The Rural View
www.cfrv.org . . . . . www.councilforruralvirginia.org©
Volume 1
Edition 4
March - April 2008
Education
Community Capacity
Entrepreneurial Culture
"Youth Creating Tomorrow's Opportunities Today"
We decided to listen...and what we got is TAKY.It is always a good idea to listen! On February 6, 2008, sixty high school students from Carroll County, Galax City, and Grayson County joined together to participate in a community forum concerning the topic, "Youth the Real Future of the South". By participating in this event, the area became one of eleven communities in Virginia and many more throughout the South to respond to the invitation of the Southern Growth Policies Board to host a community forum around its 2008 topic.
At the end of the day, those who planned the event and the adults who observed the event walked away in awe of the students' insight, honesty, and desire to be engaged in their community. The students left feeling that someone listened. That's not all - the students are forming TAKY (Tri-Area Kommittee for Youth), a regional youth committee and have chosen as its motto, "Youth Creating Tomorrow's Opportunities Today". We will continue to listen.
Oliver McBride, Council Chair, Executive Director of the Cross Roads Entrepreneurial Institute – Youth suggesting ways to improve their community. Read the full story . . . .
Southern Growth Policy Board - Community Forums & State Policy Dialogues Youth: The Real Future of the South – Meetings held throughout Virginia January - March 2008
Carroll/Grayson/Galax area on target! The Youth Leadership Project for a Sustainable Future (YLPSF) will be launched in each state and province in academic year 2008-
2009. Learn more
Rural Entrepreneur Program Goes Statewide
It started in late 2006 as a way for Sandy Ratliff to make business support resources more accessible to the 23, mostly rural, Southwest Virginia counties in her territory. Today, it is Virginia’s signature business outreach program in every part of the state.
Entrepreneur Express: Moving Your Business Forward, the program that Sandy developed out of her Abingdon office for the Virginia Department of Business Assistance, is one of a number of successful economic development efforts that germinated in rural Virginia and quickly were planted in more populous areas. Virginia Economic Bridge, Inc. is another example of an initially rural program demonstrating more widespread applicability. For questions or comments regarding this article, contact Will Vehrs, VDBA Communications, 804.371.0058 or will.vehrs@vdba.virginia.gov Read the full story
Demographics
&Workforce
U.VA. STUDY FINDS HISPANIC POPULATION VARIED AND GROWING
Weldon Cooper Center – Demographics & Workforce
The Hispanic population in Virginia tripled between 1990 and 2006, with more than 460,000 Hispanic citizens and immigrants residing in the commonwealth, according to a study released today by the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service. Hispanics represent 6 percent of Virginia's population, and 15 percent of the U.S. population.
Thirty percent of Virginia's Hispanic residents are U.S. citizens under the age of 20. Among them, 45 percent have at least one U.S.-born parent. Read the article . . .
Regional Cooperation
Regional Answers Move to Center State
LIKE MOST "-isms," "regionalism" is an ugly word and an uglier concept. It means the muddling of municipalities, the mingling of Virginia Beach with Norfolk with Chesapeake with Portsmouth with Suffolk, to the degradation and detriment of all. Full article . . .
Business
Appreciation
Week 2008
Businesses to be Recognized
Governor Timothy M. Kaine has designated May 11-17, 2008 as Business Appreciation Week in Virginia. Communities around the state will sponsor recognition events for the businesses in their midst, everything from breakfasts to golf tournaments. The theme of this year’s Business Appreciation Week is “The State of Small Business.”
“As we celebrate the contributions of all businesses during this week, we offer special recognition to the vibrant small business sector that contributes so much to our state’s diverse economy,” Governor Kaine declared. “From Abingdon to Zuni, risk-taking, perseverance and forward thinking of small
businesses support state and local government, major industries, and individual Virginians. In our Commonwealth, entrepreneurs can grow their dreams from a home office or garage to a high-rise office building or sparkling plant site.”
The Virginia Department of Business Assistance coordinates statewide observance of the week. Materials and background on Business Appreciation Week can be found here. For any questions, or to sponsor an event, contact Will Vehrs at VDBA: 804.371.0058 Will.Vehrs@vdba.virginia.gov
CAN'T JOIN
IN PERSON?
Register for the free, on-demand Webcast - available in May.
Entrepreneurial women: This tour’s for you!
A team of small business experts will hit the road in April with ideas and inspiration for women who are eager to know more about starting or growing a business. As the host of the Vision to Venture tour, they’re hoping you’ll join them at one of their live events or register for their webcast online.Register for the FREE on-demand Webcast (available late May)
RUPRI Health Panel Recommendations
USDA Rural Development programImplementing A New USDA Rural Development Program Targeting Small Rural Hospitals and Their Communities
The RUPRI Health Panel was asked to offer recommendations for implementing a new USDA Rural Development program, included in the Senate Farm Bill proposal, should it be enacted into law. The goal of this program is to strengthen rural health care delivery systems, to provide necessary health care services to rural residents in a cost-effective manner. We believe this goal is best accomplished through a comprehensive, coordinated approach that fosters community based efforts to promote health and wellness, in addition to innovative programming designed to improve quality of services. These recommendations can also be used to inform other programs already managed by the USDA, such as the Community Facilities Program. Read the full recommendation
Broadband
Healthcare
Electronic Medical Records
Going Digital
Electronic medical records can improve care and reduce errors.
Doctors and hospitals are making the switch.
What’s Happening in Virginia?
Health experts push electronic records
Providers in Virginia hear details of Medicare plan to expand their use of electronic medical records.
MedVirginia, a health information technology firm, will lead Virginia's efforts to apply for the project. Read the full story. Contact Tammie Smith at TLsmith@timesdispatch.com or (804) 649-6572.
Healthcare
Rural Medicine
Feb 28, 2008- Physician Survey Shows Preference for Rural Medicine
LocumTenens.com Says Rural Employers Need to Offer Lifestyle Incentives
ALPHARETTA, GA--(Marketwire - February 28, 2008) - Physicians need more exposure to practice options and opportunities in rural health care, if recent physician survey results from LocumTenens.com are any indication.
When the physician recruiting firm asked respondents who had no rural health care experience why they had never practiced in rural America:
-- 32% said they'd never found the right rural medicine opportunity.
-- 29% said they never had been offered a position in a rural area.
-- 25% said they just never considered it.
-- 11% said they'd only be interested in a particular rural area. Learn More...
Reference to this article appeared in Virginia Rural Health Association’s weekly update
Questions or comments?
or call 540-231-6866
Editor and Design
Thelma BurrisContributing Editor
Glen C. Sink
Contributing Editor
Cheryl Wiltsee
© All Rights Reserved-CFRV
Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Rural Economic Analysis Program
Center Council Staff
Glen C. Sink Executive Director 501 North Second Street Richmond, VA 23219 Ph: 804-371-7141 Fax: 804-371-7092 Thelma Burris Program Coordinator 2265 Kraft Drive Blacksburg, VA 24060 Ph: 540-231-6866 Fax: 540-231-5338 Cheryl Wiltsee Associate 2265 Kraft Drive Blacksburg, VA 24060 Ph: 540-231-6866 Fax: 540-231-5338 The Rural View
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