Full text of Bridges (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis) : Bridges, Summer 2009

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Linking

Lenders

And

Communities

Summer 2009

P U BL I S H E D Q UA RT E R LY
BY T H E C O M MU N I T Y
de v elopment

Bridges

D E PA RTM E N T OF
T H E F E D E R A L R E S E RV E
B A N K O F S T. L O U I S

I N DE X

3

4

Swamp Gravy
for Breakfast

Key Elements of Innovation
Community Development
in the Future

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w w w. s t lo ui sfed . or g

Spanning the
Region

Innovation:
What Can It Do for Your Community?
the people they serve. This
article is a brief overview of
several highlights. (For more
on the conference structure,
see Page 9.)

By Linda Fischer

F

rom the start, Exploring
Innovation: A Conference
on Community Development was meant to be different
from the ordinary conference.
With “Innovation in Changing
Times” as its theme this year,
the goal of the biennial event
was to illustrate the benefits of
creative thinking during challenging circumstances. Not
only would the content focus
on innovation, but the structure of the conference itself
would be innovative.
The event drew participants
from across the country, many
of them high-level leaders with
best practices and innovative
policies to share. Community
developers would leave with
practical ideas they could use
to make a real difference for

Innovation Toolbox
How does one create a
culture of innovation within
an organization? Kathie
Thomas brought an “innovation toolbox” to illustrate one
way. As director of innovation
for Fleishman-Hillard, a communications firm in St. Louis,
Thomas and her group help the
firm and many of its corporate
clients maintain an innovative
atmosphere.
Innovation is defined as people working together to develop
and implement new ideas that
create value, Thomas said. The
key elements are collaboration, ideation, implementation

The

Federal

Reserve

Bank

of

St .

and value creation. Innovative
thinking alone is not enough.
If, in the end, creative ideas are
never implemented and never
create value, what good are
they? Thomas asked.
Among the tools Fleishman
uses are the firm’s P.O.I.N.T.S.
and Innovation Styles models.
Once an organization decides
something has to change,
P.O.I.N.T.S. takes them through
a six-step, problem-solving process that helps the team develop
the best solutions quickly and
effectively. Innovation Styles is
an online assessment that team
members take to determine
which of nine innovation styles
they prefer.
To learn more, go to
http://innovation.
fleishmanhillard.com.

Louis:

continued on Page 2

Central

to

America’s

Ec o n o m y

The nation’s economic crisis
brought down some mighty
players during the last year.
As the dominoes fell, community development professionals saw funding vanish
and dreams fade. The future
may be uncertain, but is it all
doom and gloom? A recent
conference sponsored by the
Federal Reserve Bank of
St. Louis focused on innovation and its role in helping
organizations survive, and
thrive, despite the economy.
Exploring Innovation
This issue of Bridges is devoted to
topics covered during the conference.

™

Exploring Innovation

“Fed Prize Challenge”
Winners Announced

Innovation

Conference-goers had the chance to
test their innovation skills in the “Fed
Prize Challenge,” a contest that offered
valuable prizes from sponsors. Contestants submitted their most creative
responses to the following question:
“Based on traditional models,
the viability of today’s community
development sector looks bleak.
Describe how an innovative approach
could change that horizon. What new
structural changes, measures of success, funding tools, partnerships and
comprehensive approaches will enable
the community development sector to
reinvent its role and sustain itself in the
21st century?”
The winners were Ben Steinberg of
Southern Bancorp and Karl Cassell of the
Cedar Rapids Civil Rights Commission.
Steinberg described an innovative
approach to improving communities by
providing access to capital in areas of
persistent poverty in a way that is scalable, replicable, sustainable and effective. “Instead of waiting for borrowers to
approach Southern, Southern, guided by
the community goals, creates and solicits opportunities to lend and leverage
resources,” Steinberg wrote. He outlined
a geographically focused, bank-centered
community development strategy.
Cassell wrote about an urban radio
station that uses the Internet to link
economic development, social awareness, education and music. “KOJC Radio
will stand out amongst current models
of radio stations because of its unique
vision and focus on providing critical
thought-providing educational programs;
access to social and human service
outlets; opportunities for economic development; consumer playlist choice; and
the latest in technology to better serve
the listener,” Cassell wrote.
For details, visit www.exploring
innovation.org and click on “Special
Features.”

The Innovation Café
One important purpose of
the conference was to bring
people in the community
development industry together,
not only to hear from experts
in the field, but also to network
with each other. What better
place to do that than in a café?
The Innovation Café consisted of an online meeting
place and a real, physical café
where conference-goers could
find resources, refreshments
and conversation. The online
component was live on the
Internet before and during the
conference and offered participants a chance to propose
and ponder ideas. The virtual
café remains open at www.
exploringinnovation.org. There,
one can find discussions about
questions such as “How do I
encourage others to implement
innovation?” and “How can one
work in an environment where
innovation is not promoted?”
The intent is for there to be an
ongoing dialogue on community development.

continued from Page 1

Policy Implications
Three experts in community
development were on hand to
lead an interactive session on
how policy affects innovation
in community development.
Mark Pinsky of Opportunity
Finance Network, Ray Boshara
of New America Foundation
and Alan Berube of the Brookings Institution heard some of
the following comments:

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• Unwinding current fiscal
and economic issues is most
important, as well as putting
certainty back into expected
markets.

More information will be
coming soon to the conference
web site.

• There is a need to organize
and implement a true community development process.
• How can we change the
structure of the system that
diverts money to community
development issues?
To read more comments, go
to www.exploringinnovation.
org, click on the Innovation
Café and “Thursday Plenary—
Table Talk.”
The 10,000-Hour Challenge
One opportunity presented
to attendees deserves special
attention.
After hearing about research
that shows it takes 10,000
hours of practice to become
an expert in any field, many
conference attendees accepted
a spontaneous challenge to
collectively contribute 10,000
hours of innovation to community development. The
challenge is now a work in
progress, with the St. Louis
Fed leading the effort.

Arts and the Community
The role of the arts in community development literally
took center stage when performers presented a sampling
of the folk-life play of Georgia,
Swamp Gravy. The play is a
perfect example of a cultural
heritage arts program that has
revitalized a town. (See story
on page 3.)
An arts program that is
making a difference in a tough
urban neighborhood of Pittsburgh, The Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild Youth Program,
and the inspiring story told
by its founder, Bill Strickland,
rounded out the conference.
Through the guild, Strickland
has helped countless youth
achieve success in their lives.
He hopes to persuade 200 cities
around the world to replicate his
arts, education and job-training
program. To find out more, go
to www.manchesterguild.org/
youth/youth.htm.
Linda Fischer is an editor at the
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

“I have to tell you that the St. Louis Fed’s
willingness to try new approaches and make
innovation a practice and not just a theory
makes this event a ‘can’t miss’ for me.”
—Mark Pinsky, president
Opportunity Finance Network

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How a Small Town in Georgia Survives on Swamp Gravy
Thursday morning breakfast at the 2009 Exploring Innovation conference featured a performance of Swamp Gravy, the official
folk-life play of Georgia. Based on the real-life experiences of residents of Colquitt, Ga., this crowd-pleasing blend of comedy,
drama and music annually attracts tourists from far and near. With a population of 2,000, Colquitt exemplifies the successful
economic revitalization of a small rural town through cultural tourism.
By Teresa Cheeks Wilson

W

hile attending a conference on community development
in 1991, Joy Jinks, a resident
of Colquitt, Ga., met Richard
Geer, a student who was doing
research on performance as
a community-building tool.
Jinks talked with Geer about
her town’s dwindling population and her desire to preserve
its rich heritage and instill civic
pride in fellow residents.
That chance meeting developed into a project involving
Geer and Colquitt community
volunteers, who collected and
recorded stories from resident
storytellers. Their stories were
later adapted into play format.
After songs and music were
added, Swamp Gravy was born.
(The name Swamp Gravy
comes from a stew-like dish
made from a blend of fried fish
drippings and whatever is on
hand in the kitchen. The dish
is native to the area and Georgia fish camps.)
The first performance of
Swamp Gravy was held in the
Miller County Elementary
School auditorium to a soldout crowd. The play was so
successful that the group began

looking for a larger location.
Newton Allen, a local resident, loaned them an old cotton
warehouse. Despite the fact
that it had a dirt floor, the group
took him up on his offer and,
after some cleaning and preparation, held its first performance
in the new location in 1994.
The organization has since
purchased and completely renovated the warehouse, which
is now known as the Cotton
Hall, Swamp Gravy Theater.
The theater offers state-of-theart lighting, creative sets and
multilevel staging. The design
of the theater offers good views
from every seat. The once dirt
floor is now brick and cement,
and a loading dock and old
Ford truck are part of the sets.
The hall includes the Storytelling Museum, which was
designed to be reminiscent of
Colquitt’s town square.
By promoting economic
development through the arts,
Swamp Gravy has had a great
impact in southwest Georgia.
The Swamp Gravy Institute,
an arts service organization, is
an outgrowth of Swamp Gravy.
The institute holds workshops
on storytelling, gathering oral
histories and helping other
communities create their

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Several Swamp Gravy cast members traveled from Colquitt, Ga., to St. Louis to stage a
short performance of the folk-life play.

own production. The JokaraMicheaux Film Studio has an
annual film festival, which
showcases southwest Georgia
as a movie location. An afterschool program called Bounce
tutors students with homework
and in the arts.
Swamp Gravy also was the
inspiration behind a regional
tourism initiative focusing on
the arts, heritage and ecology.
There is also a how-to manual
on cultural tourism.
In the first five-and-a-half
years of the project, 50,000
tickets were sold to tourists.
The play has increased the
revenue for Miller County by
$2 million annually and has

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created several full-time and
part-time jobs.
The Swamp Gravy players
also have taken their show
on the road, performing at
Centennial Park during the
Olympics in Atlanta and at the
Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
For more information, go to
www.swampgravy.com.
Teresa Cheeks Wilson is a community development specialist at
the Memphis Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Exploring Innovation

Innovation requires collaboration, ideation, implementation and value creation. Community developers actively engaged in innovation illustrated each of these elements during breakout sessions. They
shared replicable concepts, programs and initiatives that are showing real results. The following is a
sampling of those presentations. Read more at www.exploringinnovation.org.

T h e Fo u r K e y E l e m e n ts o f I n n ovati o n

Collaboration

Exploring Innovation
Teamwork is essential to getting things done. In today’s
global and digital 24/7 world,
challenges are more complex;
it’s becoming increasingly
important to bring more,
diverse minds to the table and
to break down silos.

C

ollaboration is one type of group
activity familiar to community
development. There is no shortage
of initiatives intended to be collaborative. Collaboration has never
been easy, mostly because conflict
and competition within and among
groups dominates the landscape.
As everyone tends to avoid tension,
what we actually may be left with
in communities is peaceful (or less
than peaceful) coexistence, and not
collaboration. It may be a good time
for re-thinking collaboration.
The conference encouraged
re-thinking approaches to strategy.
How could new approaches to
collaboration influence economic
transformation of a community,
state or nation? To begin, collaboration involves three basic

aspects: relationships, process and
outcomes. Collaboration means
to work together (relationships)
toward (process) something in common (outcomes).
There is a good chance that what
community development needs
may not be found within existing
relationships. It is often repeated
that collaborative relationships are
important because it takes more
than one person, group or organization to address challenges. Now,
relationships developed across
sectors, disciplines and areas of
study and practice may yield greater
returns. Interdisciplinary networks,
especially those that include younger
professionals and ethnic groups, can
reveal answers to persistent challenges and new intersections where
none were easily apparent.
Tangible goals of collaboration
include building affordable housing,
supporting enterprise creation and
bringing high-speed Internet to rural
areas. Many collaboratives seek
to describe an issue or reach
consensus. An important outcome
of collaboration could be to create new measures of success in
economic development. Re-thinking

collaboration means finding how intellectual efforts, like mobilizing the creative capital of each individual, can
generate value for the community.
Collaborative process is more
than working together. It means the
ability to think together and to act
on complex projects. The traditional
strategic planning process is not a
model for the disciplines required to
transform our economies. Rather,
strategic “doing” offers a framework to achieve results. Thinking
together is open innovation. Strategic doing guides open innovation.
Strategic doing means:
Listen and explore
What can we do together?
Learn and adjust
How will we learn together?
Focus and align
What should we do together?
Link and leverage
What will we do together?
Strategic doing is based on
important design elements. Design
requires us to become more aware
and intentional about creating
spaces for important conversations

on topics that matter to the community. Physical locations in the
community can be created to model
and mirror new collaborative behaviors. The place and space must be
hospitable and intentional. This
means conversations are opensourced and carefully managed.
Productive conversations require
good listening skills. How much
do we listen to another person only
with the thought of what we want
to say next? Good listening means
inquisitiveness and curiosity drive
conversation and not power, authority and political influence.
An example of strategic doing is
the I-Open Education Global Network. It provides space, both virtual
and real, for convening collaborative
communities related to transforming
regional economies. To learn how
to create a new collaborative, visit:
www.i-openeducation.net.
Based on the session “Open Source
Economic Development: Accelerating
Innovation through Collaboration.”
Presenter: Ed Morrison, Purdue Center for Regional Development.
—Matthew Ashby
Community Development Specialist
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Ideation
Fresh, new ideas help your

secondary and related to industry

development strategy.

rankings, where establishments in

organization stand out.

clusters. Services are focused on
infrastructure and incentives. The
culture serves big businesses and
small businesses. Business assistance is focused on business plans
and operations succession.
Lange suggests a new approach
to economic development: economic gardening. This approach
embraces strategies to grow
existing businesses in a community. It balances recruitment and
expansion. It’s all about growth.
Expansion is primary and related to
business-stage clusters. Services
are focused on a full range of
growth tools. The culture nurtures
entrepreneurs. Technical assistance focuses on business intelligence, market dynamics, strategy
and leadership. The idea of economic gardening is becoming the
prototype for sustainable economic
development as communities come
to realize that the big plant is just
not coming. The state of Florida
passed the first economic gardening legislation in January 2009.
Lange demonstrated
YourEconomy.org, a new idea and
tool that he hopes will make his
organization stand out. More importantly, this tool will help community
leaders and business-support
organizations illustrate the case for
entrepreneurship as an economic

The Edward Lowe Foundation
developed this free, interactive
research tool that allows users to
explore business activity in their
local communities and across the
United States. It provides detailed,
up-to-date information about the
performance of businesses from
a national to a local perspective.
YourEconomy.org uses Dun and
Bradstreet National Establishment
Time Series (NETS) data to take
a closer look at business activity
through time. The NETS database is
large, with 34 million records for the
United States.
Statistics are first sorted by
employer categories (noncommercial, nonresident and resident
establishments). Then, resident
establishments are subdivided
into four stages that reflect different issues companies face as
they grow. Detailed information is
provided from a variety of views,
including composition, which shows
how establishments and jobs are
distributed by the three employer
categories and four growth stages;
growth, which includes openings,
closings, expansions, contractions,
move-ins and move-outs; industry,
where establishments are ranked
and compared based on information found in the composition and
growth section by industry; and

the 50 states and all metropolitan
statistical areas are ranked by
category and growth factors.
Organizations that support
entrepreneurship can use
YourEconomy.org to help communities see the value of shifting
from economic hunting to economic
gardening. Lange listed the following ways to develop a climate for
entrepreneurship:

With intense competition
for resources, organizations
must differentiate in order
to survive.

M

ark Lange, executive director of
the Edward Lowe Foundation,
was the presenter for the breakout
session “Accelerating Entrepreneurship and Its Impact on Community
and Economic Development.”
The Edward Lowe Foundation is
using ideation to make the case for
entrepreneurship as an economic
development strategy. Lange says:
• Local businesses have much
more influence on job creation
than companies headquartered
out of the state.
• Second-stage businesses are
critically important to job growth
and need to be nurtured more
effectively.
• Business expansion has a much
larger impact on job creation
compared to business relocation.
The traditional approach to
economic development, economic
hunting, emphasizes recruitment
and retention, Lange says. It’s all
about movement. Expansion is

• inventory and understand policies and programs that affect
entrepreneurs in the community;
• recognize the contribution of
second-stage businesses;
• make sure peer learning
is plentiful;
• serve businesses at all stages
with expansion services;
• build and enhance entrepreneurship support organizations; and
• balance “hunting” and
“gardening” resources.
—Kathy Moore Cowan
Community Development Specialist
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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T h e Fo u r K e y E l e m e n ts o f I n n ovati o n

Implementation
What good are new ideas if
they are not put to use? Organizations must engage the
best people to champion their
ideas and keep those great
ideas moving forward.

T

here is no shortage of conversations on how technology is
changing lives and how technological innovations are being implemented at lightning speed. In the
world of community development,
one example is the work being done
at Social Compact.
Technology and innovation are
the fundamental underpinnings of
John Talmage’s projects at Social
Compact. Talmage is president of
the nonprofit organization, which is
working to bring private investment
to inner-city neighborhoods.
Under his leadership, Social
Compact uses technology and
innovation to document market strengths of communities
throughout the United States.
Collaborating with local leaders,
community-based organizations
and financial institutions, Social
Compact uses new tools and innovation to conduct market analytics
that “drill down” and extract important data often lost by high-level
data-collection processes.

