{"id":2347,"date":"2023-07-11T21:23:06","date_gmt":"2023-07-11T21:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/?p=2347"},"modified":"2023-07-12T20:47:14","modified_gmt":"2023-07-12T20:47:14","slug":"resilience-in-rural-communities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/resilience-in-rural-communities\/","title":{"rendered":"Resilience in Rural Communities"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

EOU faculty and students empower local communities through insights<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\"Joe
Dr. Joe Corsini with students at Cottonwood Crossing Summer Institute<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

You\u2019ve probably heard reference to the \u201cREV\u201d Center before. Or at least know EOU has a REV Center. The Rural Engagement & Vitality \u2013 or REV \u2013 Center is a joint venture between À¶Ý®ÊÓƵ and Wallowa Resources with the goal and intent of serving as a hub to connect students, faculty, staff, and community, to the revitalization of the rural region of Oregon, and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wallowa Resources\u2019 mission is to \u201cempower rural communities to create strong economies and healthy landscapes through land stewardship, education, and job creation.\u201d À¶Ý®ÊÓƵ, designated as Oregon\u2019s Rural University in 2018, has a long tradition of serving rural students and has identified as a goal in its strategic plan the aim to promote prosperity and resilience in rural communities. Together, the two share oversight of the REV Center as a means to provide steady guidance and support to reach their shared vision of vibrant and prosperous rural communities across eastern Oregon. \u201cThis allows the University to be engaged in applied, practical, project-based work that contributes to community developmen and business needs and provides an opportunity for students to be involved in real-world experience in the hopes of training a workforce who will stay and work here,\u201d said Nils Christoffersen, Executive Director of Wallowa Resources. \u201cThis has been just over three years in the making with a good portfolio of projects. The REV aims to push innovation as a sector of growth, not by competing with existing organizations but looking for its own niches.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The REV Center was originally founded in January of 2020 by EOU and Wallowa Resources as an innovative new hub for connecting local and regional communities with the university, especially where businesses, agencies, and local governments need interns for a variety of projects. \u201cThe REV is the junction box that helps connect EOU to the communities we serve,\u201d said Tim Seydel, Vice President for University Advancement. \u201cThe REV is a very unique, mission-driven project you don\u2019t see in a lot of other areas. There are so many community needs throughout the region we can be responsive to and provide real-world learning opportunities for students, while truly helping our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While many might associate the REV with natural resources and land use projects, its capacity and reach spans into all areas of focus, including education and even performing arts. \u201cWe want to tap into all of the great resources we have on campus,\u201d Seydel said. \u201cOn the list of current projects is arts and humanities connected with the theater department. There is a group of people exploring the urban-rural divide and are turning this into a first-person theater production. We\u2019re primarily focused on eastern Oregon, but the types of projects we have the capacity for spans across many fields and industries.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Current REV Center Projects<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Urban-Rural Theater: <\/strong>is a project through the REV to collect stories as it pertains to the urban-rural divide, specifically from individuals less represented in mainstream media. The result will be a verbatim script theater production to increase dialogue on the full scope of the Oregon experience.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Urban Rural Ambassadors:<\/strong> is a joint effort between EOU and Portland State University to build awareness across the urban-rural divide and help students explore and appreciate similarities and differences surrounding social and economic issues across the state.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Cottonwood Crossing Summer Institute: <\/strong>is a week-long residency field program for high school students. Students are able to select studies in cultural or natural resources and are able to earn EOU credits while studying.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Blues Intergovernmental Council (BIC):<\/strong> is currently working with the REV to provide facilitation support as they progress through updating workplans and projects. Additionally, REV conducted socioeconomic research and impact analyses. These analyses are informing decisions as the Forest Service updates the forest management plan, among other projects.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Get Outside After School Activity Program (GO-ASAP):<\/strong> is a program to provide middle school students the opportunity to connect with the natural world throughout a multitude of outdoor activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is an important tool, as it serves many different people in a multitude of ways. It provides students the opportunity to work on, learn from, and provide input on real-world issues, projects, and agencies. It\u2019s a hands-on approach to education. It provides faculty and staff the chance to interact and engage with the communities and region to help revitalize and keep rural Oregon vibrant. It\u2019s a continued application of research and methodologies. It\u2019s a fresh set of eyes and renewed enthusiasm for the community organizations and agencies on their own projects. It\u2019s unique, but personalized and data-driven answers to real questions and programming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur aim is to promote prosperity and resilience in rural communities and we\u2019re doing this by providing students with experiential learning opportunities,\u201d Seydel commented. \u201cWe\u2019re enhancing the vitality of the region by developing tomorrow’s rural workforce and leaders. And we\u2019re doing this by engaging our faculty and students in this work through projects supporting economic development, land use and regional planning, arts and culture, and educational strategies for youth in partnership with other businesses, organizations, and agency. Exactly like a junction box.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Communities served by REV<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Three EOU faculty sat down together to discuss and share their unique perspectives about the REV and its multi-faceted impacts on students\u2019 experiences, on their own work, and on the communities these projects serve.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Dr.
Dr. Scott McConnell<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Dr.
Dr. Daniel Costie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Dr.
Dr. Peter Maille<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Why is the REV advantageous to EOU and the communities served?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter Maille:<\/strong>\u00a0 Anything that can link EOU to the region is a good thing; universities who work with and for their communities do better.\u00a0 It\u2019s everything from an internship program to allowing teachers to be out there serving the communities.\u00a0 Faculty oversee and work on projects, serving as a resource as well.\u00a0 We truly understand and are in-tune with the needs of the region because we live this every day.\u00a0 We can take our expertise and leverage that for the local communities, agencies, and resources for maximum use.\u00a0 We are stewards of the agencies and resources, and we\u2019re stewards of the university.\u00a0 We can take our students and go out there and make good things happen for the community.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Daniel Costie:<\/strong> \u00a0It\u2019s offering the opportunity to counter the narrative that degrees don\u2019t do anything for the towns.\u00a0 What\u2019s being learned and taught at EOU has practical applications for the city, county, and region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scott McConnell:<\/strong>\u00a0 There is expertise in your backyard to tap into.\u00a0 There isn\u2019t need to outsource to agencies outside of the region where an underlying understanding of actual community needs may not exist.\u00a0 We can provide local expertise.\u00a0 There\u2019s huge potential to really grow and further provide the resources for different agencies and organizations and to serve the needs of the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What has been your favorite experience thus far with the REV?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

DC:<\/strong>\u00a0 I\u2019m fascinated by how people come together to solve problems.\u00a0 I\u2019m still learning about rural spaces and how that happens and have found it takes a lot more \u2018of the village\u2019 to align for these projects to come together.\u00a0 Working with so many levels of government, especially with the BIC, I\u2019m seeing these in action.\u00a0 It\u2019s making me a better teacher.\u00a0 It\u2019s making me approach my research in a way to affect real change.\u00a0 The public engagement sessions I\u2019ve facilitated are the most enjoyable interactions I\u2019ve had because of REV.\u00a0 I get to see so many parts of this region I hadn\u2019t yet seen before.\u00a0 I have met so many people I may not have had the opportunity to meet prior.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PM:<\/strong>\u00a0 The best thing I\u2019ve worked on through the REV was with the socioeconomic study to help advise the forest management plan.\u00a0 I haven\u2019t had a chance to do a project of that scale since my Ph.D. research, from start to finish.\u00a0 What an accomplishment and I loved it.\u00a0 It was such a fun, challenging project and the opportunity to collaborate with so many stakeholders was incredible.\u00a0 That\u2019s why I live here: for those relationships and those opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes the REV unique for EOU students?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SM:<\/strong>\u00a0 The experience is real.\u00a0 It\u2019s real resume-building material.\u00a0 You\u2019re sitting in on these meetings with the highest levels of officials, how many other students can say they do this?\u00a0 It\u2019s a great EOU experience because you\u2019re engaging with eastern Oregon, with the movers, shakers, and decision makers.\u00a0 No matter what you\u2019re doing, you\u2019re learning so much, things you might not even realize you\u2019re learning.\u00a0 There is so much to take away from all of these opportunities.\u00a0 Just getting to be there, absorb the conversations, maybe offer an opinion.\u00a0 Realizing \u2018this is what this world looks like\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

DC:\u00a0 <\/strong>If you want to do mission-driven work and change your community, and if you really want to have influence, these are true opportunities to do so.\u00a0 There are projects where we\u2019re offering data-driven recommendations to help inform these agencies and the students’ work is informing real-world decisions.\u00a0 This may be the best way to \u2018grow a great society by planting the tree you won\u2019t take shade under,\u2019 to quote the proverb.\u00a0 This is where EOU, its students, its faculty, its community partners, truly make a difference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EOU faculty and students empower local communities through insights You\u2019ve probably heard reference to the \u201cREV\u201d Center before. Or at least know EOU has a REV Center. The Rural Engagement & Vitality \u2013 or REV \u2013 Center is a joint venture between À¶Ý®ÊÓƵ and Wallowa Resources with the goal and intent of serving […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":491,"featured_media":2351,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[41,175,174,45],"class_list":["post-2347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spring-2023","tag-education","tag-rev-center","tag-rural-engagement-and-vitality","tag-student"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2347","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/491"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2347"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2347\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2392,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2347\/revisions\/2392"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2351"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eou.edu\/mountaineer-magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}