October 2007 – Volume V, Number 9

Compiled by Deb Miller Slipek

IN THIS ISSUE
--Funding
--Meetings
--Training
--Opportunities
--Miscellaneous

The Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission on Friday announced a contest in which five communities will serve as an honorary "Capital for a Day" during 2008

Citizens are being asked to send in nominations "to help showcase communities across Minnesota and to embrace Minnesota's vast environmental, geographic and cultural diversity," the commission said when it announced the contest.

The winners will be determined by online voting.

The five, along with the regions they represent, will be showcased in the months ahead and during "Statehood Week," which begins May, 11, 2008, the 150th anniversary of when Minnesota became the nation's 32nd state.

Capitals for a Day may be a small town, regional center, township, reservation, multiple communities, or an entire county.

One location will be chosen to represent for each of the following regions (natural areas still in place and present before European settlement):

• The coniferous forest zone of northeastern Minnesota.
• The deciduous forest zone, running diagonally northwest to southeast down the middle of Minnesota
• The prairie grasslands, running north/south on the western border of Minnesota.
• The tallgrass aspen parklands of northwestern Minnesota.
• The driftless area of southeastern Minnesota.

To nominate a community between now and November 7, go to www.mn150years.org, and be sure to vote for the Capitals for a Day between Nov 11 and 24 at that same website.

FUNDING

--Electronic Health Records Revolving Loans available October 1. Applications are being accepted for no-interest six-year loans to help finance the installation or support of interoperable health record systems. Funding is available first-come, first-served to eligible applicants, including community clinics, rural hospitals, and physician clinics in towns with populations under 50,000, nursing facilities, and other health care provider or services. Information on the Electronic Health Record System Revolving Loan Program is online (http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/funding/index.html#ehrloan) or contact Karen Welle at (651) 201-3865 or by email at karen.welle@health.state.mn.us.

--MPCA Environmental Assistance Grants are annual grants that provide financial assistance for the development of environmentally sustainable products and practices in Minnesota through voluntary partnerships and goal-oriented, economically-driven approaches to pollution prevention and resource conservation. Proposals will be accepted within these categories:

Preventing Waste and Pollution at the Source
Creating More Sustainable Communities
Developing and Expanding Markets for Underutilized Materials
High Impact Integrated Environmental Improvements

Project proposals are preferred in the areas of office paper, resource management contracting, groceries, Design for Environment, green chemistry, volume-base pricing, green building, water conservation, citizen education, glass, ag plastics, sheetrock, shingles, large-scale events and venues, and organization-wide programs. These grants are available to individuals and public and private entities. At least $350,000 is available with the maximum grants being $40,000 and $75,000.  Four-page pre-proposals are due October 29, 2007.  For more information go to: http://www.pca.state.mn.us/grants/eagrants.html

--The Target Field Trip Grant Program will award grants to schools across the United States for field trips in the spring of 2008. Up to 1,600 grants of up to $1,000 each will be awarded. The deadline is November 1. For more information, visit http://sites.target.com/site/en/corporate/page.jsp?contentId=PRD03-004090

--The America's Promise Alliance and Capital One have announced the 2008 “100 Best Communities for Young People Competition” with a call for entries from U.S. communities considering themselves the best places for young people to live and grow up. Winners will range from large urban cities to small rural towns.  All applicants will be eligible to apply for a total of $300,000 in grants from the alliance. The deadline is November 2. For more information, visit http://www.americaspromise.org/

--The Minnesota Rural Pharmacy Planning and Transition Grant Program is intended to preserve access to prescription medication and a pharmacist in rural areas. Rural communities and health care facilities are eligible. Applications are due November 16. Information is online (http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/funding/index.html#pharmacy) or contact Doug Benson at doug.benson@health.state.mn.us or (651) 201-3842.

--The Rural Hospital Capital Improvement pre-applications are due November 16. Forms and instructions are online (http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/funding/index.html#rural).  For more information contact Doug Benson at doug.benson@health.state.mn.us or (651) 201-3842.

--Safe Routes to School is a Minnesota Department of Transportation grant program for infrastructure improvements, such as bike racks and sidewalks, and for non-infrastructure programs such as developing Safe Routes Plans, enforcement, and promoting biking and walking to and from school.  Schools with any combination of K-8 enrollment are eligible. Grants range from $10,000 to $175,000 and there is $1.9 million available.

Applications due November 16, 2007.  For more information go to: http://www.dot.state.mn.us/saferoutes/index.html

--HECUA is announcing 2008 Partners Internship Program request for proposals.  The Partners Internship Program (PIP) provides internship grants to nonprofit organizations in Minnesota, North Dakota and northwestern Wisconsin. HECUA (Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs) administers the program, which was created and is funded by the Otto Bremer Foundation. Each recipient organization hires an undergraduate student who manages a project designed by the organization. With this grant, interns are paid to work full time for 400 hours or 10 weeks during the summer.

Twenty nonprofit organizations will be awarded PIP grants for Summer 2008. HECUA (Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs) provides training and internship support for both the organization and the interns before, during, and after the internship. Organizations that received a PIP grant in 2005, 2006, or 2007 are not eligible to receive a PIP grant for 2008.  Deadline to apply: November 27, 2007

Upcoming information sessions:
Fargo, ND- Wednesday, October 31st
Grand Forks, ND Friday, November 2nd
For more information: Please visit http://www.hecua.org/pip.php or email pip@hecua.org.

--The NFL Youth Football Fund Grassroots Program, a partnership of the National Football League Youth Football Fund and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation provides nonprofit, neighborhood-based organizations with financial and technical assistance to improve the quality, safety, and accessibility of local football fields. Applicants may request a maximum of $200,000 for capital improvements. All applicants must be located specifically and exclusively within NFL Target Markets and serve low- to moderate-income areas within those markets. The deadline is November 30. Visit www.lisc.org  for more information, including a list of NFL Target Markets.

--Applications are open until December 1 for fiscal year 2009 Office of Rural Health and Primary Care Loan Forgiveness Programs for health professionals. Information is online (http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/funding/loans/index.html) or contact Amy Vallery at amy.vallery@health.state.mn.us or (651) 201-3870.

MEETINGS

--Official Minnesota Statehood Sesquicentennial Coordinating Mini-Conference: October 24, 2007 in Roseville.  If you are planning any activity, event, program, project or other efforts related to the upcoming Minnesota Sesquicentennial between now and the end of December, 2008, you are strongly encouraged to attend the official Sesquicentennial Coordinating Mini-Conference on October 24 at the Roseville City Hall. There is no charge.

There are two time slots available on October 24: from 10 a.m. to noon and then repeated from 1 to 3 p.m. Parking is free and directions to City Hall are at http://www.ci.roseville.mn.us/index.asp?nid=806.  If you cannot attend, you still must register your event, program, or activity by using the form available on the Sesquicentennial website, www.mn150years.org.  

Please RSVP to Karen Rickert at 651-296-1870 or karen@mn150years.org.

--Will Steger will speak on Global Warming at Concordia College on November 5. There will be a public forum on global warming with polar explorer Will Steger from 8:00 pm to 9:30 pm at the Concordia College Memorial Auditorium, 901 8th Street S, Moorhead. The forum is free and open to the public. Will Steger is Minnesota’s own eyewitness to global warming’s effects on the polar region. Hear his first hand accounts of the changes observed in these areas. Fresh Energy’s J. Drake Hamilton will describe effective global warming solutions for individuals, organizations, congregations, businesses and governments. Faith reflections will be offered by ELCA Bishop Lawrence Wohlrabe.

TRAINING

--Blandin Broadband Pre-Conference Webinars.  Join us for one or all three of these “FREE” webinars sponsored by the Blandin Foundation!  This series is perfect for economic development commissioners or elected officials to learn more about telecommunications and its impact on economic development. http://www.blandinfoundation.org/BBConf07/webinars.html

Confirm your registration by sending a note to dpfeifer@minnesotaruralpartners.org

Webinar Dates and Topics remaining
October 31st  Web 2.0 Applications

Webinar Times
8:30 – 9:30 AM

Webinar Instructions
Our webinars are internet and conference call based. It’s easy…
Internet: Click on this link to join us via the web: https://umconnect.umn.edu/blandinwebinar
Conference Call:
Dial: 866-316-1519
Passcode: 14223904

