincoln–Nebraska, spent her summer as a Rural Fellow in Lexington—a town literally 50 times smaller than her hometown of Omaha. And she couldn’t have enjoyed it more.

 

What was it like moving to Dawson County?

August 6, 2021

For the past 10 weeks, 34 college students from Nebraska and Kansas have participated in an immersive internship program in 17 rural communities across Nebraska.

Known as Rural Fellows, these students worked with local leaders on improving their communities. Projects included mapping out trail systems, creating a library of small-business promotional videos, downtown revitalization efforts and movie nights in community parks.

If you walked down Plainview’s Locust Street in 2018, you would’ve passed a lot of dark windows and empty storefronts. Growth had been stagnant for almost 10 years, and the community was struggling. Susan Norris was hired to change that.

“There was a real disconnect between the city and the people,” said Norris, director of Pierce County Economic Development.

Making the switch to clean energy is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor. John Hay, a Nebraska Extension educator who conducts workshops on solar energy, helps individuals make the decision that best suits their home, farm, ranch or business.

“Success isn’t always choosing to install solar,” he said. “Success is doing a good analysis of the resources to make the best decision.”

“Follow your passion,” says Sandra Barrera, associate extension educator with Nebraska Extension. She tells this to every new business owner she helps. And she means it, because every day she follows hers.

 

Lincoln, Neb., May 19, 2021 – Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, an Extension educator of agricultural economics, has received the Distinguished Career Award from the National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals for her nearly 40 years of service to community development. The award ceremony, which honors one recipient annually, concluded NACDEP’s 2021 conference, which was held virtually this year.

 

Lincoln, Neb. —Working in pairs or trios, 35 University of Nebraska–Lincoln students will take part in the Rural Fellowship program while living and working in 17 communities across the state this summer.

During their 10-week residence, the fellows will collaborate with local leaders on improving the communities. Project goals include strengthening the communities’ web presence, attracting entrepreneurs, and developing city parks and trails.

On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law by President Biden. ARPA provides direct relief to all 19,000 cities, towns and villages across the United States affected by COVID-19. The purpose of ARPA is to support pandemic recovery efforts, replace public sector lost revenue, spur job growth, jump start economic growth through household and business stabilization and address systemic public health and economic challenges.

On April 22nd, the U.S. Small Business Administration released guidelines for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RFF), a fund that is part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.  The Act appropriated $28.6 billion dollars for restaurant industry focused funds.  Recipients do not need to repay the awarded funds as long as the monies are used for eligible expenses by March 11, 2023.

Declining rural populations have been making the news for decades. There is little doubt that the trend line of the most rural counties across the country has been down (2020, Cromartie).  Nearly 35 percent of the rural counties within the United States have experienced prolonged and significant population loss (Johnson & Lichter, 2019). 

Last year, the Nebraska Rural Poll celebrated its 25th anniversary. This year will be another special milestone for the survey. Within the next month, the Rural Poll will once again arrive in mailboxes of 7,000 Nebraskans living in rural parts of the state, just as it has each year since 1996. However, this year 7,000 households in the metropolitan parts of Nebraska will also receive the same survey.

What do great business builders have in common? Are there talents that can be strengthened to help individuals become better builders? Can these talents be used to help local organizations become more successful in building community? The answer is a definite yes!

Gallup Inc.®, a leading research company located in Omaha, conducted a comprehensive research study with more than 4,000 entrepreneurs from across the globe. Their goal was to gain a better understanding of the actions and behaviors that lead to successful business creation and growth.

Cornhusker Economics February 10, 2021
Payroll Protection Program Increases Eligibility

By Marilyn Schlake and Austin Duerfeldt