2010 Southern Region Convening

         

Agenda   |   Program Summary  |   Thank You to an Outstanding Group of Speakers  |   Meet the Multi-State Planning Group

Thank You Southern Rural Development Center Mississippi State University for taking registrations
 

Speaker presentations . . . click for  Power Points

 Mary Randolph introduced Convening attendees to the Amazing Maisie  . . . . Watch the video   Amazing Maisie


Southern Region States with State Rural Development Councils - Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia

Council for Rural Virginia   Rural Maryland Council   North Carolina Department of Commerce   South Carolina Rural Development Council  Texas Rural Partners
 

Leaders from throughout a fourteen state Southern Region met May 11-12, 2010 at the Harris Conference Center, Charlotte, NC

to establish stronger partnerships among key participants at the cross-state and regional levels and to encourage communities to work together regionally.
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to expand and strengthen regional partnership building
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to improve regional collaboration
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to enhance rural policy delivery
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to focus on the economy in multi-county regions through stronger collaboration and strategic planning



Connecting Regional Partners ~ Network Collaboration

 An Outstanding Group of Speakers Addressed:

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Economic Development – Education & Skills for Job Creation
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Workforce Development – Rethinking Skill Development for Markets
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Energy: Advancing Efficiency - Generation for Fuel Development
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Broadband - Global Opportunities & Rural Lifestyles

 

 

Expected Outcome

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A transforming effect on the Southern Region

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Create partnerships - Collaborate across county, region and state lines
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Develop sound strategy for community and economic development

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Encourage entrepreneurial activity and new business development
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Learn what the major issues are and how they are impacting the Southern Region
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Equip attendees with ideas and tools to improve the quality of life in their local area
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Develop policy issues around the areas of concern

 

Thank you to the Harris Conference Center, Charlotte, NC staff -  More information »

Thank you to the hotel staff at the Wingate by Wyndham, Charlotte I-77 at Tyvola Road

 

 


 This Convening laid the foundation for a process based on action and productive partnerships!  

 

Attendees agree: To build the economy of the Southern Region, we must think regionally with a focus on joint action and solutions rather than debating on process and responsibilities.

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Strong commitments and support from all partners including local, regional and state government are critical to the process.

 

The Communication base was established and the network of attendees accepted the charged to take more than a message home.
 

·        Projects were defined and action steps laid out.

Collectively the Southern Region must share:

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A common commitment from all the key stakeholders to working together

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Community ownership and commitment to develop solutions at the local level

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Conscious effort to improve communication on a regular and ongoing basis


Collaboratively the Southern Region must focus on regional management in order to:
 

·    Define issues that require integrated responses through assessment and project design that reflects and builds on existing strengths
 

·    Promote enthusiasm and commitment by building capacity and promoting a cooperative approach to addressing the problems and issues facing rural America
 

·    Clearly defined objectives and strategies with wise management of limited resources
 

·    Promote action by ensuring timely and effective implementation of sustainable solutions.
 

Who we expected and who came!

USDA National, state and local

Partners for Rural America

State Rural Development Directors

State Rural Development Boards

Rural Regional Center Directors

R C & D Councils

Planning Districts

Economic Development

Colleges/Universities, Community Colleges
throughout the Southern Region

Partner Organizations

State/local government

Cross-section of Southern Region Rural Leaders
 

 

All rights reserved ©

  - - - questions email

Ward W. Stevens

Chairman, Council for Rural Virginia
 

Senator Frank M. Ruff, Jr.

Chairman, Center for Rural Virginia


 

Glen C. Sink
Executive Director, Va Rural Center

Thelma Burris

Director/Southwest - Va Rural Center
 

 

PowerPoint Presentations

Opening sessions and some of the Convening speakers did not use PowerPoint. . .Scroll down for those who did.

  Mary Randolph, Executive Director, talked to the group about Partners for Rural America- PRA    Learn about PRA

    She also introduced Convening attendees to the Amazing Maisie  . . . . Play the video  Amazing Maisie
 

Glen C. Sink, Southern Region PRA Chair & Executive Director, Council for Rural Virginia 
 
Ellen Matthews Davis, Virginia State Director-USDA Rural Development, Council for Rural Virginia Board of Directors;
Co-Chair Strategic Rural Partners for Community Capacity
 
Dr. Oliver McBride, Executive Director, Crossroads Institute; Past Chairman, Council for Rural Virginia and Current
Advisor to the Council Board of Directors
 
Welcome conveyed by the Honorable Frank M. Ruff, Jr. on behalf of Governor Robert F. McDonnell of Virginia 


Keynote Speaker:  Cheryl Cook, Deputy Under Secretary Rural Development U.S. Department of Agriculture

Ms. Cook was appointed by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack as Deputy Under Secretary for USDA Rural Development. 
She manages policies and programs in Rural Development's three main areas: Business and Cooperatives, Housing and
Community Facilities, and Utilities.

