NEWS

Energy office to explain plans, grant requirements
Local governments and other public entities that wish to apply for energy efficiency block grants under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are required to complete strategic energy plans. The State Energy Office has adapted its basic energy plan format to accommodate the ARRA requirements and will conduct eight training sessions between June 9 and June 29 to explain the forms and process. Advance registration is not required. Learn more.

Recovery workshop to be held in Charlotte
The state Office of Economic Recovery and Investment will hold the latest of a series of workshops on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in North Carolina Thursday, June 18. Dempsey Benton, director of the office, will lead the workshop. It will be held from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Harris Center of Central Piedmont Community College. Learn more and watch for additional developments at NCRecovery.gov.

Conference to focus on stimulus opportunities
The N.C. Economic Developers Association will focus its 2009 conference on opportunities for economic development under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The conference, with the theme "Making Critical Connections," will be held June 15-June 17 at Atlantic Beach. Registration deadline is June 11. Learn more.

State creates JobsNOW website
The state has launched a new, easy-to-use web portal to help job seekers, individuals exploring new career options and entrepreneurs looking to start, grow or relocate a business in North Carolina. The website links the user to a variety of state, local and nonprofit resources. It is part of Gov. Beverly Perdue's JobsNOW initiative. Visit the JobsNOW website.

Rural unemployment rate improves
An improvement in North Carolina's rural unemployment rate is among the hopeful signs that the recession may be loosening its grip. Joblessness in the state's 85 rural counties dropped to 11.4 percent in April, nearly a full percentage point lower than in February. Even so, it represents more than a quarter of a million people without work and exceeds the unemployment rates of all but two states. The state overall had the nation's fifth highest unemployment rate in April. More details on the state's employment picture can be found in the latest monthly update from the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina.

12 towns selected for Local Government Service Corps
Twelve towns have been selected to participate in the North Carolina Local Government Service Corps. The two-year initiative, a partnership between the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government and Appalachian State University, is designed to assist some of the most economically distressed communities in the state. It is engaging four recent master of public administration graduates to work with the towns as advisers on economic development projects. The communities were selected in four geographic clusters to facilitate one Service Corps adviser being able to work with several towns. They include Drexel, Hildebran and Rutherford College; Dobson, Boonville and Cooleemee; Star, Candor and Ellerbe; and Bolton, Northwest and Navassa. The project is funded by a grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation. The Rural Center and the N.C. League of Municipalities have been active in supporting the Service Corps and shaping its development. Read more.

MEETINGS AND EVENTS

June 22: Connecting small businesses with contract opportunities
Small business owners can learn about competitive contract opportunities available through federal agencies June 22. The workshop will be held from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Craven Community College in New Bern. The event is sponsored by U.S. Sen. Richard Burr. To attend, register by June 17.

Aug. 26: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Alliance
The next meeting of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Alliance (formerly known as the Business Resource Alliance) is Aug. 26 in Raleigh and will be hosted by the N.C. Department of Commerce. The alliance includes any leaders with interest and capacity to support entrepreneurship as an economic development strategy. Individual work groups focus on entrepreneurship education for all ages, policy development and network building. To learn more or sign up for the alliance listserv, contact Leslie Scott or Barry Ryan.

Sept. 9-11: N.C. Center for Nonprofits
The N.C. Center for Nonprofits will host its annual statewide conference Sept. 9-11 in Concord. The theme is "Hope in Chaotic Times." Early bird registration is open until July 1. Read more.

Oct. 13-14: Financial Education and Asset Building Conference
The North Carolina IDA Collaborative will hold its third annual conference Oct. 13-14 at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel and Conference Center in Durham. Proposals for conference presentations are now being accepted. For more details, watch the organization's website. The collaborative is a statewide organization that promotes asset-building for low-income families through individual development accounts and other strategies.

Nov. 4-5: Rural Partners Forum
The Rural Center will host its annual Rural Partners Forum Nov. 4-5 with a focus on "Funding Our Rural Future: How to grow resources and transform communities." The event will be held at the North Raleigh Hilton. Watch for details in the coming months.

Nov. 6-10: National Entrepreneurship Education Forum
The National Entrepreneurship Education Forum will be held in Norfolk, Va., Nov. 6-10. Teachers may apply for a scholarship to defray the cost. The deadline for scholarship applications is Sept. 25. Early bird registration is open until Sept. 15. Learn more.

