Oklahoma counties SET to take part in national economic development initiative

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Two regions in Oklahoma were chosen for SET – “Stronger Economies Together,” a national partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development and the Cooperative Extension Service.

“SET is a proven, highly interactive program that helps rural residents and leaders build regional partnerships focused on their particular economic strengths,” said Dave Shideler, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension community development Specialist and an assistant professor in the department of agricultural economics.

The new SET regions are Route 66 Community Partners, which includes Creek, Lincoln and Payne counties, and South-Central Oklahoma, which is made up of Coal, Garvin, Johnston, Murray and Pontotoc counties.

“Route 66 Community Partners is very excited about being selected for the SET Program,” said Jan Neufeld of the Route 66 Community Partners region. “Our group saw the need for developing a regional economic development plan but had absolutely no idea how to go about it. This program will give us the tools necessary to accomplish those goals.”

Small, rural communities have to move beyond the Friday night rivalries and work together in order to compete in a global market, said Mike Southard of the South-Central region.

“Regionally, we can collaborate to solve common problems and grow our collective economies,” he said. “We are looking forward to building stronger relationships with our team and are very appreciative of the opportunity that the USDA has presented us.”

As part of the nine-month program, the regions will participate in eight coaching sessions covering an overview of the region and participating counties, team building exercises and an intensive study of the region’s economic climate and potential resources. The final two sessions will focus on creating a strategic plan the region can put into action.

Additionally, the regions will have access to 40 hours of technical assistance from the SET coaching team made up of professionals from state and federal agencies, OSU, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service and other public and private organizations including Oklahoma Small Business Development Centers, CareerTech, Oklahoma Department of Commerce, State Office of Rural Health, Oklahoma Association of Community Action Agencies, Oklahoma Association of Regional Councils, and OG+E.

Ryan McMullen, Oklahoma director of USDA Rural Development, said more community and county leaders are recognizing that effective economic enhancement involves finding ways to reach the needed critical mass of knowledge, talents, skills and resources to successfully develop and enact a plan of action.

“SET harnesses the expertise of USDA and Cooperative Extension to help communities bring together the knowledge, skills and resources necessary to put a plan into action,” he said. “SET participants in other states have developed industry specific training programs, as well as successfully applied for grants and other monetary assistance targeted toward economic enhancement and development.”

Oklahoma was one of seven states selected to participate in Phase IV of SET. Oklahoma also participated in Phase III of the initiative when the Kiamichi (Choctaw, Haskell, Latimer, Leflore, McCurtain and Pushmataha counties) and the Western OK I-40 regions (Custer, Beckham, Caddo and Washita counties) completed the program.

For more information about SET, contact McMullen at 405-742-1000 or Shideler at 405-744-6170.