Rural Matters

In the second installment of our latest series with Ascendium, Michael chats with the following experts on the intersection of community college and rural economic growth: Dr. Greg Hodges, President of Patrick & Henry Community College; Josh Wyner, Founder and Executive Director of the College Excellence Program at the Aspen Institute; and Ben Barrett, Senior Program Manager with the College Excellence Program at the Aspen Institute. The group discusses how community colleges are advancing rural economic mobility, preparing students for job opportunities, revitalizing rural postsecondary enrollment, and much more. This episode, and the entire series, is sponsored by Ascendium Education Group. For more information, visit www.ascendiumeducation.org and www.ascendiumphilanthropy.org.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this episode, Michael chats with Cara James, President and CEO of Grantmakers in Health (GIH), an educational organization dedicated to helping funders achieve better health for all through better philanthropy. Together, they discuss GIH’s work to support rural populations, combatting racial and socioeconomic disparities in rural health, philanthropy’s role in closing workforce gaps in rural communities, and much more. This episode is sponsored by GIH. For more information, visit www.gih.org.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this fifth and final episode of our series on the future of investing in rural prosperity, produced in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Michael chats with the following experts on achieving rural prosperity in America: Tony Pipa, Senior Fellow at the Center for Sustainable Development at the Brookings Institution; Ines Polonius, CEO of Communities Unlimited, Inc.; and Jen Giovannitti, President and Trustee of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

Together, they discuss how federal policy affects and could further support rural communities, why taking a holistic approach to rural development is key to realizing prosperity, how philanthropy and purposeful rural investment can drive rural economic growth, and much more. This episode, and the entire five-part series, is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. For more information, visit www.stlouisfed.org.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In the first episode of our new series with Ascendium, Michael chats with the following experts on working toward stronger educational and workforce outcomes in rural communities: Kirstin Yeado, Program Officer at Ascendium; Jeffrey West, Executive Director of Education to Employment Partners; Dakota Pawlicki, Director of Talent Hubs at CivicLab; Justin Burch, National Director of Workforce and Small Business at Rural Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC); and Will Coppage, Executive Director of the Washington County Economic Alliance.

The group discusses goals surrounding achieving better postsecondary opportunities and outcomes, how they’re utilizing meaningful partnerships and working toward those objectives, creating pathways to educational and professional success, and much more. This episode, and the entire series, is sponsored by Ascendium. For more information, visit www.ascendiumeducation.org.

To learn more about Ascendium’s research projects that address gaps in evidence for rural learner postsecondary education and workforce success, visit www.ascendiumphilanthropy.org/our-grantmaking/building-evidence-to-increase-rural-learner-success.

For more information on the initiatives mentioned by our guests in this episode, please visit the following links:
www.rurallearningsystems.org
www.upskillcoastalbend.org
wceams.com/jobs
www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6A816bIruI

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this fourth episode of our five-part series on the future of investing in rural prosperity, produced in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Michael chats with the following experts on achieving rural prosperity in America: Chrystel Cornelius, President and CEO of the Oweesta Corporation; Nikki Foster, Program Officer at the Northwest Area Foundation; Jonelle Yearout, Executive Director of the Nimiipuu Community Development Fund; and Stacia Morfin, Owner of Nez Perce Tourism and Traditional Gift Shop.

Together, they discuss efforts in advancing rural and, specifically, Native prosperity, increased investment in Native community growth, the value of partnerships in working toward rural and Native prosperity, and much more. This episode, and the entire five-part series, is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. For more information, visit www.stlouisfed.org.

This episode’s guests can be reached at their respective email addresses, as follows:
Chrystel Cornelius: [email protected]
Nikki Foster: [email protected]
Jonelle Yearout: [email protected]
Stacia Morfin: [email protected]

Congratulations to Chrystel Cornelius for being honored as a Heinz Award winner in the Economy category! Each year, the Heinz Awards recognize individuals making contributions to the arts, the economy, and the environment. Cornelius is one of this year’s six awardees and is being recognized “for her work to return wealth and financial independence to Native lands and people, addressing centuries of disenfranchisement that have led to profound socioeconomic disparities for Native communities.” To read more about Cornelius’ accomplishment, visit www.heinzawards.org/pages/chrystel-cornelius.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this episode, Michael chats with Mike Lowers, Senior Customer Success Manager, Central U.S., and Kristin Martinez, Clinical Director, SLP and OT, both of Presence, a digital therapy provider founded in 2009. They discuss school-based teletherapy and how new initiatives and approaches to teletherapy are fostering greater engagement, efficiency, and well-being across the rural school landscape. This episode is sponsored by Presence, presencelearning.com.

In this third episode of our five-part series on the future of investing in rural prosperity, produced in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Michael chats with the following experts on achieving rural prosperity in America: Kaying Hang, Senior Vice President of Programs and Partnerships at the Sierra Health Foundation and The Center at Sierra Health Foundation; Tom Collishaw, CEO of Self-Help Enterprises; Jesus Martinez, Director of the Central Valley Immigrant Integration Collaborative; and Susana De Anda, Co-founder and Executive Director of the Community Water Center.

They discuss overcoming challenges in rural affordable housing and infrastructure, building collaborative partnerships, philanthropic efforts, serving immigrants, legislative issues, and much more. This episode, and the entire five-part series, is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. For more information, visit www.stlouisfed.org.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this second installment of our five-part series on the future of investing in rural prosperity, produced in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Michael chats with the following experts on investing rural prosperity in America: Noel Poyo, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Economic Development at the Treasury Department; Christiana McFarland, Director of the Center for Innovation Strategy and Policy (CISP) at SRI International; and Daniel Paul Davis, Vice President and Community Affairs Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

They discuss inclusive development in various types of rural communities, regional collaboration and economic connectivity, advancing shared prosperity in rural America, and much more. This episode, and the entire five-part series, is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. For more information, visit www.stlouisfed.org.

The views stated by podcast guests do not necessarily reflect those of our sponsors.

In this first episode of a new five-part series on the future of investing in rural prosperity, produced in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Michael chats with the following experts on achieving rural prosperity in America: Linda Lobao, Professor Emeritus in Rural Sociology and Distinguished Professor in Food, Agriculture, and Environment Sciences at The Ohio State University; Daniel Lichter, Ferris Family Professor Emeritus of Life Course Studies in the Cornell Brooks School of Public Policy at Cornell University; and Jose Enrique Garcilazo, Head of Regional and Rural Unit at the Center for Entrepreneurships, SMEs, Regions, and Cities at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

They discuss the role of local governments in achieving rural prosperity, how new immigrant groups may provide a demographic and economic lifeline to depopulating rural areas, the changing racial and ethnic composition of rural America, and the reception of local people and the business community to changing rural demographics. This episode, and the entire five-part series, is sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis and the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. For more information, visit www.stlouisfed.org. 

Visit bit.ly/3tIelpx to read Lichter’s article, “Opportunity and Place: Latino Children and America’s Future,” published in The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.

The views expressed by the podcast guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, or the Federal Reserve System.

In the final installment of our six-part series on continuing rural postsecondary education and workforce development, produced in collaboration with and supported by the Ascendium Education Group, Michael chats with two education leaders who are doing some amazing work with rural colleges: Jeb Puryear, the Suzanne and Dave Peterson Endowed Professor of Gifted Education at the University of Montana and a former secondary science teacher and program coordinator who primarily studies creativity, talent development mechanisms, and programmatic inequities in educational settings; and Jonathan Plucker, the Julian C. Stanley Professor of Talent Development at Johns Hopkins University and a former elementary school science teacher who studies education policy, creativity, and advanced learning in both K–12 and higher education settings.

Puryear and Plucker discuss place-based education and how it relates to rural education. They dive into the importance of data, the student shift from rural to urban settings, and how rural education programs can help to improve outcomes. Plus, they outline several examples of successful programs (e.g. Appalachian Studies at Appalachian State and The Nebraska Writing Project at the University of Nebraska). This episode, and the entire six-part series, is sponsored by the Ascendium Education Group, whose philanthropy aims to remove systemic barriers faced by certain learners, specifically first-generation students, incarcerated adults, veterans, students of color, and rural community members. For more information, visit ascendiumphilanthropy.org.