To date, Social Compact has
used this technology in 20 cities
and 350 underserved neighborhoods to find 1.2 million additional
residents with additional buying
power of $36 billion. Communities
can use the data to:
• prove that a neighborhood can
sustain a grocery store and draw
private investment to provide one;
• identify small business and
private investment opportunities
that cannot be justified using
traditional data sources;
• determine the optimal location
for a bank branch or product
mix needed at an existing bank
branch; and
• conduct “what ifs” to help communities determine their best
community and economic development strategies.
By using its DrillDown process,
Social Compact is able to document individuals not counted in the
census, as well as, their “informal
income.” Informal income is income
derived from a secondary, unreported source, such as tips or other
sources not reported on a W-2.
During the current economic
crisis, Social Compact has helped
communities identify and map
pre-foreclosure, foreclosed and

The Miami DrillDown is one example of information a community can use to determine
consumer purchasing patterns.

REO properties. Communities use
this data to implement intervention
strategies that help stem neighborhood decline. This data has been
beneficial to communities experiencing a high number of foreclosures.
They were able to document need
and were prepared when funding
sources, such as the Neighborhood Stabilization Program and the
National Community Stabilization
Trust, issued calls for proposals.
With the short turnaround to apply
for and commit these funding
sources, communities that know
which areas to target and that have
already identified projects have an
advantage over those still struggling

to determine how to use the money.
For more information on Social
Compact’s DrillDown process, visit
www.socialcompact.org.
—Lyn Haralson
Community Development Specialist
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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Value Creation
You don’t have innovation

experimentation brand. During the

company reinforced its rebel

of determining whether an idea

if your new ideas aren’t

“Creating a Culture of Innovation in
Community Development Organizations” workshop at the conference,
Innovation Lab’s Langdon Morris
presented Toyota’s Scion as a case
study. Toyota’s application of four
innovation tools during the innovation process helped develop creative
insights into value. Those tools
were: need-finding, framing, creative
combination and prototyping.
Need-finding is a process of
looking for new opportunities. To
understand the customer’s experience, researchers look for gaps in
customer service because they may
represent opportunities.
Toyota used an effective
need-finding method that made
a distinction between searching
for the core and the edge. Core
refers to markets, services, products and customers that are typical
and well understood. Edge refers to
those who are nonusers or whose
needs are outside of what is considered typical.
The Scion brand was developed
to appeal to rebellious members
of Gen-Y instead of Toyota’s typical
mainstream baby boomers. Before
launching the brand, the development team studied these new
consumers in their own edge
environment, like tattoo parlors.
After introducing the Scion, the

positioning by becoming the only
official sponsor of a major American
tattoo festival, among many other
promotional efforts.
In these times of rapid change,
companies cannot afford to remain
focused only on the core because
the core can quickly disappear. The
edge represents an opportunity for
a company to target an innovation
at an emerging market.
Framing occurs when you gather
a set of observations and search
for important patterns. The term
“framing” is derived from the process of selecting the most useful
frame through which to understand
the customer’s experience.
The process of creative combination happens when concepts are
gathered together and the focus
turns to developing the best options
for meeting the needs identified by
customers. At this stage, individual
effort must expand to encompass a
diversity of viewpoints.
Diversity is valued in discussions
because a variety of viewpoints
tends to result in more robust
concepts and solutions, leading to
stronger business opportunities.
Prototyping captures those
ideas considered worthy of more
detailed study. A business wants
to prototype as quickly as possible
because it accelerates the process

should be pursued or discarded.
Each idea considered for further
investment goes through this
process many times and will go
through several stages of refinement. The first prototype is never
the final one, but as the process
continues, the nature of the inquiry
results in finer levels of detail.
The innovation cycle used by
Toyota is just one example of a creative process companies practice
to bring new ideas to the market
that ultimately create value.
Learn more about value creation
at www.innovationlabs.com.

creating value. Organizations
must implement ideas and
programs identified as most
effective in delivering value
to stakeholders.

T

he failure rate of established
companies has skyrocketed during the past year. However, there
are companies still experiencing
monumental success despite the
economic downturn. These companies are thriving because they
effectively deliver products valued
by consumers.
The purpose of innovation is to
create business value. Value can
be defined in many ways, such as
incremental improvements to existing products, the creation of entirely
new products and services, or
reducing cost. Businesses seek to
create value because their survival,
growth and ability to compete in a
rapidly changing market depend on
whether they innovate effectively.
Many companies develop experimentation brands, joint ventures
or co-brands. This gives them the
freedom to test new ideas and create value without the risk of damaging an established brand. Toyota’s
Scion brand is an example of an

—Faith Weekly
Community Development Specialist
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

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C o m m e n ta ry

The Conference—
through the Eyes of the Next Generation
By Howard McAuliffe

A

ll too often, we hear
pessimists in government, academia and
our neighborhoods say “You
can’t do that,” “That won’t work
here,” and “Their problems are
too great” when discussing
solutions to complex challenges, especially in disadvantaged communities.
Poverty, crime, failing school
systems, lack of affordable
housing and lack of health
care are issues that affect
all Americans, but are especially pressing in low-income
communities. These issues
are complicated because
they require assistance from
multiple sources, such as
nonprofit groups; the business
community; and federal, state,
and local government. Furthermore, assistance is needed
from a variety of professionals
to make progress on these difficult issues. Exploring Innovation: A Conference on Community
Development brought together a
variety of community development professionals who
have been working together to
mitigate these problems and
are making progress.
I had the pleasure of meeting many of these people at the
conference. Overall, I came

away with a sense of hope for
the future and excitement for
graduation and the chance to
join this truly innovative community in working toward a
better future. Since then, I’ve
been thinking more about what

and have found it difficult to
do. It is apparent that there is
no consensus on the definition
of “community development”
and the role of a “community
developer.” Working toward
such a consensus could have

Howard McAuliffe, right, takes notes on a laptop to capture the discussion going on at his
table during the policy plenary session.

community development is,
about how amazing the presentations and conversations at
the event were and wondering
what innovative ideas shared or
sparked at the conference will
be put into action.
What Is Community Development?
This question came up several times during the conference. Because my master’s
degree has a concentration in
community development, I
am used to trying to explain it

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important implications for
practitioners.
I attended a meeting of the
Community Development Institute and met someone who said
his colleagues in community
organizing do not identify themselves as community developers.
It occurred to me that other professionals such as social workers,
community activists, academics
and architects may not consider
themselves community developers, although they work toward
strengthening communities.

