The National Extension Tourism Conference is scheduled for November 7 - 10, 2021 in Savannah, GA.  Speakers, events details and registration details to be announced soon.

https://extensiontourism.net/2021-net-conference/

The American Rescue Plan Act, with $1.9 trillion in spending to address the economic impacts of COVID 19, was signed today to President Biden.  The legislation includes a number of new programs designed to strengthen the national economy.  Of interest to EDA University Centers is an additional $3 billion in new funding to the Economic Development Administration.  This is double the amount of funding provided by the original CARES Act of 2020.  Much of this (!/4) will be directed to region's suffering as a result of losses in their tourism and hospitality sectors.  Here is a link to the summary of the bill.  Bill Summary

We are in the planning stages for the first 2021 EAUC/EDA webinar.  We look forward to connecting with you all for the first time in this new calendar year, and with a new administration.    Look forward to an e-mail this Friday, outlining the topics for the next webinar.   We will also be announcing our calendar for 2021 - topics we will be highlighting in the year ahead.  We look forward to hearing your ideas, sharing best practices and helping you access the resources you need to grow your EDA University Center.

The Educational Association of University Centers will be holding its 2020 Annual Conference in Washington DC, March 15-17, 2020 at the Hilton Garden Inn.  This year's conference will have a number of special guest from EDA, USDA and other federal agencies.  Additionally, we will be holding a special joint Federal agency networking event/reception with the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO).

To register for this year's conference, click here.

Here is a link to the November EDA/EAUC monthly webinar.  A link to the slides is also provided.

The EAUC is currently planning its 2020 Winter Conference in Washington DC.  The target date is March 15-17, 2020 in the Washington DC area.  Expect more information posted here in the coming weeks.

Please join us on Wednesday, September 25th for our next EAUC/EDA University Center webinar.  This month we will be discussing best practices in working with your EDA Economic Development District.  Our guest speaker will be Roberto Gallardo is Assistant Director of the Purdue Center for Regional Development and a Purdue Extension Community & Regional Economics Specialist. He holds an electronics engineering undergraduate degree, a master's in economic development, and a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration. Gallardo has worked with rural communities over the past fifteen years conducting local & regional community economic development, including the use of technology for development.

He has authored more than 90 articles and reports including peer-reviewed and news-related regarding rural trends, socioeconomic analysis, industrial clusters, the digital divide, and leveraging broadband applications for community economic development. He is also the author of the book “Responsive Countryside: The Digital Age & Rural Communities,” which highlights a 21^st-century community development model that helps rural communities transition to, plan for, and prosper in the digital age. Dr. Gallardo is a TEDx speaker and his work has been featured in a WIRED magazine article, a MIC.com documentary, and a RFDTV documentary. He lives in West Lafayette with his wife and two daughters.

Colleagues and Friends:

I am writing to you from my position as President of the Educational Association of University Centers (EAUC).  The purpose of this communication is to provide a brief status report of the transition of the association to its new administrative home on the West Coast.  Also to provide the planned schedule of events over the next 12 months, and to give you a glimpse of my perspective of the current and future challenges and opportunities at the Federal level in DC.

We are in the final stages of placing the membership, communication and administrative responsibilities for the association under the purview of the new Executive Director of the EAUC, Dan Ripke who directed the EDA University Center Program at the University of California- Chico for over 30 years very successfully.  He has been very active with the EAUC, UEDA, IEDC and other organizations and associations over those decades, and is eagerly  helping lead our association into a new era.  I have complete confidence in his ability to do so.  As many of you know the association has deferred membership dues for the past year during the transition period and will resume the requirement of dues payment into the future so you will be receiving that information soon also.

Two events are planned over the next months, the first being a meeting that will be scheduled consecutive to the UEDA Annual Conference that will occur September 29- October 2ed in Reno/Tahoe Nevada.  The next date to save will be for the EAUC Annual Conference in Washington DC next Spring.  We are in the process of establishing the venue and the dates which we expect will be in March or April, so stay tuned for that announcement in the near future.

Now, briefly, to the state of affairs in DC of Congress and Federal agencies. The fiscal year (fy19) that began on October 1^st, of 2018, began in fits and starts with continuing resolutions on the budget, culminating in the longest ever government shutdown over the holiday season and continuing for 35 days.  That has resulted in an environment in which there are challenges and very real opportunities.  The challenges are mostly faced by Federal agencies who were not able to release funds until recently, because of the uncertainty of appropriation amounts and timing.  This means that they must spend an entire fiscal year of funding in the remaining 9 months (actually less because they generally want to have all funds obligated by September 1^st).

This circumstance provides a clear opportunity for institutions and organizations that are seeking funding.  The key to success are proposals that have a high potential for results, outcomes, and deliverables that help the funding agency achieve its goals and objectives and meet the expectations of the appropriators in Congress.  Therefore, if you have a well-formed plan for a project or program that will yield benefits to a region, state or a segment of the population look for the agency that funds that area of activity and submit a proposed scope.  Something to keep in mind is that agencies always look favorably when grantees include other Federal programs that can collaborate.  An example is for EDA University Centers to include the NIST MEP program whenever working with manufacturing firms on technology and business assistance or other projects. 

From the perspective of the Economic Development Administration, the EDA University Center Programs  can make an impact by stretching their funding further through partnerships with regional, state, and local partners (including nonprofits and Economic Development Planning Districts),  and by sharing their successes broadly – making sure to state that they are an EDA‐funded University Center. Funding for the University Center Program is at great risk of being cut, so the top priority of university centers absolutely must be fighting for the sustainability of their funding through messaging both to their stakeholders and to EDA’s appropriators who want to cut program funding.

A better proposal and idea is only as good as the availability of money to fund that project.   In that regard every university center needs to contact their members of congress both through the congressional district offices and DC offices to convey the value proposition of funding for the EDA University Center Program in their districts.  Specific examples of assistance provided to regions, communities, organizations and companies, and jobs created and/or retained as well as other economic development benefits are most effective.

In closing, I wish you and your programs success in the coming year and look forward to seeing you at upcoming events.  In the meantime EAUC leaders continue to monitor the congressional and agency latticework in DC and are always willing to provide guidance or answer any questions.

Sincerely,

Lawrence A. Molnar, President

Educational Association of University Centers

kallen@umich.edu

Mobile:  (734) 355-5062 

For over thirty years, the Educational Association of University Centers has worked to support the important work conducted by the network for Economic Development Administration (EDA) University Centers.  The efforts of the EAUC focus attention on the impacts of our EDA University Centers.

From EDA's website:

"Institutions of higher education have extensive resources, including specialized research, outreach, technology transfer, and commercialization capabilities, as well as recognized faculty expertise and sophisticated laboratories. The EDA-supported University Center (UC) program is specifically designed to marshal the resources located within colleges and universities to support regional economic development strategies in regions of chronic and acute economic distress. The UCs, which EDA considers long-term partners in economic development, are required to devote the majority of their funding to respond to technical assistance requests originating from organizations located in the economically distressed portions of their service regions.

The UCs have a long history of promoting and facilitating economic development in their service regions. They have been among the first to recognize emerging technical assistance needs. As early as FY 1980, EDA-funded UCs were among the first to recognize and respond to the needs of small- and medium-sized manufacturers and processors for technology transfer and commercialization assistance.

Most UCs focus their efforts on assisting units of local governments and nonprofit organizations in planning and implementing regional economic development strategies and projects. Typical actions provided by the UCs include targeted commercialization of research, workforce development, and business counseling services. Other UCs may focus their efforts on helping local organizations with conducting preliminary feasibility studies, analyzing data, and convening customized seminars and workshops on topics such as regional strategic planning and capital budgeting."