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Preparations for our fellow's arrival led to a stronger partnership.

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Preparations for our fellow's arrival led to a stronger partnership.

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Before Dorsey's start date, LEAD experienced a stronger relationship with GPEDC as we worked through how a co-hosting relationship would work. I had received updates from GPEDC often and had participated in their Technical Working Group meetings each month. However, working together solidifies relationships in ways that information sharing does not. This is not to take away anything from Dorsey. If anything, she was the catalyst for a better relationship between LEAD and GPEDC even before we had the chance to meet her.

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Headed into the Portland retreat, I felt professionally broken, isolated, and defeated. I was so surprised to hear Dell Gines verbalize and acknowledge precisely how I had been feeling. I was thrilled to find out that the few days in Portland were exactly what I needed to reinvigorate my passion, soothe my battered soul, and regain my confidence in my profession. It set the right tone for embarking on this fantastic journey.

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Spring hit with a crushing potential blow. I received a call from a local news outlet asking for a quote on the breaking story that Logan Correctional Center just outside of Lincoln could be facing eventual closure with the potential loss of 450 jobs. After politely asking for a moment to familiarize myself with the press release, I began a several months-long quest to save the center and keep those jobs within Logan County. Dorsey and GPEDC were great partners throughout this period - connecting me with the University of Illinois to do an economic impact study and networking with politicians to share the case for keeping the facility in Logan County.

The ERC network was also involved in the early stages of formulating a plan. A quick call with Clark Henry with ICMA led to brainstorming between Dorsey and me about what specifics we could enter into the data and a presentation with state leaders to plead the case for Logan. Economic data drove efforts from elected officials at the city, county, and regional levels to create the proper narrative regarding the job losses and their impact on Lincoln's economy.

While the Logan discussion continues, the state is willing to engage in stakeholder discussions where the impacts and potential solutions are addressed, with LEAD being invited to participate. Due to swift action and partnership, we can be a part of the discussion and help steer the outcome for the betterment of our community. We live to fight another day.

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While I was preoccupied with the fight for Logan Correctional Center, Dorsey pressed on with our project, connecting regional economic development dots through business retention and expansion. After many discussions and taking the IEDC's Business Retention and Expansion course together, Dorsey suggested we begin the process with coffee meetings with local stakeholders. We sat down with many different stakeholders from around the county to ask what they knew about BRE, what efforts they were making in BRE, and whether or not they would be willing to sit on a committee where we could return with information gathered through visits to see what community changes could be made to meet the pain points businesses were experiencing.

What became evident to me in these discussions was that there is an awareness and a willingness to take care of our businesses - one major hurdle down! On to figuring out the process.

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Business Retention & Expansion Committee Meets

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Business Retention & Expansion Committee Meets

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The Logan County Business Retention and Expansion Committee's first meeting was in September. Dorsey began our work by exploring the concept of business retention, different approaches, and examples of how other communities have taken on the task. Dorsey then led a SOAR analysis for business retention efforts in the county. The committee started by working on the mission and vision and then transitioned into working on the method before year-end. In January, the committee will launch a marketing program for the initiative and hold business walks within two communities in Logan County: Lincoln and Mount Pulaski.

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In June, I applied for LEAD funding under the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority for economic development activities in Lincoln. Due to a large number of arrests in Lincoln before the Illinois legalization of cannabis, we were considered a disproportionately impacted area. With the potential closure of Logan Correctional Center, I wrote about the need for business retention, job creation, and entrepreneurial ecosystem building for those in the community, whether impacted by the justice system as a resident or as a potentially displaced worker.

LEAD was notified in September of its approval for the grant, which will fund operations for our existing programs, which serve the entire community, including those impacted by the justice system on either side. As a part of that funding, LEAD is partnering with Defy Ventures to allow five Logan County formerly incarcerated residents to receive virtual entrepreneurship training as a part of their Entrepreneurial Bootcamp. We are partnering with the Logan County parole officer to identify potential participants from the community to apply for those spots. The hope is that this program could lead to a community-based curriculum housed at the new homeless shelter being developed within a former nursing home.