AT THE CENTER

Leadership program graduates 32
The Rural Economic Development Institute graduated 32 leaders June 5 after an intensive, three-month training program. N.C. Sen. Dan Blue saluted them during ceremonies at the Rural Center. "It's important to have strong leaders in times like this," he said, "more important than when times are smooth." Blue recounted the steps taken during the Great Depression that turned North Carolina into the most progressive state in the South for decades afterward. A similar set of issues faces the state now, he said. "The decisions we make should be the ones that will hold us in high stead years down the road," he said, "not the ones that will hold us in high stead in the next election." The new graduates are, by county: Anson, Robert W. Rollins Jr; Ashe, Beth Rembert; Beaufort, Lee Padrick; Buncombe, Kristy M. Carter and Karen C. Smith; Chowan, Sarah Jackson; Columbus, Jacquelyn M. Hampton and Frank A. Wilson; Durham, Jeremy Troxler; Edgecombe, Jenny Braswell; Forsyth, Darren E. Rhodes; Halifax, Phyllis D. Chavis; Harnett, Patsy M. Carson; Haywood, Patrick C. Bradshaw; Hyde, Kris Cahoon Noble; Lenoir, Kathy Howard; Madison, Jennifer Flynn; Moore, Tim Emmert; Orange, Michael Flannelly; Person and Caswell, Karen Bowen; Stanly, Kathy Almond; Surry, Lestine H. Hutchens; Vance, Tobais Fullwood; Wake, Donna L. Flick, Misty Herget, Mary Willistine-Holder and Brian Queen; Washington, Latasha McNair; Wilkes, Dwight L. Smith; Wilson, Ricardo Dew; Yadkin, Stephen Hutchens; and Yancey, Jake Blood. The institute is a leadership program sponsored annually by the Rural Center. Read more.

Workshops to offer guidance on water and wastewater projects
A series of four free workshops will help rural communities learn how to work effectively with paid consultants and engineers on water and wastewater projects. The workshops, to begin July 28, are cosponsored by N.C. Rural Communities Assistance Project and the Rural Center. Presentations will cover selecting a consultant or an engineering firm, preliminary engineering report guidelines, contract negotiation and financial management in critical economic times. Funders will be on hand to provide an update on available funds for rural water and wastewater projects. Local officials who attend one of these workshops will be eligible to receive 10 bonus points on any future Rural Center infrastructure grant application. Sessions will be held July 28 in Raleigh at the Rural Center, Aug. 13 in Lumberton at the Southeastern Agricultural Center, Aug. 18 in Plymouth at the Vernon James Center and Aug. 21 in Valdese at the Old Rock School. The workshops are free and lunch is provided, but space is limited. For more information and registration, watch the N.C. RCAP website or contact Marcia Perritt at 919-542-7227.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Building Reuse applications due June 29
Applications for the next round of grants under the Rural Center's Building Reuse and Restoration Program are due June 29. The program assists communities in preparing vacant properties for new uses by job-generating businesses. Grant requirements have been adjusted to provide communities extra assistance during the recession. Learn more.

Tobacco transition grants available
The Rural Advancement Foundation International (RAFI)-USA offers cost-share demonstration grants to farmers, farm organizations and community groups in central North Carolina. Grants, part of the Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund, will be awarded to innovative projects that show farmers a new direction or opportunity. Priority will be given to projects that benefit farmers who had income from tobacco and to projects that create an opportunity for a new generation of farmers. The deadline for applications is Nov. 11. Learn more.

RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONS

Funding sustainable communities
The Funders' Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities has issued two publications to celebrate its 10th anniversary. The first, "Looking Back: Influencing, Networking, Facilitating", is a retrospective that includes a profile of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina. The second, "Looking Forward: Perspectives on Future Opportunities for Philanthropy", is a compilation of essays that challenge philanthropy to think about its role over the next 10 years. Learn more or download the publications from the Funders' Network website.

Revamping unemployment benefits may help rural workers
Rural workers stand to benefit from the modernization of unemployment insurance to cover part-time workers, which is an opportunity for states under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Plan (ARRA), a new brief from the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire finds. Rural workers are more likely to work part-time, and many states that do not provide unemployment benefits to part-time workers have higher than average proportions of rural residents. Learn more.