Community Vitality Update

March 2004 Issue No. 5

This newsletter provides community leaders, economic developers, entrepreneurs, and other Iowans interested in community vitality with features on innovative strategies, updates on CVC projects, and info about opportunities for learning and networking.

How Much For Entrepreneurship?

One of the questions increasingly asked by local community and development leaders is, “How much should we be allocating to support entrepreneurship?” The answer may vary depending on local assets and opportunities. However, a delegation of leaders from west-central Iowa discovered part of the response range on a recent one-day trip to Lincoln County, Minnesota. CVC was invited to participate in the January trip. Lincoln County has a population of 6,400 and ranks 79 out of 87 counties in the state. It is a rural area with five small towns nestled between Brookings, SD and Marshall, MN. Tyler has 1,200 residents and is the largest community. The county 73rd in per capita personal income among Minnesota counties and it is also one of the older counties in the state.

Local leaders were asked how much they spent on economic development and entrepreneurship. The countywide development group annually spends $60,000 to $80,000 and 70 to 80 percent of the total is spent on entrepreneurship. The county is perhaps a little unique and the terms used to describe their budget need to be defined. In Lincoln County entrepreneurship includes working with startups, as well as retention and expansion programs for existing businesses. Local leaders said that during the late 1980s, the county was being ignored by state economic development initiatives and prospective companies were not being attracted to or referred to their county. The conclusion was, “Why waste dollars on marketing and recruiting companies with little or no results?” That’s when Lincoln County started a successful grassroots entrepreneur development program that not only assisted startups, but also helped existing businesses for retention and expansion purposes. Documentation of impacts during the past decade showed they averaged 10 startups per year, 11 businesses expanded, diversified or retained per year, 29 jobs created per year, and 25 jobs retained per year. While this may not be the right balance for some Iowa counties, it may cause some leaders to ponder whether setting Iowa’s goal of 3 startups per year, per county is enough?

CVC Community Grants Available for Youth Entrepreneurship

The CVC recently announced a new Community Scholarship Program that will provide $1,000 each for ten Iowa communities that agree to implement a youth entrepreneurship program called “Youth Marketplace” developed by the ISU Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship. The Pappajohn Center developed the program to expose upper elementary and middle school students to the basics of entrepreneurship, business plans, financing, and marketing/selling. Youth Marketplace is a 20-25 hour curriculum based, 4-unit program in which students use a team approach to actually create businesses, produce a product or service, and sell their goods at a marketplace event. Youth Marketplace has been piloted in four Iowa schools including Carroll, Gilbert, Norwalk and Ames, as well as the Boys and Girls Club of Ames. Gilbert 6th grade students will have the opportunity to participate in the program this spring as teachers, Donna Holtan and Mike Korf, utilize the program for the 6th consecutive year. Dennis Molitor, County Extension Education Director, worked directly with the public and parochial school programs in Carroll and found the Youth Marketplace program to be, “An outstanding experiential program that builds life skills and develops community partnerships”. Molitor considers the program to be an excellent response to local, area, and statewide needs, “I hope Extension staff in every county in Iowa will work with local schools to implement the Youth Marketplace curriculum.”

To learn more about the content of the Youth Marketplace program visit the ISU PJCE website. To apply for the CVC Community Scholarship click here to download the application form. Applications must be submitted electronically by Friday March 20th, 2004 to the CVC: cvc@iastate.edu . If you have questions concerning the program contact Laura Klesel, program coordinator, by calling 294-3000.

100 Participate in Iowa Boot Camp for Entrepreneurs

Several outstanding presentations were delivered to 100 participants at the 2004 Iowa Boot Camp for Entrepreneurs at the University of Iowa Pappajohn Center in Iowa City. Bill Ryan who helped launch and brand several successful companies and products in the San Francisco area, including the Apple iMac and Yahoo, spoke about the importance of getting the company story right to create marketing opportunities externally and staff performance internally. Mayor Ed Malloy summarized the key factors to Fairfield’s success with (1) Vision fueled by passion, (2) Big thinkers with no fear of failure, (3) Entrepreneurial support infrastructure, (4) Capital, capital and access to capital, and (5) Openness to teamwork, networking, and collaboration with others. The CVC was one of several co-sponsors of the event.

Learn about Iowa’s Wealth Transfer and what it can do for Community Vitality March 29th.

A Statewide Academy on March 29 will provide new information about the wealth transfer occurring in Iowa’s counties and strategies that communities can use in identifying and assisting donors interested in leaving a legacy to help create greater community vitality. Community leaders, economic developers, and foundation leaders are being invited to the workshop called the “Iowa Community Foundation Academy” to discuss ways to encourage donors in Iowa and other states to give back something to their hometown communities. Participants will hear best practices and lessons learned from successful community foundations in Manning, Fairfield, Dubuque, and Cedar Falls/Waterloo.

Attendees will hear about recent trends in philanthropy and see findings from a recent survey of Iowa’s foundations and they will also examine new county by county information on wealth transfer and learn how communities can participate in the new Endow Iowa matching grants and tax incentives. The CVC is spearheading the conference and co-sponsors include the Iowa Council of Foundations, Iowa Department of Economic Development, Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center, ISU Extension to Communities, Iowa Area Development Group and Bank of America.

The registration fee to attend this event is $25.00 per person, including lunch and materials. To register, click here or call Becky Johnson, Registration Coordinator, at 294-3000. Pre-registration is appreciated. The fee for registering at the door will be $35.00