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C OMMUNI T IES

I don’t know what the definition should be, but I can see
how “community development”
can be a powerful framework
for examining progressive
development. Furthermore,
community development can
unite disparate groups that
work toward similar goals. By
increasing collaboration among
these groups, we may find that
we are more likely to resolve
the complex problems our
communities face.
Powerful Motivators
The Exploring Innovation conference brought together grassroots practitioners and some of
the top minds in the country
(often the same people) to discuss, collaborate and learn.
I wish I could have been in
all of the breakout sessions
because I know that I missed
some inspiring presentations
and interactions. In addition
to memorable keynote presentations by Alan Berube, Ray
Boshara, Nicol Turner-Lee and
Bill Strickland, I was particularly inspired by the innovative solutions implemented
by Swamp Gravy, The East
Initiative and The Cornerstone
Corporation for Shared Equity.
They are great examples of how
community development operates in different places and at

different levels of influence.
Alan Berube with The
Brookings Institution and Ray
Boshara with New America
Foundation work at the national
level to influence policy.
Nicol Turner-Lee has been
part of One Economy Corp.,
a grassroots organization that
has become a global power,
delivering technology and
information to the homes of
low-income people.
Bill Strickland has taken the
simple idea of using the arts to
inspire people and created a
template for career training and
business incubation in lowincome communities.
The EAST initiative, started
in rural Arkansas, was an
eye-opening example of how a
visionary approach to educating
students can motivate them to
achieve amazing things.
Swamp Gravy is a performance
group that has used folk performances to reinvigorate an entire
community in rural Georgia.
Finally, Cornerstone Corporation for Shared Equity has
created a renter’s equity program in Cincinnati that allows
renters to build equity, while
increasing the property owner’s
bottom line, creating a win-win
for both groups.
These groups and individuals were powerful motivators
because they used innovative ideas to create significant
change in disadvantaged communities. I encourage everyone
to visit the Exploring Innovation web site or look up these
groups online. I can’t do them
justice with a few sentences.

What’s in the Future?
As a young community
development professional,
I hope to work with these types
of people and organizations
for years to come. The positive energy combined with the
opportunity for me to interact
with amazing community
development professionals
helped solidify my commitment
to community development.
It was refreshing to see people
who are carrying out truly
innovative solutions to many
of the problems in our country.
The way the conference
functioned as a conversation
between attendees, presenters
and volunteers was very powerful. One recurring statement
I heard was: “We have come a
long way, but still have a long
way to go.” I think this conference helped strengthen the community development movement
by creating new ties, strengthening existing ties, increasing tools
that professionals have to work
with and, of course, inspiring all
of us to keep working toward a
better future.

Designing an Innovative Conference
The structure of the 2009
Exploring Innovation conference
was designed to be, in itself, an
example of innovation. Each piece
of the conference was deliberately fit
together to create a seamless learning opportunity. To accomplish this,
the conference incorporated three
distinctly innovative approaches:
1. engaging participants before,
during and after the conference;
2. responding to a variety of
learning styles; and
3. encouraging cross-sector learning.
Before the conference even began,
the virtual Innovation Café offered
participants a chance to meet and
share ideas on the power of innovation. These ideas were incorporated
into the conference as daily survey
questions were developed, discussion groups and dinner groups were
formed, and the format for the roundtable discussion was implemented.
Conference-goers were actively
involved throughout, even helping to
shape the content and agenda. The
most striking example of this came
during Thursday’s Policy Plenary when
public policy experts and the audience
used interactive technology to discuss
important issues facing community
developers. The experts posed
questions to the audience, who then
discussed the issues amongst themselves. Recorders at each table captured comments online and sent them
to the experts. They, in turn, could
quickly see on their laptops what was
being said and respond. In this manner, a robust conversation took place
between more than 150 participants,
all in less than two hours.
Specific tools, such as the Innovation Styles Assessment, helped

Howard McAuliffe is a graduate
of the master’s program in Urban
Planning and Real Estate Development with a concentration in Community Development at St. Louis
University. He was one of several
student volunteers at the conference. Read what other students
had to say at www.stlouisfed.org/
publications/br/2009/b/.

On

the

internet

at

#
9

www.stlouisfed.org

attendees define their particular
approach to the sometimes complicated process of innovation. A variety
of sessions and formats offered
opportunities to maximize these
different styles through both active
participation and thoughtful reflection.
Participants were encouraged to
listen to other ways of thinking to
discover innovative solutions to community development problems. At Friday’s roundtable discussion, everyone
became a “resident expert” by using
an active listening process. During the
roundtable questions and “fishbowl”
conversation, everyone’s voice could
be heard and everyone had the chance
to learn something new.
While these new techniques and
learning opportunities were important,
their true value came in the degree to
which they contributed to the overall
goals of the conference. Everything had
a purpose. Every piece had to meet
the standard of adding value before it
was incorporated into the agenda. This
echoes the rule heard over and over
during the conference: Innovation without value creation is simply a new idea
that goes nowhere. The importance of
innovation is in the value that it creates.
The innovative design of the conference
reflects that core belief.
For a detailed description of the
Question Circle Process used during
the Policy Plenary Discussion or the
Roundtable Discussion Question
Process and Fishbowl Conversation,
visit the Exploring Innovation web
site, www.exploringinnovation.org,
and download the Methods Tool Kits
describing these models.
—Amy Simpkins
Community Development Specialist
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

the Region

Spanning

The region served by the Federal Reserve Bank of

St. Louis encompasses all of Arkansas and parts of Illinois,
Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