 

Ferrel Guillory, Director for Public Life, Center for the Study of the American South located at the UNC – Chapel Hill

   Strengthening Partnerships through Network Collaboration

 
Economic Development – Education & Skills for Job Creation

 

Matt Chase - President of National Association of Development Organizations - NADO

   Regional Innovation Strategies Are Key to the Future of Rural and Small Town America
 

Jonathan Watts Hull - Southern Legislative Conference
 

Visualizing the Network -
 Isolation is the standard operating procedure for too many rural entrepreneurs, businesses and communities.  Individuals, organizations, and businesses do their work without coordination or collaboration, perpetuating patterns of disconnection that contribute to asset and information deficits.  New approaches to rural economic development--ones that consider the total asset base of a community and intentionally organize around the breaking of barriers to total community involvement, offer a solution to this.  Building this three-dimensional network requires the efforts and commitment of a range of public and private partners.
 

Senator Frank M. Ruff, Jr., Senate of Virginia

Virginia’s State/Federal Rural Coalition - cfrv

Roanoke River Basin Bi-State Commission serving Virginia & North Carolina

 

Jim Clinton, CEO, Cenla Advantage Partnership

Cenla Advantage Partnership (CAP) provides knowledge - tools - leadership for the economic prosperity of Central Louisiana

Jim Clinton - bio
 
Workforce Development – Rethinking Skills Development

 

Ron Painter - President of National Association of Workforce Boards NAWB

  National Association of Workforce Boards

 

Gerald A. Doeksen, Director, National Center for Rural Health Works

   Regents Professor and Extension Economist Oklahoma State University

    Healthcare As an Economic Engine
 

Carl Mitchell, President and CEO, Virginia Economic Bridge

     A Resource for the Commonwealth

 

Leanna Blevins, Associate Director, New College Institute

   From Manufacturing to Manufacturing Minds: Promoting Higher Education and Collaboration in Rural Virginia
 
Energy - Advancing Efficiency, Generation for Fuel Development

 

Ted Abernathy – President – Southern Growth Policies Board

   Energy - Partnerships Through Collaboration

Part 1:  http://www.southerngrowth.com/misc_downloads/Abernathy Rural Energy Presentation-Short.ppt

Part 2:  http://www.southerngrowth.com/misc_downloads/Abernathy Rural Energy Presentation-Long.ppt
 

Liam E. Leightley, Executive Director, Institute for Advanced Learning and Research  

     Renewable Energy - Opportunities for Innovation
 

Brent Bailey, 25 x’25 Initiative, Mississippi Biomass and Renewable Energy Council

     Solutions from the Land
 
Broadband - Global Opportunities and Rural Lifestyles

 

Peter Stenberg, USDA Economic Research Service (ERS), Washington DC   

   Rural Internet Practices
 

Lionel J. (Bo) Beaulieu, Director , Southern Rural Development Center (SRDC)

   Promoting the Adoption of E-Commerce Strategies: New Web-Based Educational Resources

 

John A. Dillman III, Executive Director, Maryland Upper Shore Regional Council

   Broadband - What do we do with it?
 

Rene' F. True, Executive Director, ConnectKentucky, Frankfort, KY

     Rural Broadband Landscape
 

Larry Mathiot, Government Relations Manager - CenturyLink

     Broadband: Private Sector Role in Community Development
 
Beth O'Connor, Executive Director, Virginia Rural Health Association & Virginia Rural Health Resource Center

     Broadband: Implications for Telehealth
 

Vanessa Orlando, Executive Director Rural Maryland Council moderated the wrap-up  group discussion to get consensus on action steps,

conference report outs, and communication as the work group moves through  the next steps.  Keep watching!

 

Thank You to the Session Moderators and Scribes!

 

Economic

Development

Workforce

Development

Energy

Broadband

Moderator

Walter Harris, SC

Executive Director
SC Rural Economic Development Council

………

Scribe

Stan Perry, SC

Moderator

Dr. Oliver McBride, VA

Executive Director
Crossroads Institute
Galax, VA

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Scribe

Leanna Blevins, VA

Moderator

Jack Tarburton, MD

 Delaware and Maryland State Director, USDA Rural Development

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Scribe

Janice Stroud-Bickes, VA

Moderator

 Hunter Goosmann, NC

General Manager
ERC Broadband Asheville, NC

 

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Scribe

Beth O’Connor, VA
 

 

Contact for Mary Randolph, Chairman for PRA and Executive Director of the Wyoming Rural Development Council mary.randolph@wybusiness.org

Contact for Glen Sink, Southern Region PRA Chair & Executive Director, Council for Rural Virginia  glen.sink@cfrv.org
 

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