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Co-hosts:
Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs
Association of Illinois Small and Rural Schools
Governor’s Rural Affairs Council
Session One: January 17 - Rewriting the Rural Narrative
Session 2: January 31 - Living in the Middle of Everywhere: Rural Resident Recruitment
Session 3: February 14 - Moving In, Moving Out, and Moving Over: Rural Housing Supply and Demand
*All sessions are held virtually at 12PM Central Time. Session details are below.
Many rural communities, especially those in remote areas, have lost population for several decades. Population loss drives a narrative that rural areas are undesirable, dying places left behind by the modern world. The intent of this series of webinars is to introduce language that advances a positive rural narrative, recognize trends positively influencing the desire for rural living, and empower participants to begin their own work to retain current residents and attract new people to live in their communities. At the 2022 rural development conference in Springfield, there was a session on changing the narrative about rural areas from one of pessimism to opportunity in finding new futures. These webinars build on the discussion regarding strategies to help rural communities as they change from losing population to maintaining or even gaining residents.
Each session will consist of a 40-minute presentation, followed by Q&A and strategy building exercises. The intent is to bring community leaders from the participating communities to attend all three meetings and, in the process, design strategies to recruit residents.
Ben Winchester has worked in and for small towns across the Midwest for over 25 years through his role as a Rural Sociologist for the Center for Community Vitality at the University of Minnesota. In 2021, he received the Rural Renewal Research Prize from Oklahoma State University for excellence in rural renewal research, education, and engagement across the United States. He conducts applied research on topics surrounding a theme of “rewriting the rural narrative” that are vital to rural America. Over the past decade, he studied the attitudes and motivations of young adults who recently moved to rural areas to determine the factors and reasoning for selecting a rural community and what they value in their community. That research has been conducted across the Midwest and recently was replicated in every Montana county with similar results. Ben and his family live in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
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Session One: Rewriting the Narrative about Rural Areas – Tuesday, January 17 at 12PM CT
It seems the rural story has already been told. Small towns keep getting smaller. Churches, schools, clinics, businesses, and now post offices, have closed their doors as the lucky few migrate out to large cities. This deficit framework dominates how we discuss and envision our rural communities. However, the story of rural America since 1970 is rich and diverse, with positive regional trends occurring under the radar. Put another way, if our rural communities are dying, why can we not find homes to buy? Learn about this 40-year trend of the “rural brain gain” whereby people are moving to rural communities in their prime earning years. This redefines how we talk about community involvement, economic development, and regional living as we have diversified our rural landscape.
Homework #1: Interview two newcomers to your community.
Session Two: Rural Resident Recruitment – Tuesday, January 31 at 12PM CT
Attracting residents is vital to ensure the future of our rural communities. Studies of the motivations and factors related to rural workforce movers document a “brain gain” whereby people ages 30-60 are moving to small towns and rural places during the past four decades, providing a re-invigoration of social, economic, and demographic life. This Resident Recruitment strategy incorporates activities in community development, economic development, and tourism. Recruitment of residents is especially important in a tight labor market. It is not enough to show new potential residents the job, they must envision their life there. During this session, we’ll discuss how we live in the Middle of Everywhere.
Homework #2: Interview two seniors looking to make a housing change in your community.
Session Three: Moving In, Moving Out, and Moving Over: Rural Housing Dynamics – Tuesday, February 14 at 12PM CT
There’s a wave of change coming to rural America – people are moving in, moving out, and moving over, resulting in major demographic shifts that will change rural communities and have far-reaching consequences. Since the 1970s, there has been a regular march of new residents populating our rural communities, resulting in a housing shortage during the past 15 years. During the next 20 years, we are poised to welcome a new generation of residents, since nearly three-quarters of our owner-occupied housing will turn over as seniors and baby boomers move out. A broad examination of trends – such as workforce housing, a tight labor market, and changing household residential preferences – will be discussed during this webinar. As a result of attending this session, participants should feel ready to develop action plans or modify current recruitment strategies.