North Dakota Child Grant Program

The 2nd round of applications for the Child Care Grant Program will be accepted from February 1, 2010 to March 31, 2010. To access the grant application and process, please follow this link: http://www.communityservices.nd.gov/community/child-care-grant-program/

The Child Care Grant Program was initiated by the 61st North Dakota Legislative Assembly providing $500,000 of one-time funding to assist North Dakota child care providers with infrastructure and technical assistance/business plans. The first round of grants awarded $265,000 to 96 child care providers. The remaining $235,000 will be awarded by June 1, 2010.

The North Dakota Development Fund was also authorized to provide financial assistance to childcare providers through loans.

If you are interested in more information, please visit the Childcare Loan Program at this link: http://www.business.nd.gov/businessInformation/nd-development-fund/child-care-loan-program/

or contact:

Denise Spanjer
Executive Director
Center for Technology & Business
North Dakota Rural Development Council
PO Box 2535
115 N 2nd Street
Bismarck ND 58502
(701) 223-0707

www.trainingND.com

CFD Leadership Panel: Where are they now?

Community Field Day was held on October 20, 2009 at Dickinson State University. This event, hosted by the Strom Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, brought together community leaders to discuss the human aspect of leadership, entrepreneurship, resources for development, and youth.

The leadership panel which was comprised of Lyn James (Bowman), Kathy Miller (Medora), and Marie Hvidsten (RLND). Where are they now with their community and projects? We checked back and wanted to share about their progress and the story that they spoke about at Community Field Day.

Bowman:
Lyn James
Bowman held a strategic planning and leadership retreat last spring. At Community Field Day, Lyn reported about this retreat and the initial steps that the original committee was taking to push the strategic plan forward.

Where are they now?

Lyn reported back that the short term goals that were set up at the retreat are in the works:

• The Renaissance Zone has a great committee that has begun to work with the city commission.
• Exploration of a community foundation has started.
• Strides are being taken to build the leadership pool, a candidate was selected to attend RLND to represent the community and develop personal leadership skills.
• The economic developer continues to work on marketing the county. These efforts include a revised website, www.bowmannd.com and a facebook page, Bowman County, ND.

Leadership has become the biggest motivator of the project. All the boards are coming together to ensure that the plan takes shape and the entire county is positively influenced. The support has reached beyond those that attended the original retreat. Next fall, the group has decided to get together for a revisit retreat to evaluate the strategic plan. The positive encouragement promises that the revisit retreat will be well attended. Roadblocks continue to handicap progress but are being overcome by positive attitude and continued encouragement of local leaders.

This planning process has proved to be a good thing for all the communities in Bowman County.

Medora:
Kathy Miller
Medora recognized a natural fractioning of their city because of the different organizations. They wanted to achieve a greater sense of community through building relationships and trust to create a cohesive Medora team. This would result in a better experience for both locals and tourists. The committee organized two events, a motivational speaker and a team building day at Badlands Ministries High Rope Course.

Where are they now?

The Medora Community Days Campaign has been redirected to better accomplish their mission. While their first campaign had two separate events, the second campaign allows for a greater reciprocation in hosting and attending. The event follows the lines, “I’ll come play at your house, if you’ll come play at mine!” Each community organization was asked to come with an agenda to highlight their resources in an attempt for more community building and interaction.

Kathy Miller reported that the new campaign has been met with both enthusiasm and resistance. Some organizations have already made plans and others are still tossing around the ideas regarding options in participating. However, one organization declined because of time, manpower, and motivation. They reported that division and separation in a community is normal due to differences in interests. This reaction has been anticipated but the committee is emphasizing that the project goals are to get to know each other in order to work and play together for a stronger Medora. For the most part, all other entities met the project with excitement, commitment, and are looking forward to their plans. At the last committee meeting, the organizations came with a plan on their plate and a smile on their faces. Medora now identifies new leaders thanks to each entity coming forward with people in place to achieve the shared goals. This project is solely responsible for getting the message out that people notice the divisions and are wanting to break them down. The planned activities which highlight each organization will showcase the community like never before to the people who continue to be inspired by Medora.

Rural Leadership North Dakota (RLND)
Marie Hvidsten
RLND is an 18 month interactive study and travel program dedicated to producing graduates with the vision and commitment to lead themselves, their organizations, and their communities in the future. Marie shared the goals and some of the curriculum of the past three classes.

Where are they now?

The fourth class has officially started for RLND, which includes 18 students from all over the state. The students, which represent various ages and professions, have begun to decide on their community projects. The diversity of these projects are amazing: a high school leadership program, a community-wide recycling program, creating an indoor swimming pool, a community celebration, a natural resources tourism trail, and a fire alarm safety campaign. Not only are they taking inventory of their community needs and interests, they are evaluating their own personal styles and leadership SWOTS.

Another exciting avenue is that RLND is having a short-course in Watford City, which will meet five times for a total of 25 hours. This has never been offered so it has been exciting for the program to work with the community and anticipate what the students will be able to take away.

RLND acknowledges that communities need to implement that leadership be represented to look like your community. They have begun to work with youth involved practices that include this unique point of view and integrate all the generations into the leadership and sustainability of a community.

The challenge of marketing the class continues to be a roadblock for RLND. Marie’s goal of having every county represented in the RLND alumni is a possible reality because of the quality of students and the caliber of scholarships that have been granted to allow for continuation of the program.