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Discussion of an 8th-grade career fair began in LEAD's Big 10 Quarterly meetings - a quarterly coffee meeting of Lincoln's largest 10 employers for discussing community issues. The conversation continued during the summer site visits that Dorsey and I conducted. As Dorsey learned more about GPEDC's Greater Peoria CareerSpark Expo. This long-standing expo is held annually and hosts approximately 4,000 area students. While Logan County students are invited to participate in Peoria's Expo, we wanted Logan County students to understand the jobs that are available to them within their county.

Dorsey and GPEDC facilitated an introduction to Junior Achievement of Central Illinois. Discussions began in early Summer and culminated in the first Logan County CareerSpark Expo. This inaugural expo welcomed 243 Logan County 8th graders to have an interactive experience with 31 different local employers in 8 different community clusters.

Lincolnland Technical Education Center (LTEC) and Heartland Community College were heavily featured at the expo, with booths intermixed within the community clusters. This prepared students for presentations in Spring 2025 regarding how LTEC's classes can fit their high school schedules and prepare them for entry-level positions within some of the employers at the expo. Many of those classes are available for dual credit with Heartland Community College, allowing all students to experience different local careers and the pathway to those careers.

The thing I learned most during this experience is that there are regional partners who can be plugged into different community needs and are chomping at the bit to partner in new ways in areas like Lincoln. Hooray!

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After conversations with Dorsey, Kathie and Chris from GPEDC, and local stakeholders, the idea to apply for a technical assistance grant through the US EDA for a comprehensive economic development plan for Logan County emerged. The application was a group effort, with Dorsey doing most of the heavy lifting. I wrote a thumbprint sketch of the areas where Logan County could use help (pulling from the potential loss of Logan Correctional Center, the pending closure of our local coal mine, and the recent closures of Lincoln College and Lincoln Christian University). We met with Tom Barron from the US EDA to discuss the viability of our request, who gave us valuable input on where we could focus edits for a stronger argument. Dorsey took the first simple draft, Tom's suggestions, and data from the plethora of ERC resources and compiled a spectacular grant package.

Before the application could be submitted, we needed matching funds. I spoke with the local Regional Planning Commission, which was willing to provide half of the matching requirement. The other half was acquired thanks to Dorsey's artfully crafted State of Illinois grant application, which allowed 50% of matching state funds for federal funding applications.

All the pieces finally came together for submission at the end of 2024. The best thing about this grant application is that it is a joint effort between Lincoln, Logan County, the Regional Planning Commission, Greater Peoria EDC, the State of Illinois, the ERC Fellowship, and (hopefully) the federal government. It is a beautiful depiction of the heart of the ERC program and a magnificent end to our first year as a local ERC team.

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I think that year one set our project on an amazing path for year 2. The US EDA technical assistance grant allows for a much-needed local economic development plan (the last one was done in 2012!). Additionally, between the application and the BRE committee, the city of Lincoln, Logan County, and the Regional Planning Commission are working together toward a common goal - something that had not been done for several years - maybe even decades. So not only did the project and internal work go from me to we, but the county is also thinking collaboratively.

I would be remiss not to include my personal reflection on the idea of going from me to we. In Portland, I mentioned to Kioshi that even though the community I serve is surrounded by land, I often felt like I, too, was on an island. And that was 100% true. As a one-woman show, it felt as though I was alone in tackling the city's and county's economic challenges. Additionally, I felt the weight of those challenges and the sole-responsibility of planning their counterpoint. That feeling started to uncoil in Portland. Connection to the ERC family, the energy within the room, and the fellowship of those who are also in the trenches was a comfort.

As work began with Kathie and Dorsey, I began to realize that connection was available within the region. Access to ideas, networks, and sometimes lifelines were available. The challenges we face may be unique, but the systems to face them are built, available, and waiting to be plugged in. Collaborating with GPEDC and Junior Achievement of Central Illinois was a great example of just that. I didn't need to tackle a junior high job fair on my own, I simply needed to be the conduit through which that was brought to our students. And next year's expo will expand on that idea by bringing in more local companies, schools, and committees to build on the success of year one.

The power of collaboration was solidified in November when I conducted the first LEAD focus group to inform our next Strategic Plan. Thirty community members came to a three-hour session to give feedback and help navigate LEAD's next three years. At the conclusion, so many different participants responded that they wanted to continue to be informed of LEAD's actions and to be actively involved in shaping Lincoln's economic future. We are now looking at doing community focus groups more frequently to expand on this energy and follow where it leads.