Missouri Innovation Centers
Help New, Existing Businesses
The Missouri Technology
Corp. has created a network
of 10 centers across the state,
each with a particular area
of focus on innovation. The
centers are state-sponsored,
not-for-profit organizations
that assist entrepreneurs and
enterprises during the early
stages of development of new
technology-based ventures.
Funding for the innovation
center program is through the
Missouri Department of Economic Development.
Each center is a partnership between local universities
and a diverse group of public,
private and nonprofit organizations. Services include
incubation, consultation,
educational training programs
and technology evaluation and
transfer. The centers focus on
innovation in areas such as life
sciences, biomedicine, applied
science and engineering, agriculture, industrial and rural
enterprise, and entrepreneurial
development.
The Missouri Technology
Corp. is working with the
Innovation Centers to find
new methods to calculate the
total economic impact that
accrues to Missouri citizens
as a result of the Innovation

Center operations.
Innovation Centers are
located in Columbia, Rolla,
St. Louis, Cape Girardeau,
Joplin, Kansas City, Kirksville,
Springfield, Warrensburg and
St. Joseph.
For more information, visit:
www.missouridevelopment.org
and click on “Business Solutions.”
Arkansas To Regulate
Refund Anticipation Loans
The Arkansas state legislature recently passed the first
legislation regulating issuers
of refund anticipation loans
(RALs). This type of loan is
issued by tax preparers and
is repaid directly or indirectly
from the consumer’s income
tax return or tax credits.
The new law requires
prominent posting of a fee
schedule containing examples
of interest charged on the RAL
in the amounts of $250, $500,
$1,000 and $2,500. It also
requires posting a statement
informing consumers that: they
are borrowing money against
their tax refund; if the refund
is less than expected, they will
still owe the entire amount
of the loan; and if the refund
is delayed, they may have to
pay additional costs. It must
also inform the taxpayer that
refunds usually come within

LINKIN G

LENDERS

eight to 15 days without paying
any extra fees and taking out
a loan.
These disclosures must also
be given to the borrower separate from the application on a
colored-paper form printed in
large type.
For more information
about the RAL regulations,
visit www.arkleg.state.ar.us/
assembly/2009/R/Acts/
Act1402.pdf.
Asset-Mapping Technology
Benefits Mississippi Communities
The state of Mississippi
is using “asset mapping” to
identify valuable resources in
its communities. Asset mapping entails pinpointing the
resources on a GPS interactive web site. The process is
designed to identify assets that
set a community apart from
others or that have the potential to enrich the quality of life
of its citizens.
The work is being done
by the state’s Asset Development Division, which pursues
innovative ways to develop
unique Mississippi assets, such
as cultural heritage, natural
resources and small town lifestyles. Assets that have been
identified so far include natural
geologic formations, historic
buildings, landmarks and other

0

AND

C OMMUNI T IES

attractions with the potential to
attract tourists.
By identifying, improving and promoting their
assets, these communities can
improve their quality of life,
increase their competitiveness
and increase tax revenues. The
Asset Development Division
has used several strategies
to help communities achieve
these benefits. They include:
• partnering with the Mississippi State University
Community Action Team,
Mississippi Main Street
Association, Mississippi Arts
Commission and other local
organizations to create solid
recommendations;
• encouraging communities to
form a citywide or countywide vision and a plan to
achieve it; and
• delegating action plan
responsibilities to committees and devising measures
to track success.
For additional information,
contact Joy Foy at 601-359-2659.
Credit Card Challenge Urges
Illinoisans To Reduce Debt
According to the Federal
Reserve’s consumer credit
report for February 2009,
the average American carries

Bridges

$8,000 in high-interest credit
card debt. The Illinois state
treasurer’s office is challenging Americans to reduce their
consumer debt through a new
debt reduction campaign, “Cut
the Coffee, Save a Latte.”
The campaign addresses
consumer debt issues and
proposes to help consumers
eliminate their credit card debt
by following a simple, 12-step
plan. The challenge is voluntary and anonymous, and
participants receive a monthly
e-mail from the treasurer’s
office with financial tips and
words of encouragement.
In addition to registering
for the challenge, consumers
will find resource information
on other programs offered by
the Illinois state treasurer’s
office at www.treasurer.il.gov.
Credit card debt calculators
with pay-off plans are available
from CNN at www.cgi.money.
cnn.com/tools/debtplanner/
debtplanner.jsp.
Kentucky Program Helps
First-Time Homebuyers
First-time homebuyers who
obtain a loan through the
Kentucky Housing Corp. (KHC)
may be eligible to receive up to
$4,500 for downpayment and
closing costs. The program
began May 1, 2009, and will

continue through Nov. 30, 2009.
The First Home Advantage
Program provides a second
mortgage with principal and
interest payments deferred until
July 1, 2010 for KHC-approved,
first-time homebuyers.
The program offers a 10-year
loan that defers payment with a
zero percent interest rate until
July 1, 2010. The loan will then
fully amortize over 10 years at
the rate of 6 percent. If the borrower pays off the loan before
July 1, 2010, KHC will forgive
$300 of the principal balance.
First-time homebuyers are
also eligible for an $8,000 tax
credit through the American
Recovery and Reinvestment
Act of 2009, signed into law
on Feb. 17, 2009. They can
file for the housing tax credit
on their 2009 tax returns and
use it to repay the First Home
Advantage Program loan to
take full advantage of the prepayment incentive.
To qualify for this program,
the buyer must obtain a KHC
first mortgage through a KHCapproved lender, be a first-time
homebuyer, meet KHC income
and purchase price guidelines,
and have a 620 minimum
credit score.
To learn more, visit the KHC
web site: www.kyhousing.org.

On

the

internet

at

State Web Sites Track
Stimulus Fund Spending
The American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act requires state
governments to keep residents
informed about how federal
stimulus funds are being
spent. Under the act, billions
of dollars are being invested
in community and economic
development, infrastructure,
human services, transportation
and workforce development.
In the Federal Reserve’s Eighth
District, the following state
web sites track the funds:
Arkansas
www.recovery.arkansas.gov
Illinois
www.recovery.illinois.gov
Indiana
www.in.gov/gov/INvest.htm
Kentucky
www.kentuckyatwork.ky.gov
Mississippi
http://stimulus.ms.gov/msgo/
mssr.nsf
Missouri
http://transform.mo.gov/
transparency
Tennessee
http://tnrecovery.gov/

#

www.stlouisfed.org

Bridges is a publication of the Community Development Office of the Federal
Reserve Bank of St. Louis. It is intended
to inform bankers, community development organizations, representatives of
state and local government agencies and
others in the Eighth District about current issues and initiatives in community
and economic development. The Eighth
District includes the state of Arkansas
and parts of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky,
Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.
Glenda Wilson
Assistant Vice President
and Managing Editor
314-444-8317
Yvonne Sparks
Senior Manager
314-444-8650
Linda Fischer
Editor
314-444-8979
Community Development staff
St. Louis:

Matthew Ashby
314-444-8891
Jean Morisseau-Kuni
314-444-8646
Eileen Wolfington
314-444-8308

Memphis:

Teresa Cheeks
901-579-4101
Kathy Moore Cowan
901-579-4103

Little Rock: Lyn Haralson
501-324-8240
Amy Simpkins
501-324-8268
Louisville:

Lisa Locke
502-568-9292
Faith Weekly
502-568-9216

The views expressed in Bridges are not
necessarily those of the Federal Reserve
Bank of St. Louis or the Federal Reserve
System. Material herein may be reprinted
or abstracted as long as Bridges is credited.
Please provide the editor with a copy of
any reprinted articles.
Free subscriptions and additional copies
are available by calling 314-444-8761 or
by e-mail to communitydevelopment@
stls.frb.org.

PRSRT STD
U.S. postage
paid
st. Louis, MO
permit No. 444

P.O. Box 442
St. Louis, MO 63166

Calendar
AUGUST

SEPTEMBER

3-7

1

Community Development Institute—
Conway, Ark.
Sponsor: Community Development Institute
Central
501-450-5372
www.uca.edu/cdi

Statewide Conference on Housing and
Community Economic Development—
Indianapolis
Sponsors: Indiana Housing and Community
Development Authority and the Indiana
Association for Community and Economic
Development
www.instatewideconference.net

17-21
NeighborWorks Training Institute—
Chicago
Sponsor: NeighborWorks America
1-800-438-5547
www.nw.org/network/training/training.asp

26-28
Inner City Phase II: Strategic Alliances &
The Value Proposition—Memphis, Tenn.
Sponsor: Mid-South Minority Business
Council
901-525-6512
www.mmbc-memphis.org

9-11
Missouri at Work…Investing in Tomorrow—
St. Louis
Sponsor: Missouri Department of Economic
Development
573-751-4962
www.ded.mo.gov/conference.htm

14-15
Governor’s Conference on Economic and
Community Development—Nashville, Tenn.
Sponsor: Tennessee Department of
Economic and Community Development
615-741-1888
www.tnecd.gov

16-17
Under One Roof: Building Communities in
the Delta—Greenville, Miss.
Sponsor: Mid South Delta LISC
662-335-3318

21-25
Community Development Academy—
St. Louis
Sponsor: University of Missouri Extension
573-882-9552
http://muconf.missouri.edu/
CommDevelopmentAcademy/

23-25
Lead the Economic Recovery in Your
Community—Los Angeles
Sponsor: National Association for Latino
Community Asset Builders
www.nalcab.org

OCTOBER
3
Creating Livable Communities—
Memphis, Tenn.
Sponsors: Coalition for Livable
Communities, Community Development
Council of Greater Memphis, University of
Memphis CBANA, and the Federal Reserve
Bank of St. Louis
901-725-8370

23
The Four Futures of Nonprofits—St. Louis
(featuring Paul C. Light, professor, author
and founder of the Organizational
Performance Initiative)
Sponsor: Nonprofit Services Consortium
314-436-9580
www.nonprofitservices.org/index.html

BRIDGES | SUMMER 2009
https://www.stlouisfed.org/publications/bridges/summer-2009/enhancing-social-economic-and-political-networks-in-andbetween-communities

Commentary: Enhancing Social, Economic and
Political Networks in and between Communities
I recently had the opportunity to participate in the Exploring Innovation conference sponsored by the Federal
Reserve Bank of St. Louis. My role was a bit different from most participants because I was chosen to serve
as a student volunteer.
This conference was truly like no other due to the level of interaction between participants. Rather than
describing what most conferences are like, I want to tell you how this one was different.
The first session I participated in was "Exploring Financial Innovations that Expand Economic Opportunity"
with Michael Torrens of CFED. Upon entering the room, I immediately noticed a large, colorful timeline that
stretched the length of two walls. Participants were asked to brainstorm the ways finances have evolved
throughout the years and to imagine what they may look like in the future. Individuals had the opportunity to
scribble their ideas on colorful sticky notes and add them to the timeline. Afterward, small group discussions
were formed based on the grouping of the sticky notes and interests of participants.
The thought-provoking "Innovation Workshop," led by Langdon Morris of Innovation Labs, engaged
participants by sharing stories of challenges and successes firms encountered when their brand names
helped or hindered innovation within the firms. Participants were given time to brainstorm how these lessons
could relate to their organization and what innovations could develop as a result.
The final activity I participated in was Friday's plenary session. Participants were split into four groups. Each
group was assigned a color and a question. Participants were then asked to pair up with a person from
another group, and each person in the pair had five uninterrupted minutes to answer the question posed by
their partner. Originally I thought to myself: "This is going to get boring." I knew that I would be asking two
more individuals the same question, and I anticipated receiving similar responses. Much to my surprise, this
was not at all the case. Since the topic of the conference was community development, a broad range of
professionals attending each brought their unique perspective to the discussions; therefore, each answer
brought a new perspective to my question.
A reoccurring question from a number of individuals at the conference was, "How can we define community
development?" My perspective of community development includes enhancing social, economic and political
networks and relationships within and between communities. Each of these categories connects to another in
a number of ways; therefore, community development truly encompasses each of these components.
In terms of social networks, I am referring to strengthening ties between community members and
organizations—not just within individual communities, but with surrounding areas as well. I recently read a
story in the local newspaper about an older woman in another state who had died at home. One day an
authority figure finally broke into her house to see if anyone was living there and was shocked to find the
decomposed remains of the woman and her dog. I read a number of comments ranging from "That poor