Thank you to our panelists!

It’s exciting to see that these three communities/projects are continuing to be a success. The Community Development Project and the Strom Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation would like to thank Lyn James, Kathy Miller, and Marie Hvidsten for sharing the triumphs of their community projects at Community Field Day.

We look forward to reporting on other stories that were shared at the Community Field Day!

Amanda Lynn Moser
Community Development Project Coordinator
Strom Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Dickinson State University
P: 701.483.2830
Amanda.Moser@dickinsonstate.edu

Business Challenge announces speaker and 2010 dates

Business Challenge 2010 is pleased to announce this year’s keynote speaker, Eddie Slowikowski, a world-class runner and an internationally known Speaker/Trainer. Business Challenge is a week-long summer business camp that will be held at Dickinson State University and historic Medora June 13-18 (high school student track), June 12-18 (university student track) and June 13-16 (educator track). Slowikowski will be the opening speaker for the 2010 program.

In over 18 years of speaking, Eddie Slowikowski has found a way to combine the high energy of his competitive running years with a service to community. Some of Eddie’s accomplishments include becoming a 5-time All American in Track & Cross Country at Loyola University Chicago, U.S.A. Gold Medal winner at International Competition in London, England and the fastest college indoor mile (3 minutes 58 seconds) in the nation in 1990. A self-made businessman, Eddie once again sets the pace – this time in the world of professional speaking.

“Business Challenge is an exciting summer program that is about preparing for the future. Participants learn about teamwork, leadership and setting real-life goals,” said Katie Mehrer, Business Challenge coordinator. “No other program gives students such a unique, hands-on learning experience about the world of business. It’s intense, fun, and energizing.”

More than 7,800 high school students and educators have attended Business Challenge, which is now in its 33rd year. Business Challenge teaches students the fundamentals of business and entrepreneurship. In addition, high school students earn one-half of a credit on their high school transcripts, compete in competitions and learn fundamental skills required in any career. Educators earn 2-3 reduced-fee graduate credits, exchange ideas for classroom use and network with fellow teachers. University students can earn 3 credits for the week and experience hands-on learning, build entrepreneurial knowledge and develop critical thinking skills.

“Business Challenge helps businesses create an educated work force that understands economic development and what companies need from their employees. North Dakota benefits because participants are made aware of business opportunities that exist in the state,” Mehrer said.

Cost for North Dakota high school students and educators is $175, which includes meals, housing, curriculum materials and events. Cost for out-of-state students is $200. However, participants can save $50 by taking advantage of the early bird special and registering before April 30, 2010. To earn college credits, university students must follow the university student registration directions on the Business Challenge Web site. For more information or to register, visit the Business Challenge 2010 Web site at www.gobusinesschallenge.com, or contact Katie Mehrer at 701-483-2515, or katherine.mehrer@dickinsonstate.edu .

2010 Youth Leadership Summit

The Community Development Project and North Dakota Business Challenge are hosting the 2010 Youth Leadership Summit. The Youth Leadership Summit is an opportunity to provide high school students with the chance to grow their leadership skills, open their eyes to future opportunities and set them up on the road to success! This conference is an event that will confront the most common excuses that derail student achievement, decision making and self-esteem and teach them how to take responsibility for their actions and attitude.

The Youth Leadership Summit will be held at Dickinson State University, Student Center Ballroom, on Tuesday, April 13, 2010 from 10:00am-2:00pm. There will be a morning & an afternoon session with lunch provided. All North Dakota high school (9-12) students are invited to attend.

The morning session of the Youth Leadership Summit will feature bestselling author, Jason Ryan Dorsey, as the keynote speaker. Jason has keynoted over 1,000 Gen Y/youth events around the world. His inspiring message has earned him standing ovations from audiences and led to his appearances on 60 Minutes, 20/20, The Today Show, and The View. Currently, Jason’s acclaimed books are used as required reading in over 1,650 secondary schools and colleges.

The afternoon session will feature a panel discussion called “Stepping Up – YP High School Career Conversations”. This thought-provoking panel discussion, consisting of members from the local Dickinson Young Professionals (DYP), will jump-start your students into thinking about career planning and how to match job experience with education. The DYP members will discuss how they chose their university and degrees. They will share their journey through college, which lead to their current career paths.

Please check the Strom Center’s Youth Leadership Summit webpage for updated information, bios of the speakers, and registration form.

For more information contact:
Amanda Moser
Community Development Project Coordinator
Amanda.Moser@dickinsonstate.edu
701-483-2830

Katie Mehrer
North Dakota Business Challenge
Katherine.Mehrer@dickinsonstate.edu
701-483-2515

COCO 2010 Schedule of Events

AUDIOS:
4PM – Strom Center

Wednesday, February 17, 2010 – Markets Review and Outlook
Wednesday, April 14, 2010 – Warming the Cold Call
Wednesday, May 19, 2010 – Using Evaluation Tools to Strengthen Your Development Program
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 – The Stalled Campaign
Wednesday, August 18, 2010 – 50 Asks in 50 Weeks: How to Jump start your Small Development Office
Wednesday, October 20, 2010 – Legacy Giving Building Blocks: A Simple Approach to Attracting Long-Term Support
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 – Developing A Planned Giving Marketing Plan

QUARTERLY MEETINGS:
3:30PM – Strom Center

Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010

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