--The Real State of the Union: The Federal Budget Landscape Webinar on Wednesday, October 24 from 1 - 2 p.m.  Federal funding is an important source of revenue for many nonprofits and for many critical services in our communities. How do persistent federal budget deficits threaten the quality of life in our communities? How do tax cuts limit the nation’s ability of address urgent priorities? What can we do to put America’s fiscal house in order through sensible budget and tax reforms? Presented by the Minnesota Budget Project (http://www.mncn.org/bp/index.htm), an initiative of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.
Fee: $35 for MCN members/ $50 for nonmembers.  Registration: Register online  http://nonprofityellowpages.org/cgi-bin/merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=MCONOS&Category_Code=WAT (please note that registration for all webinars is online only.) 

OPPORTUNITIES

--The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) is sponsoring a Veterans Job Fair for veterans and their spouses in collaboration with the President's National HireVetsFirst Campaign. The event will be on November 6 from 11:00a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Earle Brown Center located at 6155 Earl Brown Drive in Brooklyn Center.  Employers are being recruited statewide for this event.  For further information to participate, either as an employer or a job seeker, please call Gary Quernemoen at 763-785-6465 or visit http://www.mdva.state.mn.us/Events/index.htm.

MISCELLANEOUS

--Sesquicentennial Exhibit Launches at Minnesota History Center--The Minnesota Historical Society is giving you 150 good reasons to talk nice about Minnesota. Visit the "MN150" exhibit at the Minnesota History Center and experience the people, places and things that helped shape our great state - like our own Prince Rogers Nelson of Minneapolis. While you’re there, take the interactive quiz and see just how Minnesota-smart you are. It’s a smorgasbord of iconic proportions! See http://www.mnhs.org/exhibits/mn150/

--Rural America at a Glance, 2007 Edition highlights the most recent indicators of social and economic conditions in rural areas for use in developing policies and programs to assist rural areas. The brochure provides information on key rural conditions and trends for use by public and private decision-makers and others involved in efforts to enhance the economic opportunities and quality of life for rural people and their communities. See http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/EIB31/

CREATIVE CLASS COUNTY CODES

The creative class thesis—that towns need to attract engineers, architects, artists, and people in other creative occupations to compete in today's economy—may be particularly relevant to rural communities, which tend to lose much of their talent when young adults leave. The ERS creative class codes indicate a county's share of population employed in occupations that require "thinking creatively." A separate break-out of employment in the arts is also included. Data are provided for all counties in the U.S. for 1990 and 2000.

Released Wednesday, October 17, 2007 See http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/CreativeClassCodes/

--Updated the CRA Manual, to reflect the recent changes to the regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act.  This manual explains to community groups and other stakeholders how CRA works and how to use CRA to increase access to capital and credit for working class and minority neighborhoods. This link will take you to the CRA Manual and also to fact sheets about the home and small business data -- http://www.ncrc.org/policy/cra.php.   

--The Housing Assistance Council (HAC) has issued a report on rural immigration trends and assessing the impact of a growing foreign-born population on housing conditions in rural communities. Immigration and Housing in Rural America is free at http://www.ruralhome.org/manager/uploads/Immigration2007.pdf or $5.00 from Luz Rosas, HAC, 202-842-8600 ext. 137, luz@ruralhome.org .

--How the Government Defines Rural has Implications for Education Policies and Practices. This report identifies and explains the uses of the six definitions and classification systems for "rural" that are commonly applied in different contexts through federal and state governments. The authors, Michael L. Arnold, et al, highlight the implications of these definitions for public policies and practices in education. It is available at http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/southwest/pdf/REL_2007010.pdf.

--The Fall issue of Community Investments, which focuses on youth and education, is now available at: http://www.frbsf.org/publications/community/investments/0709/index.html

Articles in this issue:
* Back to School: Prioritizing Education in Community Development Efforts
* The Power of Preschool: Early Investment Yields Solid Returns
* The Economics of Early Childhood Development as Seen by Two Fed Economists
* Linking Community Development and School Improvement: An Interview with Professor Mark Warren
* The Community Development and Education Connection

Minnesota Rural Partners is a nonprofit organization. Donations are tax deductible.

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