woman!" to "Didn't her neighbors ever check on her?" and I thought to myself that this could have happened
anywhere. Community development, in part, means strengthening the ties and recreating a sense of family
both at home and at work. This concept involves individuals of all ages coming together and learning from
one another.
When discussing economic networks, I am referring to business development, job creation and household
incomes. One of my professors describes economic development as a means for low-income individuals to
break free of financial constraints. I am a believer in this school of thought; however, I think it is equally
important to stress the need for the right kind of development. In my own community, as well as surrounding
cities, there has been an influx of retail stores and restaurants. On one hand, it is nice to have these
franchises come into the community; but, on the other hand, it is upsetting that the majority of the
employment opportunities created pay minimum wage. The ordinary person would have to hold two jobs to
make ends meet. Economic development departments within cities must begin to see the connection
between the businesses they recruit and the employment opportunities they present. And then they must ask,
"Can individuals working in these businesses afford to live within the community?" If the answer is no, one
must question if these individuals should be able to live within the community and how that could be made
possible.
Lastly, political networks refer to the political environment as well as elected officials. Development in this
area includes civic engagement and the democratic process. Ensuring the elected representative actually
represents the people of the community is important. This way it becomes much easier for that person to
make decisions in the best interests of the constituents. This past April, the mayor of my community ran
unopposed; he believes it is because his constituents are pleased with his work performance. If you ask
residents in the community, you will hear another story. It seems, like in a number of communities across the
country, ordinary individuals have become turned off by the political environment. As residents of this country,
each within our own communities, we are doing ourselves and our neighbors a disservice by not addressing
this issue. Politicians become our voice. Therefore, it is important to redevelop the political environment and
get more people of all ages engaged.
The Exploring Innovation conference brought together professionals from across the country who are
involved in many facets of community development. Each shared their unique experiences and backgrounds.
I am thankful for having had the opportunity to participate as a student volunteer and am hopeful that
students will once again have the opportunity to participate in this capacity.

Nina Ghatan is a graduate student in the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington
University in St. Louis.

BRIDGES | SUMMER 2009
https://www.stlouisfed.org/publications/bridges/summer-2009/social-media-an-innovative-way-to-strengthen-communities

Commentary: Social Media: An Innovative Way to
Strengthen Communities
As an international social work student, I am deeply indebted to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis for the
opportunity to participate in the Exploring Innovation conference from April 22-24, 2009. Several graduate
students, including myself, were chosen to use small video cameras to interview conference-goers about
community development and their experience at the conference. This innovative way of getting graduate
students with a passion for community service involved in this wonderful conference not only gave me an
eye-opening learning experience on the definition of community development, but also the great chance to
hear experts' innovative ideas for community capacity building.
The most innovative definition of community development that I have taken away from this conference is
"social media," which was given during a keynote speech by Nicol Turner-Lee, senior vice president of One
Economy. At an evening reception, Nicol held my hand and sincerely told me that those working in social
media need social work values to help them reach out to low-income families—because everyone should
have the right to benefit from modern technology. My heart was beating, because I knew I had found the right
person to talk to and to share with, and I started to look for Nicol's trail...she is my role-model!
Nicol's speech on the first day of the conference highlighted the impact of social media on modern society.
Unfortunately, she said, we are all using social media, but we tend to overlook its meaning to the community,
especially underprivileged people. Nicol said social media consists of highly accessible technologies, such as
the Internet and cell phones, that help modern society obtain and share news and social development
information.
In terms of community development, Nicol and her company's dreams are to leverage the power of
technology and information to connect low-income people to the economic mainstream. Her definition of
community development focuses on capacity building through technological development at the community
level. In other words, her organization's goal is to bring broadband into the homes of low-income people,
produce public-purpose media, and train and employ youth to enhance communities' technology capacity.
"Young people are our future, and I believe that everyone has an equal right to access the social resources,"
Nicol said.
The great impact of Nicol's innovative thoughts on me is that they become an engine driving social work
values and practices with communities, a kind of eagerness to help the vulnerable population and to
advocate for social justice through community capacity building. I perceive technology development as asset
building at the community level. As a social worker majoring in disaster management and community
preparedness, I was greatly inspired by Nicol's speech and her movement to empower lower-income people.
Even without changing the present political and socioeconomic context, social workers still can develop an
innovative way to link community development with disaster preparedness.

I have a vision that everyone in this society should have access to modern technology during a disaster so
they can obtain information and connect to social support services. In rural communities, social workers can
strengthen community preparedness by creating a premise-based solution for accelerating digital access and
creating digital literacy. For example, connecting children from low-income families in rural communities to the
Internet could be an innovation in community capacity building. It could enhance the connection of local
citizens with multiple resources from the international community, government, private organizations and
volunteers.
I still remember that even in some developing countries—such as China, when there was a devastating
earthquake last year in May and thousands of people were missing—it was cell phone messages and
Internet blogs that helped many people find their loved ones. If such technology is made available to underdeveloped areas, more people will be prepared, informed and, ultimately, rescued.
In addition to advocating for using social media to help vulnerable people, as a social work student, I also
have a passion to be an intermediary who matches the needs of low-income people with available resources.
In other words, not only we should understand the needs of community development, but also the needs of
the resource providers, so that social workers can link them together. In this process, social workers can play
many roles: educator, counselor, therapist, helper, broker and advocate.

Sarah Li Zhao is a graduate student in the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington
University in St. Louis.