Serving Henry, Mercer, Rock Island & Stark Counties
For more information, contact Russell Medley, Community & Economic Development Educator Email: rmedley@illinois.edu
New Report Touts UI Extension Impact
Do you know what impact Illinois Extension has on the State of Illinois? Check out this new report.
Illinois CARES Act Funding Update - Sept 29, 11 AM
Illinois CARES Act Funding Update - Exciting New Services through the CARES Act for Illinois Businesses (highlights from Southern Illinois ITC; Expanding sales to the global market)
Co-hosted by: Richland County Development Corporation
Tuesday, September 29 at 11 AM
Presented by: Silvia Torres Bowman, Director, International Trade Center (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville)

This presentation will cover the fundamentals and benefits of exporting as well as local, state and federal programs to help southern Illinois businesses get started with successful exporting or improve their current export efforts. Hear experiences about the challenges and potential rewards of selling abroad. We will kick off the webinar with remarks from Courtney Yockey, Executive Director of the Richland County Development Corporation.


University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment. For reasonable accommodation, please contact Nancy Ouedraogo at esarey@illinois.edu.
BIG application for businesses available!
The 2nd round will:
  • Support businesses in offsetting COVID-19 related losses
  • Deploy funding equitably across the state
  • Provide community navigators to help more minority-owned businesses access grants
  • Build on $49 million mobilized to over 2,800 businesses last month
The Impact of Dollar General Stores on Rural IL Communities, October 8, Noon
The Impacts of Dollar General Stores on Rural Illinois Communities
Co-hosted by Rural Partners
Thursday, October 8, at Noon
Presented by: Adee Athiyaman, PhD., Professor of Public Policy and Economic Development, Western Illinois University; Chris Merrett, PhD., Director, Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs, Western Illinois University

The number of Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Family Dollar stores has expanded dramatically, bucking the trend of the retail apocalypse, which has restructured and forced the closure of many brick and mortar retail store chains over the past two decades. In 2000, there were 4,294 Dollar General Stores in the United States, with 203 of those in Illinois. By 2017, the number of Dollar General Stores had expanded to 14,609 nationally, with 481 of those in Illinois. The Dollar General Store expansion is particularly relevant to rural stakeholders, because unlike Family Dollar and Dollar Tree Stores, which have expanded mostly in urban and suburban markets, Dollar General Stores have also expanded significantly in rural communities. The purpose of this presentation is to describe the expansion of Dollar Stores in Illinois, provide a market profile of communities that host Dollar General stores, explore the profile of consumers who shop at these kinds of stores, and examine the positive and negative impacts these stores have on rural Illinois communities.
Budget Structures, Taxes & Strategies
October 29, Noon
Budget Structures, Taxes, and Strategies (with findings from the Volcker Alliance State Budgeting Study)
Thursday, October 29, at Noon
Presented by:
Dr. Beverly Bunch, Professor, Public Administration, UIS
Dr. Yonghong Wu, Professor, Public Administration, UIC
Dr. Awri Kriz, Research Scholar, Illinois Institute for Public Finance, UIS

Local governments have become concerned about potential reductions in intergovernmental revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic and the related federal and state budget uncertainty. While essential public services and debt payments must continue, the revenue to sustain them is in question. Dr. Awri Kriz uses municipal budget data from the State Comptroller’s local government data warehouse from 2010 to 2019 to analyze city finances. Her profiles of groups of cities based on their financial condition, debt levels, and revenue and expenditure structures will help present a case for balancing municipal budgets using these profiles and existing academic literature.

Local property and sales taxes are major sources of revenue for municipal governments in Illinois. Municipal governments are quite concerned with possible large reductions in revenue production from the two taxes, but substantial uncertainty exists regarding the magnitude of the decline. Dr. Yonghong Wu will discuss municipal property and sales taxes will be affected by COVID Pandemic, in taking lessons from the Great Recession of 2007-2009. Based on existing literature and municipal revenue data, Dr. Wu will explore the pattern of volatility of municipal property and sales taxes during the Great Recession and discuss how the two broad-based taxes will likely perform during and after the current COVID pandemic.

Dr. Beverly Bunch will present findings from the Volcker Alliance State Budgeting Study with Possible Implications for Local Governments. This presentation will provide an overview of the Volcker Alliance’s Truth and Integrity in State Budgeting study. The presentation will provide a summary of the findings, focusing on the State of Illinois. The presenter also will discuss ways in which the Volcker Alliance budget study may provide useful strategies for local governments that are faced with fiscal challenges due to COVID-19.
2020 Presidential & Congressional Elections: Rural America's Impact & Stake, November 10 at 9 AM
The 2020 Presidential and Congressional Elections: Rural America’s Impact and Stake
Co-host: Rural Partners
Tuesday, November 10 at 9 AM
Presenter: Dr. John Jackson, Visiting Professor, Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, Southern Illinois University

The Rural Partners Board of Directors invites you to a presentation and discussion regarding the November elections and how their results impact rural areas in our state and across the country. Our speaker is Dr. John Jackson, SIU Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, and formerly the Chancellor of SIU’s Carbondale campus. Jackson edits the Simon Review series, and is a frequent contributor to local, state, and national media coverage of government and politics.
University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment. For reasonable accommodation, please contact Nancy Ouedraogo at esarey@illinois.edu.