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WIU President Guiyou Huang with Director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) Kristin Richards
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34th Annual Rural Community Development Conference

March 20, 2023

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MACOMB, IL - - The Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) at Western Illinois University recently hosted the 34th annual Rural Community Economic Development Conference at the end of February in Springfield, IL.

The event, co-hosted with Rural Partners and the Governor's Rural Affairs Council, chaired by Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, focused on creative strategies rural places can use to recruit and retain businesses and workers.

WIU President Guiyou Huang opened the conference with remarks about the vital role universities play in driving rural prosperity.

"Promoting rural development is something that affects us all, and I believe we should all be working together to promote it, which is why this conference is so important," said Huang. "This conference brings together many highly valued partners, including state and federal agencies, elected officials, nonprofit organizations, academics, business owners and community leaders. I am optimistic about the future of Illinois, knowing that we will be working collectively to improve the quality of life for Illinois residents."

Lt. Gov. Stratton followed President Huang's remarks and echoed the vital role played by universities, state agencies and communities working together to promote rural development.

Kristin Richards, the newly appointed director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), discussed the ways that DCEO promotes rural development, such as through their newly created Office for Rural Development and the Illinois Grocery Initiative, which will help open grocery stores in both urban and rural food deserts.

Speakers from the University of Wisconsin, University of Akron and Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis discussed the importance of entrepreneurship to sustaining the main street economy, especially during the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Breakout sessions featured speakers from Kansas State University, University of Illinois Extension, Association of Illinois Rural and Small Schools and rural Illinois communities who discussed how to start rural grocery stores, the importance of broadband to rural development, how schools can help drive development and the essential role community planning can play in rural community revitalization. Two other sessions involved staff members from the Office of the Lt. Governor who engaged conference attendees in discussions about rural development priorities for the state and the Lt. Governor's Ag Equity and Food Insecurity initiative.

The final set of presentations featured federal agencies that discussed their respective technical assistance and funding programs to support rural development. Agencies in these sessions included the USDA-Rural Development, Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), Economic Development Administration (EDA), Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Health and Human Services (HHS).

The conference attracted 291 attendees from four states and included representatives from higher education, local and state elected officials, planning agencies, nonprofit organizations, government administrators, state and federal agencies, private businesses, students and rural community residents.

For more information on the IIRA at WIU, visit wiu.edu/iira.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing