As part of the The Northeast Iowa Business Network (NIBN)'s grant with the U.S. Department of
Commerce and contract with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach (ISUEO)’s
Community and Economic Development (CED) program, an action planning session was performed to
examine themes drawn out from the primary and secondary data studies generated by ISUEO
CED. The process included visioning, identifying priorities, and strategic planning. Jane
Goeken and Eric Christianson, ISUEO community development specialists, agreed to organize
and facilitate a process that involved the following steps:
- Conduct a visioning and action planning session with stakeholders.
- Preparation of a final report including:
- Participants’ vision for the Northeast Iowa area
- Environmental scan
- Development of a timeline and identification of a “champion” for each action step
In addition, other regional Field Specialists were tapped to review the data and action plan and
make further recommendations on similar programs and potential resources that may be of
interest to the NIBN group. Those recommendations are included in this report.